The front end also used a Gemini lower ball
joint for the top control arm, which was very
restrictive and the whole arrangement didn’t
have much adjustment. The steering arms
were HR Holden items and the Commodore
steering rack used resulted in short tie-rod
ends, leading to all sorts of handling issues.
It was all a little like a Boxing Day dinner – bits
from all over the place made to work together,
but not necessarily work well.
To rectify this, Peter enlisted the boys at
Castlemaine Rod Shop. “I just told them I
wanted it to drive nice, and steer properly,” he
says. “It would never even hold an alignment;
actually my F100 skid car, F-DIS, handlesbetter. I want to be up there winning burnout
comps, and I think making the car handle right
is going to be a big help.”
Since doing the custom front end in Thomas
Beltrame’s FJ40 Toyota Land Cruiser skid rig,
The Rod Shop has done a bunch of unique
IFS set-ups that can be adapted to suit coil-
overs – or airbags like in Peter’s car – and a
range of different brake packages, including
Pete’s monster Wilwoods.
“Our control arms are made from heavy-
duty, thick-wall steel imported from Spain,
and it’s all fully engineered to hold the
weight of these big heavy burnout engines
the boys use,” The Rod Shop’s MarcWaddington says. “So it’ll do the job better
and handle much nicer than Grmusa’s old
set-up ever did. Plus it’ll be much easier
to drive with the power steering we’re
supplying.”
We hung out with the Rod Shop boys for a
couple of days to see how one of their custom
front ends goes into a car like big, heavy-duty
pieces of Lego.
As for the ATRISK Falcon, Peter isn’t giving
away too much about his plans just yet. His
main objective initially is just to piece the car
back together and make sure it drives right.
From there, anything could happen. And
knowing Pete, it probably will! sSTEP
How to properly torque your wheel studs into your hubs:
Screw a couple of bolts into the unused bolt holes (these
hubs are the multi-fit type) and sit them in a vice while
you tighten the studs. Never go straight to the specified
torque setting either; Bob here is doing each bolt up in
three stages to avoid any distortion of the hubPete got the professionals to do the job, but the Rod
Shop boys reckon anyone with a decent set of spanners
could do this in their shed. It comes mostly pre-
assembled and with installation instructions; the main
hurdle is welding in the new crossmemberPePePePPe
ShShShShShShS
cocoucoucoucocoucouccocoucococoucococoucoouoooouou
aassassassassass
hurhurhurhurhurhrrrThe new front end allows for more steering angle than
the old arrangement, which, along with the new power
steering, will make ATRISK easier to drive. Even just
wheeling it in and out of the workshop, Marc says the
difference was immediately noticeable
ABOVE: As part of the upgrade, Grmusa also opted
for a custom power steering system. The Falcon used
to run a Commodore rear rack, which caused short
tie-rod lengths, leading to toe-out and bump steer –
bad for handling. The steering arms were HR Holden- nowhere near as strong as the billet units it now has