Ok I have been doing a lot of research on SFC's for my car and have some to a conlusion.......this sucks and I can't decide which ones to get.

I ordered SSM from Summit only to find out that they are on b/o til June/July, and SSM went out of business so I prolly won't get them anyways. I cancelled that order and reordered the Competitions engineering ones only to find out that they require hacking to the underbody so they fit...I don't want to do that.

I have heard many things about tubular vs boxed steel and I have concluded that box steel is stronger...so I would rather have that. I want weld in style, and I want ones that fit WITH NO MODS. I have also heard that many people buy the bolt-in style and them weld them in rather that buying that weld-in because the bolt-in fit better. Can anyone help me out here?

Here are all the links to the SFC's:

Alston - $190 www.alstonracing.com --> doesn't work
Kenny Brown - $280 Box
Hotchkis - $200 Box
Spohn - $185 Tubing
Competition - $90 to $250 Box
Mac - $135 Tubing
SLP - $180 Box - OOPS...they dont make thirdgen sfc's
Flatout - $120 Box

 

Jegs

 

hmm i must have missed those. Do you have them? Any pros...cons? mods required?

 

ttt

 

Yea, I put a set in a couple of weeks ago. The install was pretty painless; the hardest part was welding them on my back.

The units are bolt in design, and in fact very sufficient for the street in that form. I welded mine to reduce the movement even further for autox/road race.

They fit on the side of lower control arm mounts, and you run the control arm bolt threw them. Your also suppose to drill an addition hole for another bolt, but I skipped that step since I welded them to the mounts. Then you bolt the front to the floor pans, and you’re done.

Did it improve road noise? Yes
Did it improve performance? I'll let you know.
Is changing a tire easier? Hell - Yes
How much for shipping? 20 bucks (UPS 2 Day)
Do you have a PDF of the instruction? Why yes I do here

Ron

 

i went with spohn's! no clue on how they work i havent got them on yet.

 

ronterry, what brand are they???

EDIT: n/m i just saw the directions..

those are the ones i just ordered...

 

anybody knows wtf happened to alston ? I was ready to order , tried their site and it's down , damn it ! I would like something that bolts in first and then can be welded in later as I don't have funds to replace my carpet and seats just yet but want to weld in the sfc's when I do the carpet/seats/rollcage.

and please don't suggest spohn, he won't get a cent out of me

 

After looking at your picture I wonder about the welds?? Spohn
recommends a weld every 6" along the length of the SFC's. And thats the the way I had mine installed. It looks like welding your only on the ends, there is no support along the sub frame?????
Anyone else have a opinion on this installation by ronterry???

 

yeah it's good enough, could be better if you welded it all along , but I highly doubt it's necessary.

how many of you road race your cars to the limits ? almost none an those that do will go nuts on their SFC's anyway and reinforce them in other ways

 

Don't forget about Global West subframe connectors either.

 

Kenny Brown SFC's rule!:rockon:

 

Global West did away with their SFC's for thirdgens...I just called them yesturday to ask about them.

 

I personally went with the Alston Group SFC.

They are tubular steel, and fit GREAT!!!! I just think tubular looks better than boxed, and these have plenty of ground clearance.

There was a small amount of massaging of the passenger's side floor board ( and when I say small, I mean 2 tapps of a hammer, and it was good to go!!!), but not a problem.

They cleared my 3" SLP exhaust with room to spare!!

80's AL
80' Berlinetta
89' RS (currently under construction for destruction)
97' BIG Dodge truck:hail:

 

can anyone tell me which SFC's will bolt in and work with my exhaust positioning... (i have headers and a 3" cat-back... thanks guys

 

Just curious, but I guess u didn't have any clearance issues with your exhaust What brand y-pipe/cat are you running with? Looks like they are beefy pieces

 

im getting jegs

 

I couldn't tell you, cause I have a very basic exhaust system...They ride up in there, so I don't you'll have any problems.

I took a couple of pictures while I was under replacing the front swaybar...hope they help---

Ron

 

Same with me

 

i personally went with spohn's (after some research). i cant wait to get them put in.

 

well I managed to track down a pair of brand new unused boxed spohn's for $160 shipped to my house. I like the box style better than the tubular.

 

joshp14~ like you I did a hell of a lot of research and opted for KB subframes due to the simple fact that they appeared the "strongest." I have dual cats on my car and tracked down people at thirdgen.org that had the same exhaust stepup as me and to go even further...I made sure that their f-body was close to the same year as mine. Just wanted to share this experience.... I dont have my KB subframes installed yet but I have lined them up in work and Im pretty confident they will fit.

Later..

Dan

 

i went with spohn's.

i thought they were good quailty when i got them.

i had chasis engineering of riviera beach fla install them, they build all kinds of stuff for drag cars and sell their own sfc's.

they were impressed with the quality, even though they were a little tough to install (as compared to their's, which require fewer weld points.) i had the installer check out spohns site with pictures before he started and he commented on how many more welds were required/recommended. it took about 3 hours ($150).

some say they dont noticve a difference. i definetly thought the car was much stiffer (my as ttops), it still has some rattles which i thought would all be cured but i believe its much better, after all its 11 years old.