Ive almost gotten to the point where I wanna pull my motor to clean up the engine bay as well as some motor work, but I also want to take the car to a frame shop to see if my feame is twisted (I suspect that it is slightly). Does the motor/trans need to be in the car for this for weight purpose at all?

 

If you can load about 700 pounds of steel or concrete in the engine compartment to simulate an engine/tranny then they don't need to be in.

A frame alignment rack will need to measure key points for ride height. Without an engine, the car will sit too high. As for squareness, you'll need to contact the frame alignment shop to see if it's required or not.

 

The frame rack should be the first place you drive your car with the engine in that will be there for a while. EVERY THIRD GEN I'VE BOUGHT HAS HAD SOME AMOUNT OF TWIST IN IT! (except my 85 4 cyl automatic car)

The first two mods that should be done to any third gen:

1. Drive to frame shop. Have frame "racked" back into square
2. Install subframe connectors

Everything else is gravy after that!

Good luck!

 

hindsight is 20/20 I guess. I was so into the motor build I didnt think that chassis twisting was a top priority considering Im running on bald radials that couldnt get traction goin downhill on sandpaper, and I never rode it hard once the motor was put in. Thanks for the info guys!

 

just curious but how much does it cost for them to straighten out the frame?

 

Sounds like a good winter project for my two thirdgens...noticed a little crack up by where the door meets the roof so some twisting is going on. and I don't even need to look at my T Top car to know after 20 plus years there was some twisting...how much atthe frame shop I wonder...maybe I will make some phone calls tomorrow...

 

It usually costs me between 50 and 100 bucks. I haven't done one here in central Fl, so I guess I'll find out soon enough.

It really is like any other kind of shop work. There is a charge to check (usually less than 50 bucks) and then the amount of time it takes to actuall "rack" your frame back into specs. It usually doesn't take more than a couple of hours of shop labor.

One thing I learned; since our "frame" sections are really just laminated sheet metal, they are always twisted up. They also have a pretty good memory of that twist. I have heard that they will start to move back within a few months of getting straightened. Here's what I do: I buy my subframe connectors first (or get ready to make them) and then have the frame straightened. As soon as the car is off the frame rack, the sfc's get installed.

You're pretty much good to go after that!