Fitting C4 suspension to C1 frame
 

Hi , I am a new member and this is my first time on the forum, I am in Australia and have a 59 Vette over here, I am wanting to upgrade my frame to take C4 suspension, I know you guys have a number of frame builders can do this but has anyone done this themselves, I have got a complete C4 front and rear set up and an uncle who has built hot rods all his life , but wondering if anyone has any tips or help they can offer so we don't make a mess of it
Thanks
Mark :cheers:

I have no clue at all if a C4 suspension can be retrofitted onto an existing C1 frame but a number of people have done C4 and C5 suspensions using custom tube frames such as the SRS111 frame.
John McGraw on this forum has done a '59 with the tube frame and C4 suspension that way. His car is a pierce of artwork.

I'm sure others with more helpful information will chime in.
good luck

Welcome. It can be done. Don't know anyone who has done it themselves but you can maybe get some info at the site below.

Car Creations do it all the time at:

http://www.carcreationsinc.com/html_2/53frame.html

Also, checkm out Rich Lagasses' site at

http://www.richscorvettes.com/Web_Si...30/Page_4.html

They did his chassis also and he has some great pics of his beautiful rides.

Good luck!

Mark:
I did a "homemade" frame conversion on a '62. You can see a complete pictorial story at: http://www.carols62.com
Before I started mine I talked at length to Paul Newman at the Corvettes@Carlisle show about his conversion, and mine is basically is a copy of his conversion. Adding the rear suspension to the old frame was fairly easy but the front was much more work. The main thing is to get the new suspension firmly in it's proper position (lots of measuring and double checking) and then fasten it in position. You will have to do some minor fiberglass surgery in the spare tire area to clear the rear differential and also in the front inner fender wells.

I have talked (via the internet) to several fellows in Australia that are doing conversion cars. The laws governing what may be done to a frame (legally) are evidently different from state to state. The fellow near Brisbane was not allowed to cut the frame in front to mount the new suspension so he built a sub-frame that was welded to the old frame.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me.

Charles

Mark,

There are two folks I know in Australia who have C1's with C4 suspension conversions. One used the Car Creations conversion and the other is being built by a local shop.

As Joe mentioned, we did a 62 using the Car Creations conversion. We had them make the basic mods to our original chassis and we did the rest of the work beyond that ourselves. From what I understand there is an issue with having an out of country source modify a chassis to be registered in Australia unless it is a finished car.

Send me an e-mail at: richsclassiccorvettes@cox.net and I'll send you their e-mail addresses. They should be able to tell you about the laws governing these builds as there seem to be quite a few issues (safety and emissions) that we don't face in the U.S. .

Rich Lagasse

I wonder why shops aren't starting to fit C5 suspensions..There are a few like philadelphia motorsports and SRIII fits a C5 front but not the rear.

Here's a complete 63-82 tube frame with a C5 suspenion and coil overs on all 4 corners http://www.philadelphiamotorsports.com/chassisonly.jpg

SRIII can build a C1 frame for both the front and rear suspension using the C5 components. There are some issues with using the C5 setup in the rear on a C2 regarding the number of changes needed to the body. It can be done but would be more work than using the C4 rear. I believe Philadelphia Motorsports uses a new floor pan to gain clearance for the trans/differential.

Rich Lagasse

Thanks a lot Charles, I am in Perth on the West Coast of Australia, our laws are no where near as tough as Brisbane which is on the East Coast, I need to check further but we are ok to cut a Chassis here, Thanks again I'll have a look at your webb site and send you and email apologies for delay with response but we have just got up here , it is 8.00am as I write this
Cheers
Mark

Hi Rich, Thanks for your help, I'll drop you an email it would be greta to get to speak to some guys here who have done this
Cheers
Mark