Beam Plates
Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 3,616
Likes: 5
From: Sandhills of North Carolina
Beam Plates
At 180.00 plus shipping are these worth the money?
For those of you that have them did you notice any difference?
Thanks
http://www.zip-corvette.com/Zip/prod...6DB97B404CFA2A
For those of you that have them did you notice any difference?
Thanks
http://www.zip-corvette.com/Zip/prod...6DB97B404CFA2A
Last edited by Weav's Vet; Aug 10, 2009 at 01:30 PM.
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 34,988
Likes: 515
From: Riverside County Southern California
Co-winner 2020 C4 of the Year - Modified
2018 Corvette of Year Finalist
2017 C4 of Year
2016 C7 of Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '09 thru '20
I bought a set from ZFDOC. I have not install them yet
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 9,226
Likes: 9
From: Irvine Ca
Not for $180......
The Mod is great when you are under there trying to get that C-Beam in or out. But measure the hole distance and have a welder tack weld two bolts on a plate after you drill two holes in it.
You have to take the C-Beam out to do something anyway. Once it is out, just get some flat stock from Lowes, cut it to length with a hacksaw, eyeball drill two holes.......put the bolts through and semi tighten the nuts. Take a sharp point and scribe around the nuts or hit it with a spray paint to mark the exact location.....go to any welding shop and ask him to tack them together.........
Home made plates for fractions of the cost
The Mod is great when you are under there trying to get that C-Beam in or out. But measure the hole distance and have a welder tack weld two bolts on a plate after you drill two holes in it.
You have to take the C-Beam out to do something anyway. Once it is out, just get some flat stock from Lowes, cut it to length with a hacksaw, eyeball drill two holes.......put the bolts through and semi tighten the nuts. Take a sharp point and scribe around the nuts or hit it with a spray paint to mark the exact location.....go to any welding shop and ask him to tack them together.........
Home made plates for fractions of the cost
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 8,838
Likes: 31
From: Australia
Well worth the time if only for the ease of R/R.
Much dispute on whether they work; in my case with the manual they removed the habit of the rearend kicking out on the shift as the driveline unloaded.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 8,838
Likes: 31
From: Australia
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
2027 Corvette vs The World: Every C8 vs Its Closest Competitor
Joe Kucinski
Pro
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 610
Likes: 1
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 9,226
Likes: 9
From: Irvine Ca
I couldn't justify the cost so I made my own, you don't even have to weld the nuts ; just have 2 pieces of 1/4 x 1/4 bar either side so the nuts won't rotate.
Well worth the time if only for the ease of R/R.
Much dispute on whether they work; in my case with the manual they removed the habit of the rearend kicking out on the shift as the driveline unloaded.
Well worth the time if only for the ease of R/R.
Much dispute on whether they work; in my case with the manual they removed the habit of the rearend kicking out on the shift as the driveline unloaded.
I still have problems believing that the plate has any performance enhancing value. Either the C-beam is loose or it is not. having a backing plate on there has no bearing on how tight I get the nuts on there......Once the nuts are tightened and the C-beam flexes closed, there will be no difference.
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 1,477
Likes: 80
From: Hawaii
They make it easy during the R&R, and also eliminate the kick out during the gear shift.
I used to really notice kick out when I had the auto trans and had a hard first and second gear shift where the rear would kick to one direction. (forgot which side, its been so long)
The plates installation eliminated the the kick out, and allows it to run straight.
If you race your car, I think it was well worth it.
I used to really notice kick out when I had the auto trans and had a hard first and second gear shift where the rear would kick to one direction. (forgot which side, its been so long)
The plates installation eliminated the the kick out, and allows it to run straight.
If you race your car, I think it was well worth it.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 8,838
Likes: 31
From: Australia
$9.99 version I prepared earlier.
It is the spread of the clamping weight over a larger area instead of just under the bolt head. Every stick car I have pulled the beam out of has had the trans end holes elongated even though the bolts were tight so something is moving.
I still have problems believing that the plate has any performance enhancing value. Either the C-beam is loose or it is not. having a backing plate on there has no bearing on how tight I get the nuts on there......Once the nuts are tightened and the C-beam flexes closed, there will be no difference.
Last edited by rodj; Aug 10, 2009 at 09:50 PM.
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 20,176
Likes: 673
From: Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.
St. Jude '03 thru '24
After rebuilding the rear suspension with the ES bushings I also installed a set of plates. The end result cannot be qualified by these plates. If you check the torque on the bolts as a yearly routine, I believe the plates will reduce a lot of hassle. Otherwise, not worth the 180 bucks for a performance gain. Maybe 80 but not 180.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 5,713
Likes: 105
From: Manassas VA
I couldn't justify the cost so I made my own, you don't even have to weld the nuts ; just have 2 pieces of 1/4 x 1/4 bar either side so the nuts won't rotate.
Well worth the time if only for the ease of R/R.
Much dispute on whether they work; in my case with the manual they removed the habit of the rearend kicking out on the shift as the driveline unloaded.
Well worth the time if only for the ease of R/R.
Much dispute on whether they work; in my case with the manual they removed the habit of the rearend kicking out on the shift as the driveline unloaded.
Rodj, thats really a good idea!!
What thickness plate did you use? Also, it may not be a bad idea to coat the underside with anti-seize or something like it due to the beam being a different material from the plate.
Pro
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 533
Likes: 6
From: Poinciana Florida
Do they work? Yes they do. Are they necessary? Depends on your horsepower. If your putting out the horses the car will nolonger kick out to the right during 1st and 2nd WOT transmission shifts. Are they "worth it"? To me they were. Are they expensive? Depends on your income level as well as your personal time constraints. More time on your hands, then make them yourself. Otherwise, spend the bucks and be done with it. All in fun and enjoyment.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 3,286
Likes: 6
From: Palm Beach
I would like to make my own, also. It would help if someone could post the dimensions on the plate. I.E, dimension center to center on the holes.
Safety Car
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 3,525
Likes: 2
From: Houston TX
Do they work? Yes they do. Are they necessary? Depends on your horsepower. If your putting out the horses the car will nolonger kick out to the right during 1st and 2nd WOT transmission shifts. Are they "worth it"? To me they were. Are they expensive? Depends on your income level as well as your personal time constraints. More time on your hands, then make them yourself. Otherwise, spend the bucks and be done with it. All in fun and enjoyment.
If you have serious HP, and also face issues with the C-beam moving around, these plates may mean the difference between always going home with a handful of 10.0X timeslips and finally getting some sub-10 sec slips.
I should have known with the shifter movement that the c-beam was moving around. The beam plates fixed that and no movement since.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 797
Likes: 2
From: Westminster MD
