Broken Shock Tower--HELP!!!????
Thread Starter
2nd Gear
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
From: st. louis mo
Broken Shock Tower--HELP!!!????
I have a 96 LT4 that's slightly lowered. I was driving a couple of nights ago and hit an unmarked curb on the left front side. After limping home, I found a large break at the top of the left front Shock-Tower brace. I'm new to the corvette world and am not sure how to fix this problem.
Any help would be much appreciated!
Thanks,
Joe :flag
Any help would be much appreciated!
Thanks,
Joe :flag
Melting Slicks
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,618
Likes: 5
From: Overland Park KS
Re: Broken Shock Tower--HELP!!!???? (zrtist)
I did a similar thing to the passenger side.....
About $3,800 later, it's all fixed.....
On mine they had to heat up the shock tower and bend it back into place. My shock tower was bent really bad but not broken like your's. Perhaps they can just weld the break after they bend it back into proper position. Otherwise it "looks" like the shock tower could be removed by a professional and a new one welded to the frame but I really don't know for sure...
Besides the shock tower I had to replace:
- outer tie rod
- lower ball joint
- wheel bearing
- front shocks
- upper a-arm ball joint
- alignment
- 1 front wheel that wasn't repairable (I bought this car used with custom polished GM 5-spoke wheels. Since GM never made polished wheels I'd have to buy one new grand sport wheel, have it stripped and polished to get my car back to the way it was. So instead, I bought four new chrome ZR-1s with 11" on back).
- new tires (had to get 315s for the rear and hey, all the tread has to match...right?).
($1,100 was the actual structural damage and the rest was wheels and tires :cool: )
Good luck....
About $3,800 later, it's all fixed.....
On mine they had to heat up the shock tower and bend it back into place. My shock tower was bent really bad but not broken like your's. Perhaps they can just weld the break after they bend it back into proper position. Otherwise it "looks" like the shock tower could be removed by a professional and a new one welded to the frame but I really don't know for sure...
Besides the shock tower I had to replace:
- outer tie rod
- lower ball joint
- wheel bearing
- front shocks
- upper a-arm ball joint
- alignment
- 1 front wheel that wasn't repairable (I bought this car used with custom polished GM 5-spoke wheels. Since GM never made polished wheels I'd have to buy one new grand sport wheel, have it stripped and polished to get my car back to the way it was. So instead, I bought four new chrome ZR-1s with 11" on back).
- new tires (had to get 315s for the rear and hey, all the tread has to match...right?).
($1,100 was the actual structural damage and the rest was wheels and tires :cool: )
Good luck....
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 1,722
Likes: 0
From: Big D Tx
Cruise-In II Veteran
Re: Broken Shock Tower--HELP!!!???? (KCvetteowner)
ouch, that sounds expensive. gotta watch those damn curbs. i recently ruined a wheel in my iroc-z smacking a curb because a dog ran in front of me. it completely took a chunk out of the rim and popped the two passenger side tires.
