somebody, anybody, help me understand why a aftermarket K member is used/needed. whats wrong with the GM one?? I know there has to be some benefit, but so far, all I hear is negative comments about the ones offered. im just trying to pin point why anyone would need/want to ghange that part. so lets hear it from the ones who have done this mod. what reason did you have? what benefit did it give you?

 

to me was weight...second way more room

 

You really need to see one on a vehicle with a pair of solid motor mounts. Frees up a bit of space. As long as you don't have a spohn piece the only guy who talks negatively about these is Dean/ ve truck. His quarrel is with running over something big and heavy with one. My engine is currently out I will see about snapping a picture. If it's a drag car with tubular a arms and cross member and a Wilwood front drag brake kit you can be saving 100 pounds on the front. Admittedly these are not for daily driven cars or streets full of potholes and speed bumps.

 

I just installed my umi kmember. Fits awesome and so much room. The weight savings are great too .

 

ah, I see , its a race only piece .not designed for the ins and outs of daily real world use. which is what I thought anyway.

 

I personally wouldn't go as far as to say it's race oonly. You just need to be aware of its limitations. Just as people with the rubber band thickness tires know to drive differently. Or just as the crowd with drag strips only front brakes knows that getting caught in traffic on the way to/from the strip/carshow can be risky.

 

understood, people installing one of these need to understand its limitations for street use. or in other words. if they have a car that sees regular street duty, on less than perfect roads. this mod is not for them.

 

They are a bit lighter, more room but some are a bit more flexible than the factory K.

You can mod the factory part and make it as light as most aftermarket parts but it wont have the room that aftermarket stuff will.

 

flexibility?? I think our cars are flexible enough with out adding to that problem. if anything they need to be stiffer. now would the addition of SFCs add to the problem? or would a aftermarket K member negate the benefits? and another question,, room for what?? everybody keeps saying they give more room . but how much room on a street car does one need?

 

I could have never put the motor and headers I have without the use of an aftermarket k-member. The factory k-member would have hit the pan and headers. And mine is a street car

 

I wouldn't call them race only items. A lot of companies has race and street versions out now.
Some of the biggest reasons to go with an aftermarket K member is...

Weight savings... Any nose weight you can remove is a good thing for performance and stopping. Less nose weight helps weight transfer to rear wheels. Lower weight helps with accel, stopping, and cornering.

Room/clearance. It's a tight fit in the stock engine bay for common 1-5/8" tube long tube headers, and a 6 or 7 qt oil pan on a small block. What if you needed 1-3/4" or 1-7/8" tube headers, or a 8qt oil pan.. Or wanted to put a big block chevy in with larger headers.. You would need the extra clearance.

Same goes for guys doing the turbo charged engine builds. Not much room to fit your piping for turbo setup with stock K member

 

Weight saving are negligible. Stock is thin steel and is hollow. Mild steel tubing isnt light and to make it halfway strong, you need a decent bit of it. Chromoloy is lighter, but has no business being on a street car. Main gain is room

Ever replaced a motor mount on a stock k-member? Try it on a tubular version, 30 min job

 

Sorry but I have to disagree with you on the weight part. IIRC the saving is 30 to 50 lbs depending on mild steel vs CM, stock A arms vs tubular A arms, etc.

If your building a street/strip car or a track car even the low end of that scale at 30 lbs is a BIG savings. 10 or 20 lbs can be the diff in winning or not at the track. Every pound counts, in fact for a drag car every ounce adds up.

Yes you are correct the added clearance is a major reason for the aftermarket M-member. Faster to swap engines, easier to change mounts, more room for headers/exhaust, turbo system, vac pump, etc.

 

there is alot more room.. better looking and works fine.(and hold up).and you do drop off the Pounds.. just like all the diff wheels ya can buy..

what kills me is all the back half cars(3rd gens) i have seen.. and almost none of them run a aftermarket K member...as they only did what they needed to get the look of a race car...lol. only a few have gone the extra mile.

 

i d say race car only ...yes it looks good yes it opens room for easy servece...but most of suspension parts ,torque arm, lower control arms, k member...are not legal for street use no mather they exceed oem parts... if u get in to an accident most likely inshurance will give u crap...my personal opinion stock k member is probably the strongest part of this car !

 

If your car was hit/totaled insurance only ever pays out what it would cost to repair a stock Camaro/Firebird. Unless you have a secondary or collector car insurance with an appraisal of the vehicle you will never be reimbursed for any aftermarket part broken in an accident. Are you advising not to use any aftermarket items on a street driven vehicle because a standard insurance policy will not reimburse you for them if hit?

 

Can you please provide proof of this comment? I have never in my life heard of non street legal bolt on suspension parts.

I know certain things like braided stainless brake flex lines, slicks, etc are not D.O.T (street) legal.

Just never heard of torque arms, control arms, panhard rods, etc not being DOT legal

 

here ...this is spohn performance polici...and its not only if u get payd for ur loss or not !!!i use aftermarket parts ...but they are not street legal http://www.spohn.net/policies/?action=Disclaimer

 

and anouther one for california http://www.spohn.net/policies/?action=Emissions

 

It is illegal to install, sell or offer for sale any aftermarket part that alters or modifies the original design or performance of the motor vehicle pollution control system - See more at: http://www.spohn.net/policies/?actio....QaFEvk4a.dpuf

K Member/brakes/shocks tires/wheels/suspention parts are not Motor parts..
just sayn...

 

Yeah I think you are confused on how and what all of this is.

What you linked too is about emissions/smog.. Then yes you are correct you can not use parts legally on the streets that's not emissions legal or CARB legal in CA.
BUT.....
Emissions/smog has NOTHING to do with suspension, chassis, etc.. That is engine parts like cam, heads, intake, turbos, blowers, etc...

Even those can be used if car can still pass emissions... Or in CA. if part has a C.A.R.B cert.

Again what you linked too is the use of non emissions legal engine and exhaust parts on an emissions controlled car.

Nothing to do with suspension parts

 

man, I didn't mean to open THAT big ol can of worms. I was merely tryin to understand why anyone would make this mod to their street car.

 

He he u guys are killin me...no one is reading disclaimer !!! And read good don't read between the lines...as far as California one ses motor vihecle not the motor of the vihecle !!!there is a reason for these things to be there and as far as I know this particular compani makes suspension parts ...ask ur self why would they write this California smog polici...u r changing performance ,and design...ow and that's it I won't write anymore about this u guys can undarstand it the way u want!!!

 

Because spohn sells engine swap kits, exhaust parts, and race use brake items.

Engine swaps can be illegal in some states and certain precautions must be made to make sure the swap is done in regards to fed. and state emissions and california air board standards.

MANY aftermarket exhaust systems/headers are not emissions / C.A.R.B legal as they delete the A.I.R / smog pump system, and cat. converter.

And some brake system parts like braided brake lines, light weight drag race brake kits, etc are not D.O.T approved

 

Just a note to you, spell check is a good friend

 

How is the umi vs spohn k member?

 

 

Spohn= hacked up part was made to fit a rack&pin steering set up.
cut up to make it fit the standard power steering tie rod set up.
wheel set back..and if your luckey your motor might or might not sit right in your car...thats if it bolts right in...

UMI falls into place like it was made By GM!
every thing bolts up and sits in the right place..100%

and just so ya know.. i have had both..Spohn and UMI...i sold the spohn K member and A arms off.. 1 DAY after install.. and picked up the UMI.. and picked up the a 2nd set of spohn A arms.as the new ones dont show wheel setback..

UMI fits like a glove!



note: parts fit like they should


Below is how spohn made things to fit..sorta

if your not driving on a glass top..your tie rod will hit your K member....as it moves up and down!


just sayn!

 

Ditto, do NOT, ANYONE, ever buy a Spohn K-member. I have the exact same problems as noted above. I think it can be very dangerous under hard corning when the tie rod rubs the cross-member. The top of the notch on mine has all of the powder coating rubbed away and now it is causing damage to the metal.

Plus it's beyond annoying that my front wheels sit back farther in the front wheel well than stock and rub as a consequence before my steering hits lock.

I really do think it was designed for their rack & pinion they sell only. It's a shame they do not make a proper one for those who do not go that route or warn those people not to buy it!

I'm also very unhappy with their "wonderbar" and what I had to do to the bottom mounts of my factory dual electric fans to get it to fit.

 

this shot of a Sphon k member below shows tie rods sitting inside the crossmember


them telling you to buy a type of tie rod to make there Kmember work..is HOGWASH!!!
it's there K member thats wrong!! thats the bottom line....AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE!!!

I worked for a aerospace company making jet engine parts..there name is Jet Seal..in spokane WA.
thay would change heat treat lots and lot numbers to fill orders for Boeing..McDonnel Dougas..Rolls Royce etc...
i dont fly if i can avoid it...lol knowing they have Jet Seal parts .... WRONG IS WRONG!

 

Exactly. To add insult to injury, I specifically bought the entire Spohn centerlink/tie rod kit and that's the one that rubs, go figure! Morons can't even test their own parts with eachother!!!!