CRASHz427

iTrader: (14)

I have the car pretty much stripped down to a shell for mock up and the cage. My question is, how much of the sheetmetal can be removed from around the strut towers ( the front portion ) before you start jacking with structural integrity of the front end. If i had to I could run bars from the interior cage out to the rails but wasnt sure if this was necessary.

Pics if you got them please!

TurboStangJON

iTrader: (27)

This is mine so far and it's not entirely finished. I'm going to run a smaller tube from the forward bars down to support the motorplate. This will run right beside the shock tower and I intend on welding the entire tube to the tower. This will also go for the rear of the shock tower because I plan on cutting from there back to the firewall to run headers.

studderin

iTrader: (28)

you can trim alot in the door jam, end of the dash hollow spot too, when you trim behind the towers, it a good time to re do the firewall cowl then too. (strait up if going lexan) look up ATVracer post when he went spindle form hub style front end and did all that for rear headers.

you can also drill the spot weld off the top sheet metal (cap) over the upper shock mount bolts (in the engine bay). whitetone has that done, and most of the MWC cages for the past few years. ohio boys, ant.

ssvert99

iTrader: (26)

You can do a little...





Or a lot...





We do offer the cowl removal kit, cage, and suspension components for the DIY guys!

WhiteLTone

iTrader: (18)

^MWC did my engine bay with cowl removal and strut tower mods including bay bars. turned out awesome. pulled 100# outta the car since last year and added the 8.50 cert

a98ws6

iTrader: (48)

Are the engine bay bars needed if the front sections are just removed? Anybody have pics of that setup?

ty_ty13

iTrader: (42)

https://ls1tech.com/forums/17453404-post253.html

do it right the first time and cut all that **** out.

studderin

iTrader: (28)

whats some class rules on this?

White.Lightning

iTrader: (53)

^^^ You weren't messing around!

ty_ty13

iTrader: (42)

nmca frowns up these modifications but they also have a hard time paying their winners.... so nmca is not a concern of mine. most any other classes do not care.

CRASHz427

iTrader: (14)

Great examples guys thanks. Given me a ton ideas here

Sofls1

iTrader: (16)

For those who have the top sheet metal cap removed, how much weight does that save? Also how much does that affect the structural integrity? Would this be okay to do on a street driven car that doesn't have those forward bars with the cage?

White.Lightning

iTrader: (53)

Once the cage is tied into the shock towers and frame rails, how much more work is it to make the front end removable? I remember seeing it done in Fireball's build thread. I saw that there is some sort of slot to receive the bumper, then supports behind the front tire. Then is it just dzus fasteners along the fender and shock tower seam?

I can't believe how much room there is with trimming the strut towers, let alone a removable front end.

Reject

iTrader: (24)

could a custom cage be made to KEEP the wiper motor functional? maybe MWC????

ty_ty13

iTrader: (42)

once you have the "mouth" that the bar slides into thats made into the front cap the only dzus fasteners are just used around the door hinge/front clip seem. depending on how TYDO racecars does it.

ssvert99

iTrader: (26)

It can be done, but the problem is that the bar would have to be mounted so low on the back of the shock tower that it wont be able to pass through in one piece.

You could plate the bar on the back of the shock tower, then add another bar from the upper front side to compete the gusseting effect. It probably is not as strong as the higher mounted one-piece tube like I normally do, but would probably still do the job.

BLINGOLE

iTrader: (5)

Man this is all something im about to do to my 99 turbo bird. I was just searching tech for this! great tread.

Sofls1

iTrader: (16)

Anyone have any thoughts on this? I'm looking for some ways to remove weight, and these things just look heavy. My car isn't a daily anymore, but it does see a good but of street driving. In FL our roads aren't like the Midwest, but I do not want to remove these if its gonna cause a problem structurally without having those front down bars to brace the strut towers like the cars in the pics.

ty_ty13

iTrader: (42)

the windshield in these cars provide some structural integrity on a factory car.... and when you trim the cowl back you'll be left with a hole and a gap between factory hood and windshield.

WhiteLTone

iTrader: (18)

ty - yer new setup looks top notch!