Impala control arms

Erik the Awful said:

Smiley's Racing sells all the parts to make your own upper control arm from adjustable pieces. This is my Sunbeam Alpine crossmember mocked up with Mustang II parts on the driver's side. Six years later and it's still sitting in pieces on the shop floor...

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Now you got me curious, it's already IFS and disc brakes ... what was the motivation for the MII swap?

0xDEADBEEF said:

Now you got me curious, it's already IFS and disc brakes ... what was the motivation for the MII swap?

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Availability of parts

MrPink said:

Availability of parts

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The car came with no brakes. Try finding Girling calipers in Oklahoma. Also, the factory suspension geometry is 1960s "let's see if this works" engineering.

yeah good luck.

1998_K1500_Sub said:

I checked the ratings on a 1996 Roadmaster Estate wagon owned by a friend, here's the door sticker showing GVWR etc. (pictured below). They're not quite those of a C1500 (~6100# GVWR from what I can find),

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It has a higher GVWR than my 88, IIRC my rotors are about the same size too

And I've NEVER overloaded my truck before

PlayingWithTBI said:

It has a higher GVWR than my 88, IIRC my rotors are about the same size too

And I've NEVER overloaded my truck before

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prob a towing package roadmaster which has an LT1 and a b body frame(had 4000 pound cars since the late 70s on it and has a 12 or 10 bolt rear I assume) with a 4l60 and air bags and/or cooling system upgrades etc

PlayingWithTBI said:

It has a higher GVWR than my 88, IIRC my rotors are about the same size too

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Your GAWR for the front is higher, 2950# vs. 2532# for the Roadmaster Estate wagon.

Since the context of this discussion is the front suspension, that's notable but not markedly different.

1998_K1500_Sub said:

Your GAWR for the front is higher, 2900# vs. 2532# for the Roadmaster Estate wagon.

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Yeah, I didn't look at that, just GVWR, my bad.

PlayingWithTBI said:

Yeah, I didn't look at that, just GVWR, my bad.

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All good stuff, thanks for posting

Here's a GMT400 1998 2x4 C1500 5.0L regcab PU w/ GVWR 6200# and front GAWR 3600#. Its front GAWR is ~1100# greater than the Roadmaster Wagon (w/ front AGWR 2532#). Percentage-wise, that's a big increase in front GAWR.

Here's a for GMT400 1995 4x4 K1500 5.7L excab PU. GVWR 6600# and front GAWR 3925#. It's not a proper comparison for this thread because it's 4x4 w/ the IFS front end, but notable all the same.

It's interesting to see the difference in GVWR and GAWR between these and your '88, GVWR 5600# and front GAWR 2950#, and the Roadmaster wagon GVWR 5781# and front GAWR 2532#.

Of course, I've been using the Roadmaster Wagon for comparison b/c I believe it uses the same front UCA and LCA as the Impala and other B-bodies, the subject of this thread, and possibly the D-body Caddy Fleetwood Brougham

1998_K1500_Sub said:

All good stuff, thanks for posting

Here's a GMT400 1998 2x4 C1500 5.0L regcab PU w/ GVWR 6200# and front GAWR 3600#. Its front GAWR is ~1100# greater than the Roadmaster Wagon (w/ front AGWR 2532#). Percentage-wise, that's a big increase in front GAWR.

Here's a for GMT400 1995 4x4 K1500 5.7L excab PU. GVWR 6600# and front GAWR 3925#. It's not a proper comparison for this thread because it's 4x4 w/ the IFS front end, but notable all the same.

It's interesting to see the difference in GVWR and GAWR between these and your '88, GVWR 5600# and front GAWR 2950#, and the Roadmaster wagon GVWR 5781# and front GAWR 2532#.

Of course, I've been using the Roadmaster Wagon for comparison b/c I believe it uses the same front UCA and LCA as the Impala and other B-bodies, the subject of this thread, and possibly the D-body Caddy Fleetwood Brougham

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the cadillac hearse is something worth looking at too, they used bigger brakes, larger hub, more beefy suspension components. I believe GM called it their Commercial Chassis

Here is something on the cadillac D body towing package
The 7,000 lb. trailer towing package was made available 1993, something not seen in a production sedan since the 1971–1976 Cadillac Sixty Special. The RPO V4P package included heavy duty cooling (RPO V08, which consisted of a seven-blade mechanical fan and an extra capacity radiator), RPO FE2 Suspension System Ride Handling, HD 4L60 transmission, RPO KC4 Cooling System Engine Oil, RPO KD1 Cooling System Transmission Oil, RPO KG9 140 amp alternator, and RPO GT4 3.73 gears with an 8.5-inch ring gear. In 1994–1996, the V4P package was revised with RPO GU6 3.42 gears with the new more powerful RPO LT1 260 horsepower (190 kW) V8, and HD 4L60E transmission with unique accumulators to shift smoother with the shorter rear axle gearing.

So a bigger alternator(CS-144), Trans and oil cooler (auxillary), bigger radiator, a firm handling suspension(bigger sway bar, stiffer suspension I assume, just guessing) and a HD 4l60 which was probably a stronger case casting or maybe even internals upgraded.

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Heres a bit on the roadmaster:
Ordered with the towing package, the 94-96 Roadmaster was advertised to tow up to 5000 pounds, although the Estate Wagon owner's manual extended that to 7,000 lbs. when using a weight-distributing hitch, dual sway controls, increasing the rear tire pressure to 35 psi and disabling the Electronic Level Control. The tow package added 2.93 gears and a limited slip differential, heavy duty cooling system including oil and transmission coolers, and a factory installed self leveling rear suspension consisting of air shocks, a height sensor between the rear axle and body and an on-board air compressor. The most distinctive feature was the combination of one conventional fan driven mechanically from the engine alongside of one electric fan, offset to the left (non-tow pack cars came with two electric fans).


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on the subject of the lower control arms
It seems like the 96's had a bigger ball joint than others, and commercial chassis/d body had a measureable difference but it sounds like they should still "bolt on" which may be closer to what you want for a truck. Cadillac commerical chassis was mostly hearses