It was a rust bucket when it was first purchased. Years of neglect and sitting under a rain gutter turned this once proud '71 el Camino into a rotting, zombielike corpse. harrison ortis purchased it for $1,200; it was a 454 big-block high school hot rod at the time. Finally, years later the pieces of the puzzle have come together and the el Camino is ready to become a complete car again. In the February 2007 issue of Super Chevy, the El Camino received a proper coat of paint, and it was recently on the cover of our last issue (March 2007). After the paint job, Harrison pulled the frame out from under the car and sent it off to Corsair Powder Coating in Ontario, California. The frame came back to his shop in a beautiful gloss black, and it was at this point the El Camino crossed our camera's path yet again. While the El Camino may look like a million bucks, it's not a gaudy, bank-breaking vehicle, and it was never meant to be such. For all intents and purposes this '71 Elco is meant to be driven. In the interest of page space, we will jump straight into the process of rebuilding this frame. When it came time to select and install the El Camino suspension, we chose the basic non-bank-busting Performance Online tubular upper and lower A-arms, as well as its front and rear springs (which lower the vehicle an inch) and front and rear sway bars. The springs retain their OE rates. The sway bars measure 1 1/8-inch in the front and 1-inch in the rear.When it came time to select and install the El Camino suspension, we chose the basic non-b Before the upper A-arms are installed, the OE cross shaft has to be reused. In order to reuse it, it has to be ground down a bit on the belt sander. This was done because the cross-shaft would not be able to fit into the bushing's housing otherwise.Before the upper A-arms are installed, the OE cross shaft has to be reused. In order to re Once the cross-shaft is reshaped, the bushings can be pressed in, and the upper A-arm is bolted right into place.Once the cross-shaft is reshaped, the bushings can be pressed in, and the upper A-arm is b Along with the Performance Online suspension, a Moog steering linkage (centerlink, idler arm, etc.) was chosen along with PST bushings and Performance Online tie rods.Along with the Performance Online suspension, a Moog steering linkage (centerlink, idler a The lower A-arms bolt right in with no problems. Yes, all the bushings are lubed prior to installation.The lower A-arms bolt right in with no problems. Yes, all the bushings are lubed prior to When installing the upper A-arms, place two 1/8-inch shims on either side. This is a good starting point for future wheel alignment.When installing the upper A-arms, place two 1/8-inch shims on either side. This is a good 1 | 2 | 3 | » | View Full Article By Mike Harrington Enjoyed this Post? Subscribe to our RSS Feed, or use your favorite social media to recommend us to friends and colleagues!
