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-   -   Lowering 68 Camaro Small Block 327 (https://camaroforums.com/forum/67-69-suspension-139/lowering-68-camaro-small-block-327-a-80814/)

rytas 01-27-2017 07:58 AM


Originally Posted by Gabet95 (Post 717298)
I was wondering if there's any advantages in going with the Hotchkis Lowering Leaf spring kit over buying just lowering leaf spring from other brands?

Thanks

i would say that it's preference and what you are going to use your car for. mine gets occasional cruises and hits some car shows. i beat on it from time to time too. for me, i don't need a fully upgraded racing suspension, but i needed something more modern and way better than squishy stock. i bought the hotchkis kit because it's proven, had great reviews, and was more cost effective than other brands. that being said, i went with QA1 control arms for the same reason over hotchkis.

i hit a couple of different forums also and read what people were using, and went from there. the before and after of my ride and handling is incredible and tons of fun. definitely some of the best money i've spent.

MikeJ67 04-03-2017 09:44 PM

I'm thinking of dropping my '67 here in a couple of weeks. I was thinking of the 2" drop leaf springs in the rear and going 3" up front. I have the 2" dropped CPP spindles on my Big Brake Kit and I was thinking of adding a 1" dropped spring to get a big fat zero gap between the tires & fender lips. What do you think? Is that too low up front? I'm going to probably go with 18s this time around. So I'd love to go with 235s up front (if somebody made those) and the 275s in the rear - though I'm probably going to mini tub the car in 2-3 weeks so that would make the rears 315s.

rytas 04-04-2017 07:43 AM


Originally Posted by MikeJ67 (Post 718876)
I'm thinking of dropping my '67 here in a couple of weeks. I was thinking of the 2" drop leaf springs in the rear and going 3" up front. I have the 2" dropped CPP spindles on my Big Brake Kit and I was thinking of adding a 1" dropped spring to get a big fat zero gap between the tires & fender lips. What do you think? Is that too low up front? I'm going to probably go with 18s this time around. So I'd love to go with 235s up front (if somebody made those) and the 275s in the rear - though I'm probably going to mini tub the car in 2-3 weeks so that would make the rears 315s.

again, it's preference. how do you use your Camaro? my lowering kit actually raised mine up. before that, i was around the 3"-3.25" drop, and in Chicago, it was too much. pot holes were avoidable, but i was constantly weaving all over the place. i got stuck trying to exit the jewel parking lot once. had to rev it up and drag the frame along the sidewalk.

like i stated before, i have the 2" drop up front, and 1.5" in the back. i think it sits great. i might lower the back eventually maybe to 2" if it doesn't settle a bit, but overall i'm happy. i still get the occasional rub here and there but that 1" makes quite a difference.

the 3'' drop looks fantastic, but was not practical at all for me.

if anything, do the rear first, and see how you like it. you can always change the front springs after that....

MikeJ67 04-04-2017 12:35 PM

rytas - Thanks man. That sounds about right. I've seen the 2" up front but it still looks tall. I can still put my hand 1.5"? in-between the tire & fender and I was hoping to get the top of the tire at the lip to make it look lower. I'm out in Nor Cal so the roads aren't too bad, but I'd hate to get stuck on something like a curb. Good point.


Oh well, the 2" up front and may 2" drop leaf springs will be enough. The rest I can make up with tire size (height) to see how well things fill out.


As always, thanks for the input. It's just too expensive to do this by trail & error these days.

Gabet95 04-10-2017 08:35 PM


Originally Posted by MikeJ67 (Post 718888)
rytas - Thanks man. That sounds about right. I've seen the 2" up front but it still looks tall. I can still put my hand 1.5"? in-between the tire & fender and I was hoping to get the top of the tire at the lip to make it look lower. I'm out in Nor Cal so the roads aren't too bad, but I'd hate to get stuck on something like a curb. Good point.


Oh well, the 2" up front and may 2" drop leaf springs will be enough. The rest I can make up with tire size (height) to see how well things fill out.


As always, thanks for the input. It's just too expensive to do this by trail & error these days.

I originally went with Hotchkis lowering kit 2" front and 3" rear. The car rode and handled terrible. So after debating for awhile on what to do, I went ahead and swapped out my 3" drop Hotchkis rear leaf springs with 1.5" lowering kit from hotchkis and added .5" spacer to the front 2" drop front coils.
The car rides and handles so much better now and the stance is exactly what I was looking for.

rytas 04-11-2017 09:22 AM


Originally Posted by Gabet95 (Post 719035)
I originally went with Hotchkis lowering kit 2" front and 3" rear. The car rode and handled terrible. So after debating for awhile on what to do, I went ahead and swapped out my 3" drop Hotchkis rear leaf springs with 1.5" lowering kit from hotchkis and added .5" spacer to the front 2" drop front coils.
The car rides and handles so much better now and the stance is exactly what I was looking for.

if you can post some pics, i'd really like to see the extra 1/2'' and how it changes the stance. glad you are happy with the swap out.

MikeJ67 04-11-2017 09:48 AM

Gabet95
Right on. What size tires are you running on yours? I think I'm just going to go with the 2"-2" on mine for now. Again, the tires can make up some difference (40s vs 45s) so maybe I should just start the assembly and see what it does.
Thanks

Gabet95 04-15-2017 03:40 PM


Originally Posted by rytas (Post 719045)
if you can post some pics, i'd really like to see the extra 1/2'' and how it changes the stance. glad you are happy with the swap out.

I'll take pictures from a few angles and post them as soon as I get the car back from the shop.
I'm having the vinyl top removed and going to spray it white just like the rest of the car.

Gabet95 04-15-2017 03:44 PM


Originally Posted by MikeJ67 (Post 719047)
Gabet95
Right on. What size tires are you running on yours? I think I'm just going to go with the 2"-2" on mine for now. Again, the tires can make up some difference (40s vs 45s) so maybe I should just start the assembly and see what it does.
Thanks

Im running 225/40r18 up front and 245/40r18 in the rear. Could probably go with 45 series tires for a smoother ride.

MikeJ67 04-16-2017 03:17 PM

Yeah, I like the ride of a 45 series tire better, but the fit of a 40 gives a little more room. Since I'll be driving this one on the street, that's probably a good idea.

Yes, photos always help


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