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After the Billet Specialties hood hinges came in we realized they are MASSIVE.
This video shows the action of these things - very smooth. We mocked them up on the car and they were going to run into the front tires at full bump. That 315mm tire stuffed under stock outer fender contours takes up a LOT of room under the hood, unfortunately. At this point we had figured out that the flat hood was the way to go for venting, so we
could go with a simpler, lighter, and easier to mount single-pivot hood hinge... so the Billet Specialties hinges went back. Oh well, they sure were slick to see in person.
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Our second question here related to the windshield wiper system. Because the factory firewall has been moved significantly, it would be an extreme amount of work to use any of the OEM wiper system components. After researching various options, we felt that a synchronized, direct mount wiper motor system is the best option. This eliminates any linkages that would need to be designed, and instead mounts the wiper arm directly onto a degreed sweep style wiper motor. The industries these style of motors are used in are either motorsports or marine applications. We contacted Bosch to receive more information on their programmable
Motorsport WDA and found there are currently only 3 available in the U.S. with an asking price of $890 each, and the car would need two.
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The second option we found was a very reasonable wiper motor sold by
Marinco. These models have sweeps ranging from 45° to 110° and come in a very compact size. Our plan was to use a three-position switch, giving the driver control of "park", low, and high wiper speed options. With an average price per unit of $150, we could get two of these for less than a third of the price of a single Bosch WDA. Mounting would be straightforward with only one bracket being fabricated for each motor and no linkages needed. Will show more of this after we get a chance to install these parts - we need a windshield and a cowl panel back in the car to design around.
COILOVER SHOCK DISCUSSIONS
After doing some research into the coilover shocks that had previously been purchased we determined that they wouldn't work for a variety of reasons. The springs were sized with giant coilover springs that wouldn't clear the front control arms, the shock brand and model were not something ever seen on road race cars, and the hose lengths for the remote reservoirs were too short. Now that the steering system components were fabricated and the geometry was checked and rechecked, and we would be taking the Camaro off the fab table in the coming weeks, it was time to look at dampers that would be more appropriate for this build.
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During this coilover discussion Ryan sorted out the eye-to-eye style shock mounts at both ends.
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Ryan fabricated double-sheer mounts for both the front and rear shocks (the final shock brand was yet to be determined). The solid "mock-up shocks" were then able to support the suspension at both ends and the car. We were all eager to set this Camaro back on its wheels for the first time in 10 months.
There were some lengthy discussions about shock brands, number of adjustments, remote reservoirs, dyno plots, spring sizes and the like. We are known to be shock snobs here at Vorshlag but we have gotten that way after working with 1000+ shock sales and installs over the past dozen years. I will discuss more about the final shocks when they are installed.
REAR SEAT AREA CROSSMEMBER WORK
The original rectangular rear crossmember behind the driver needed clearance for the driveshaft and exhaust. Now that the driveshaft had arrived it was time to make the U-shaped clearance section and add some tubing to the top to tie into the 3rd link mount cross bar.
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Ryan laid out the shape he wanted, marked center points for some holes, then hole-sawed two massive holes shown above for the corner radii...
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He then cut out the parts in between....
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Used some flat stock to make the curved section...
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Ground everything smooth and flat....
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Then clamped his pre-bent curved section in place and spot welded it along the edges.
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Then the custom aluminum driveshaft was installed. After that the curved tubes closed the box around the U-shaped section and tied into the rear upper 3rd link mount cross bar. Then the 3-rd link mount on the chassis end was modified.
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The upper bracketry was changed to add multiple pick-up points for the upper control arm, just like you can see on the lower arms at the chassis side, for additional rear suspension geometry adjustability. The 3 rear control arms are all adjustable for length as well.
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