The paint isn’t perfect, but considering what we started with it’s a massive improvement. We wire wheeled all the flaky rust off, then hit the brackets with two coats of Permatex Rust Treatment. Next, a coat of acid etch primer, and a final coat of good ol’ Rustoleum satin black. These brackets should be good for a few more years.While we had the paint supplies out we gave the same treatment to our radius rods so they would look nice attached to our powdercoated subframe and freshly plated control arms.We used MotoIQ’s patented PTFE tape trick to stop our swaybar bushings from squeaking. Personally I’ve never tried this, so I am curious how well it works. The tape lubricates the bushing and doesn’t squeeze out like grease does.Next, we turned to the uprights. The lower balljoints and wheel bearings need to be replaced for peace of mind and we need to install longer wheel studs so we don’t have to worry about the wheels falling off our project. We started by removing the balljoint, then pounding out the wheel hub, and finally pressing out the wheel bearing itself. One job we did not have to perform was removing the dust shields. On a car this old the screws for the dust shields are likely to be rusted in place. Racecars with tiny brakes need all the cooling they can get.The design of the upright means we have to remove the wheel hub to remove the studs. The hub, bearing, and upright are all pressed together. The inner race of the wheel bearing will stick to the hub when the hub is pressed out so it’s recommended to always replace the wheel bearings when removing the hub. We already planned to replace our bearings since they are a heavy wear item in the EF Civic and we didn’t know how much abuse the old bearings had seen. Honda no longer sells wheel bearings but AC Delco is an OEM supplier so they’re the next best choice.
I absolutely loved the Kingpin spherical bearing setup on Project S2000. All that suspension work is going to transform the car. What can you do to stiffen the chassis within the rules?
Well it’s already got a rollcage and front strut tower brace. We can add a few more per the rules. I would like to add to the cage as it is very basic. Could use some extra diagonals.
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Really looking forward to updates. This takes me back to Sport Compact Car days.
Glad it brings back happy memories. Got lots more coming. Thanks for reading!
I absolutely loved the Kingpin spherical bearing setup on Project S2000. All that suspension work is going to transform the car. What can you do to stiffen the chassis within the rules?
Well it’s already got a rollcage and front strut tower brace. We can add a few more per the rules. I would like to add to the cage as it is very basic. Could use some extra diagonals.