1970 camaro subframe

[rm70z]

Motor and transmission out of car . Wanting to remove my subframe for painting out of my 70 Camaro , has anyone tried this without removing front fenders , front radiator support . Want to stay away from touching body as the car has nice paint , any suggestion , thanks

[McCune]

Ryan pulled his out that way. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nQSUfT3AbY

[Too Many Projects]

I didn't see what he used to support the front clip, other than the fender bolts. I would fab up tubular structures to sit on the floor and support the front of the fenders to hold that weight, as the front will sag with only the fender bolts to hold it. Don't open a door after sub frame removal, or you risk scraping the leading edge on the fender.

[rm70z]

Just wondering if its worth all that work pulling it out or just detailing in car , inner fenders where done previous owner ,

[outlawperformance]

It's no problem the front sheet metal will support it, I did support the core support for insurance. I did use this as support when I removed the core support.

[Too Many Projects]

Originally Posted by rm70z

Just wondering if its worth all that work pulling it out or just detailing in car , inner fenders where done previous owner ,

Obviously personal choice on how deep you want to get. If the rest of the car is in really nice condition, I would pull it and have it baked to remove grease and then sand blasted before epoxy prime and paint. I had my '67 sub frame powder coated, but it's not #'s matching, so not worried about correct appearance, although it looks very much like the factory satin finish.


Outlaw has the right idea. Any support is better than none.

[rm70z]

Leaning on removing subframe , Should I take front end suspension out first or take it all together one shot

[Too Many Projects]

It may be easier to handle during removal with the suspension removed first. Either way, you are going to need to capture the spring pressure thru the shock mounts and relieve it with a long piece of threaded rod.
Are you familiar with the method of removing the spindle ?

[rm70z]

No Not familiar with that method what’s involved

[Too Many Projects]

I remove the cotter pins from the upper and lower ball joints. Turn the nuts out 3 turns and then use a pickle fork with a really big hammer to break the taper seal on the stud. OR just use the really big hammer and strike the spindle about center of the stud and it will break free. Striking directly with the hammer will cause dents, so if that isn't desirable, use the pickle fork.
Once you have the ball studs loose, remove the shock, you can do this before breaking the studs free too... and insert 36" of 1/2" diameter all thread rod thru the shock mount hole at the top and thru the bottom of the lower control arm. You'll need a thick plate on the bottom... 1/2" would be safe. Double nut the rod on the bottom, so it can't turn and then tighten a nut on top of a heavy washer on the top side of the all thread until the bottom stud nut can be easily removed. Once you have the nut off, start turning the top nut out, so the spring extends, until it is loose in the lower control arm. You'll need to have 18-24" of space under the car for the spring to extend before it will relax. Once that happens, remove the all thread and the spring and remove the top stud nut and the spindle is free. Observe how the spring rests in the lower control arm for re-assembly. The top of the spring will be wound and ground flat, while the bottom has a pig tail that needs to be clocked into the recess in the lower control arm. Not a big deal to do, but I've seen many people not pay attention to that and have the spring bound up and curved against the shock.

Also, upon reassembly of the control arms, do NOT tighten the mounting bolts with the suspension hanging. The bolts can be snug, but the arms need to move free, as they get tightened with the full weight of the car on the suspension, with rubber bushings. If installing urethane, they can be tightened hanging.