Leeman

I've added a signature and will also post some pics in the future.

KYWes

Excellent car! I didn't realize you were doing the sub-woofer install on a Trans-Am. I wonder if anything was different versus the Camaro.

Are your headers long tube? Any problems with clearance with it lowered?

Any hassles lowering it? How much did you drop it and what did you use? I'm considering lowering my '95Z.

With lowering it did you do anything about the driveshaft angle? My understanding is that lowering upsets that drive angle. That's one thing making me hesitate.

Hope you don't mind the questions. I've got Mac mid-lengths on my car and one reason I selected them was to have better clearance when I lowered it. However, they are about 10 years old and I was thinking of going to long tubes for the added power they are supposed to provide.

P.S. One reason I thought of the in-seat sub-woofer install was for track runs. Besides using valuable space I wondered if a trunk sub-woofer would have to be removed to pass tech. Any experience on that?

Leeman

The AS&M's are 1 3/4" mid length headers - not full long tubes. I would recommend against them due to plug and bolt access.

The car is pretty damn low - rino ramps do not work without using pre-boards to get the car up higher. I do clear speed bumps and such without issue. I've had no issue with the drive shaft angle, nor have I heard of anyone having an issue.

I bought the car new in 1995. It has 40k total miles on it. Most of the mods took place over 20 years ago. :-)

My dash pad cracked a few years ago and I have a dash cap that I plan on installing soon. I need to go out and find some SEMA paint that matches my graphite interior first.

I've never had anyone look in the trunk for track runs - but its been a while since I've been to the track in this car.

I used to run the cam you are running. I had issues with how it treated the valve train - so . switched to the HOT cam. How are you liking it ?

squarehead

Hi Leeman and KYWes,

I have enjoyed this thread since it got going and admire how clever you were to hide a sub in the seat! I wanted to add a thought on the lowering question KYWes asked. I have a 95 convert that I have run lowered for years without any trouble due to the lowering. I think the cars really don't look as good without dropping them a bit so I encourage you to do the mod. I will try to share a few photos of the drop I have been driving.



These shots are the rear and the second shows the custom bump stop I built to give a little more room to drop the car. You can see that it had hit the bump a few times recently but not by much.


This is the front of the car and is actually higher than the highest setting available with the coil overs I have mounted (Ground Control) to my Koni shocks. I made to make a 1/4" disk to add to the top bolt of the shock to lift the car a bit more. Leeman, I can't get any ramps under the car either! I am thinking about making a custom ramp setup.

KYWes

Squarehead I like that look with little gap above the wheels. What headers do you run?

I've got Bilstein shocks and was just hoping to replace the springs. Think that will work alright?

I purchased these full car ramps about 6 months ago and I love them. I have a mid-rise full car lift. With these ramps I can drive right over the lift into place, they give about 4" total lift and have a very gradual incline. One thing I like about them is they come in four pieces. So, if necessary, I can remove a section to gain better access. I got them via Amazon. Don't look at my wheels. They are my "winter" wheels. I've got 18" wheels in the garage ready for no-snow weather.

KYWes

Leeman - from what I've read and heard Comp Cams had trouble with their springs some years back. I'm using their springs that came with the kit and haven't had any trouble, AFAIK, from them. I've got maybe 10-15K on them. I'm pleased with the cam though now I kinda wish I'd gone a little more radical. I don't race. It's a daily driver in good weather. What I love is open road touring. That's one reason I went with the 3:73s instead of 4:11s.

squarehead

KYWes, I don't have any headers. I am running stock manifolds and cat to a magnaflow muffler with hidden dump pipes.

I am sure a good spring set will do a nice job of lowering the car. I don't have any experience with anything other than what I am using. One thing I can say is check around because the springs can make a big difference in handling if they are done right. I have heard good things about Strano springs but again I have never tried them. On my car the previous owner had installed the Ground Control coil over set up and I am very happy with the driving feel so the spring rates must be a good balance. I did replace the KYB shocks that came with the car and I am very happy with the Koni single adjustables now that I have made a few increases to the settings at the rear. For some reason the rear needs a lot of shock dampening.

I recently added the bump steer kit that Spohn sells and it made a good improvement in reducing the steering darting around on rough roads.

Thanks for the lead on the ramps!

GaryDoug

It's actually a Torx head screw.

Leeman

The latch was a phillps head, not torx. All of the other bolts were torx heads.

GaryDoug

Then it appears that yours is an aftermarket part. Here are the original parts.

Leeman

That is the striker. I'm talking about the lever attached to the seat that had to be removed to take of the seat cover. :-)

GaryDoug

Do you mean like lever in the FIRST photo?

Leeman

Dude, I have to say you are an ***. I bought my car new and they are original parts. Looking at that first pick, obviously that socket doesn't fit - look at the angle.

Injuneer

GaryDoug