Phew... OK. Didn't know if that's what he was talking about or not. I probably can't recycle the perches from the existing rear end? Can I just order those or let the shop take care of it where I take it to be installed? I've looked several different places online and it sure seems like these two rear ends are the same size. I really would love to get this all done within the next month or so. How much do you think an average shop would charge to change out the rear ends?

I'll be needing to get some new shocks installed at the same time, not sure which route to go. I have 18" wheels that'll be going on the Camaro a little later and was concerned about clearance. Not sure if I should go the air-shock route or what? My car had the performance suspension from the factory which I think meant the sway bar in the rear also (which mine happens to be broken right by the right side shock. Are the sway bars worth it? They're not a ton of money but didn't know if I should bother getting a new one put on at the same time also? As always, suggestions and insight are always appreciated.

 

Sway bars are really worth it.

As long as your aware that the rear won't just bolt in with out welding on perches I don't see a problem. I was just making sure you knew.

 

Thanks for mentioning that Nomad. I don't want to get something that would require a ton of work to make fit in the Camaro is all. Perches run about $25 for good ones I noticed today. I really wish this was a job I knew more about doing as I would love to be able to do it myself. Doesn't really look too complicated actually if it's all put together. The underneath of this car is incredibly clean too, none of the hardware holding the rear end together is even rusty anywhere. It almost looks like it's new still. Do you think there will be any issues with the driveshaft/u-joint connection? What did you guys use for shocks, did you use the coil-overs?

 

It's a very simple job for someone who has a welder and knows how to set pinion angle prior to welding the perches in. I wouldn't take it to just any shop though, as most don't do fabrication work. Find a good fab shop, or rearend shop and they can weld the perches on and then you could do the swap yourself.
You could save a lot of money doing the swap, and if you were to cut off all the stock brackets on the donor rearend and get it cleaned up and ground smooth prior to welding, it will also save you money. Taking both rearends to the shop will make things very easy for them to match up, and then it's just bolting it under your car when completed.
Most people just run some good gas shocks, and nobody runs coilovers unless you change from leaf springs to a 4 link suspension. I've run air shocks since the mid '70's on mine because I like the ability to adjust preload on my suspension. I use the optional dual fill line kit, so I can run more air in the right rear to keep the tires planted on a hard launch.

 

I hope this works out tomorrow. I'm confident I can find someone worthy to get the rear end set up for installation. Taking the existing one out myself would probably be a good idea anyway just so I can get the experience. We'll have to see about installation, I would love to tackle that myself.

I have had air-shocks in my "shopping cart" several times through summit racing but always ended up deciding to wait and talk to people. I like the sound of what you were explaining as well as the sound of not having to spend $300 on shocks! Again, I'm going to need to replace the broken rear swaybar also. Can anyone explain to me why it is that some sway bars are $150 and then you've got Hotchkis..... Is it like buying blue jeans, they're pretty much the same but you always pay more for the trendy name-brand stuff? Or is there actually a difference? It pretty much looks like around a 1" peice of metal no matter which you buy.

 

There's a lot of folks selling good products. Many of them are very competitively built, but why some are much more than others is not something I can explain. I've had very good results with some of the less recognized brands, and even with factory parts.
I know that some companies do huge amounts of testing, so that may explain some of the costs.
Is your swaybar broken, or is it just the mount that's broken? New mounts can be purchased if you don't have to replace the bar, unless it's broken.

 

The sway bar is actually broken. The mounts look perfect still, the bar itself is broke right next to the right side mount. I just figured if it's all going to be torn apart, I might as well do that stuff now. I'm certainly not trying to take the "cheap" route on this car. I would still like to get the car moving fast enough around the corners to actually matter if there's a sway bar or not!

 

Can't say as I've ever seen a broken swaybar. Wonder how it broke.

 

Probably from all that muscle....I'll take a picture of it and post it for you to check out.

 

Success!! After a day from hell, 375 miles later, a new gas hot water heater (that's what I got to do this morning after a really cold shower) and a bunch of gas, I am the proud new owner of a GM 10 bolt 8.5" 4:11 posi rear end! $375 for it and it looks to be in very good shape.

Here's a pic of the rear end and the broken sway bar that I promised. I'll get busy removing the old perches and cleaning it up this weekend.