I had a thread last week asking about removing springs on my 1930 Model A. It rides pretty harsh. I started looking into it and noted that I didn’t have a lot of suspension travel between this Panhard bar bracket and one of the braces underneath the trunk floor in the photo below. My thought was to remove about an inch out of this brace where there are a couple of small dimples that you can feel better than see. One of my buddies advised against that thinking that this particular brace is there for a reason and it would remove all of its strength. What do the experts say? I know I’ve seen people drive old hot rods from the 30s without any floors at all. Of course you don’t see that all the time. This is directly under the trunk. There is a 10 gallon moon tank in the trunk taking up most of the space and possibly providing some of its own reinforcement to the floor.
From what little I can see in the photo I have to ask why a Panhard bar in a car with what looks like a transvers spring with maybe 2 inches if travel. That actually looks like maybe a Corvett package. Tell us more about what's actually there. If my Guess is right, I can see why you have a Harsh ride and removing spring leaves isn't going to cure your issue.
Doesnt look like its been hitting there in the pics, are there any witness marks? If so Id hit it with a BFH over removing part of it.
If you are able to zoom in there are a couple dimples- you can feel them with your finger. My goal was/is to take out a leaf or two so it rides softer but don’t want bigger problems.
You might be able to get rid of the panhard bar altogether but we need to see the whole suspension. Is it a corvette rear? The dimples are irrelevant.
Here are a couple shots showing the situation back there. I think that panhard bar is the only side to side bracing for the body. I am not worried about the dimples themselves, I am concerned about hitting a bump (construction zone, uneven pavement, etc.) at 60 mph and the panhard bracket getting bent or broken, I guess. The panhard bracket also uses 2 rear end cover bolts so I wouldn’t want those to snap, either.
Panhard bars don't need to be mounted on Top of everything. If you don't want to cut on the Body Brace, then don't. I wouldn't either. Change the Bar location. I'd probably build a Track Locater, they actually work much better. You may get into some exhaust work to be able to do that. It's worth the exercise. I can see why you have a Harsh ride.
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