How much ground clearance
Thread Starter
Race Director
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 19,610
Likes: 778
From: Forked River NJ
How much ground clearance
Looking at all the Vettes here on the forum some look lower than mine. I think mine could go down another 1/2 to 1 inch. Right now I have only 3 inches to the bottom of the blowshield. 3 1/2 to the bottom of the headers and in the back 4 inches to the exhaust pipes. How are you guys running lowered Vettes without tearing the under carraige out of the car. I bumped the bellhousing once on a speed bump and I was being careful There just does not seem to be a lot of clearance to lower the car.
Senior Member since 1492
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 87,920
Likes: 156
From: Just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean people aren't out to get me...
St. Jude Donor '09
I've got 4 inches to my Mooso oil pan and 3.5 inches on the side exhaust at the front wheel opening. So far, I've only scraped the side exhaust pipe on the passenger side.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 5,727
Likes: 38
From: Fremont CA
I cut the bottom flange of my Lakewood scattershield off to gain ground clearance on my LT-1 Vette (if the clutch blows and pukes out the bottom, I don't care and none of the tech inspectors at the drag strip have seemed to care either!) My Hooker Super Comps are the lowest point of my LT-1 right now and showing signs of it too (a few scrapes and bends on the collector flanges.) My wife drove my car before I cut the bottom flange off of the scattershield and we hit a speed bump and ground to a QUICK! halt when the flange came into contact with the bump! You can use your stock oil pan as a guide for cutting the flange or just go parallel to the bottom of the engine block about 7.25" down from the oil pan rail. I also welded all the nuts to my block plate of the sheild and the tech guys really like the fact that I have all the bolts in place on my scatter shield.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 1,211
Likes: 6
On my '69 427 'vert with the Vette Brakes street slalom kit which did lower it a bit I have 3 &1/2" up to the Hooker Headers. Not as big a deal as I thought it might be. Just have to watch any speed bumps or dips in parking lots,etc. No problem on the road though.
regards, Mark
regards, Mark
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Safety Car
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 3,758
Likes: 3
From: Surrey
Originally Posted by Gordonm
Anyone else 
I avoid speed bumps wherever possible, even if it means taking the long way round. My daily driver decks out on some of the local humps (it's currently got a split exhaust pipe from a speed hump & I'm buggered if I'm going to pay for a new one just to do it again). The dd has far more clearance than the Vette, so I avoid them (instead I take a detour through residential areas, along with all the other traffic avoiding the humps - how the residents must love a barely muffled SBC rumbling by late at night).
