Power, speed, and moderate wealth are a few of the things car guys crave with a voracious appetite. In order to attain more of the first two things, we somehow need to find more of the third component of our wish list. Not in every case, however. SUPER CHEVY has scoured the high-performance badlands in search of new parts and ideas to make your Bow-Tie swifter, stronger and faster for less. So read on and heed our tested and true recommendations because they may save you a buck or two.
Scrap The Drums
Disc brakes were just coming into fashion by 1969 and only a few of the cars produced up to then came so equipped. Disc brake technology has come a long way and today you can afford to swap on a set of aftermarket discs to haul your car down like a chain and anchor tossed out the trunk. Stainless Steel Brakes Corporation (SSBC) offers disc brake conversion kits from mild to wild. The basic kit shown here consists of bolt on discs and calipers that'll work with stock drum spindles. Information: Stainless Steel Brakes Corporation, 11470 Main Rd., Dept. SC, Clarence, NY 14031, (800) 448-7722, www.stainlesssteelbrakes.com.
Super Shifting
Automatic transmissions make life just a bit easier. They also can make life slower or at least slow down the shifting of your car. You can tune up any old automatic in just a few hours by installing a shift-improver kit. B&M's TransKit allows the installer to fine tune the transmission functions to better suit the car. Shift points, shift firmness, and automatic or manual shift control are the adjustments that can be altered to improve your car's performance. Kits like the TransKit also include components to rebuild and strengthen the internals of the typical slushbox. Information: B&M Racing Products, 9142 Independence Ave., Dept. SC, Chatsworth, CA 91311, (818) 882-6422.
Fire Away
The only thing keeping your car's engine running is a tiny spark that fires off in a fraction of the time it takes to blink an eye. A weak spark is often the reason that your freshly rebuilt motor-complete with its big cam and new exhaust-won't rev up to its full potential. Installing an aftermarket ignition amplifier like Crane's Fireball HI-6 (or the HI-6S shown here for late-model, computer-controlled cars) is a way to improve your spark and make sure your high-winding engine will stay lit. This and other suitable street ignition boxes from MSD, Mallory, and others are easy to install and practically bulletproof. Information: Crane Cams, 530 Fentress Blvd., Dept. SC, Daytona Beach, FL 32114, (904) 258-6174, www.cranecams.com.
Equal Portions
A brake-proportioning valve can benefit any performance vehicle. From stockers to drag cars to rally machines, all will stop better with the simple addition of an adjustable prop valve. This easy-to-install device is an adjustable restriction that gets plumbed between the master cylinder and the rear brakes. It limits the rear brake line pressure keeping them from locking up under hard braking, while allowing the driver to apply maximum pedal pressure. After a few test stops you'll have the best braking action your binders can provide. Information: Baer Racing, 3108 W. Thomas Rd., Dept. SC, Suite 1201, Phoenix, AZ 85017-5306, (602) 233-1411, www.baer.com.
Dial Your Damping
Just about everything has been tried to smooth out and control the suspension of automobiles, but hydraulics still seem to work the best. There are currently several aftermarket manufacturers on the block offering adjustable shock absorbers which allow you to further tailor your suspension to work best no matter what surface you're running on. These 12-way adjustable aluminum shocks from HAL were instrumental in curing a terrible launch problem in a heavy '73 Camaro. The owner loves them so much that the only reason he was even willing to let us photograph them was because his car is down for service. Otherwise, he said we'd have to shoot them from the starting line looking at his undercarriage as it carries the front tires over the 60-foot line.