I am building a 31 Chev two door sedan, it was an old street rod. I am trying to finish the rear end of the chassis, I am putting a triangulated link in it. It has a 59 Chev rear in it now, of course too wide. Is an S10 my only option? Early nova is 67 inches, so is early ford nine's. I don't want too narrow anything. Has anyone on here done a full fendered 31.
The S10 will fit no problem. The nova should work as well, I have one under my 39 Coupe. I know, its a fatter car. However, I have a 55 Chevy Rear under my 32 Ford. Fits fine.
I have an early Camaro (67-69) in my 31 Chev 5-W coupe. It fits just fine. I believe the Camaro and Nova are the same width. HTH,
I have a 29 Chevy and I used a 1978 Monte Carlo K member unit. I used the whole unit including the piece between the frame. I had to narrow it to fit between the 29 frame rails.I have coilover shocks.The ride is very good. I used 235/78/15 tires and a stock rim and they fit in the fender with no tire hanging out.
I used an s10 2 wheel drive under my 32. The s10 4wd is a couple of inches wider. Using one or the other gives you some different options on wheel offset.
A stock 59 Chevrolet rear end is 60 inches wide ... measured this way. If 60 inches is TOO WIDE You mostly likes would love a V8 Maverick rear end. They are 56 inches wide ... measured the way shown above. Here is a on line list of donor rear ends and their widths. http://carnut.com/specs/rear.html and another list ... just for the Ford rear ends. http://www.mustangsandmore.com/ubb/FordRearDimensions.html Randy
Bob I see this thread is old althought if your still out there! I am in the process of doing a 31 sedan that was all original and looking at putting a s-10 2wd rearend and a 327 with 2speed power glide. I am still not sure what to do on the front end. Which direction did you go ? Ben
Ben, I have a Mustang 2 front end in it., Others have done the dropped axel with the original spgs. Some have done dropped axel with single spring. Money, time and ability factor in. This was my first and it came out almost ok. . Using the MII I moved it I think forward of the original centerline as I was told the factory centerline was off by 1 ,1/2 in. Doing so moves the rack into the splash pan and if you use one must be relieved.With 1, 1/2 coil off the MII spngs and 14" wheels gets it down decentI would like another 1" dn. Luck, Bob.
I used a 58 chev rear and most of the X frame in my 28 chev.It is barely wide enough,with 6" wide std backset wheels I only have 1" of tub clearence.My new wheels will be offset 1 more inch out to keep the tires from rubbing the body.
everclr190, If you decide to retain the beam axle front suspension look at droppedaxles.com Click on Chevy axles for research. Sid is a H.A.M.B. member and should get you in the right direction. Note that the 54-55 1st Series 1/2 ton truck axle shows the same dimensions as your 31 axle. The axle mentioned above can be converted to 54 Chevy drum brakes or an ECI disc conversion can be used. Speedway also sells the disc conversion kit for the 54-55 spindles Whatever you choose, Good Luck with Your Build...............Jeff
I have a '31 Chevy truck, and I sent my front axle to Sid. He dropped it 3", I kept the '31 spindles, and got a disc conversion from ECI, and king pins from Speedway. Everything works perfectly, and looks like a CHEVY! It sits right where I want it. I also have a '57 Chevy car rear in the pickup, it's about 3" too wide...
on the rearend...a friend has a 31 coupe with a 56 chevy car rearend, it fits great with fenders and L78-15 tires on 1950 chevy car wheels.
Hyway Hauler, you got the conversation kit for the original 31 spindels? Do you have a item number I could look up on the site? Ben
This is the kit I got from Chevs of the 40's. It uses 1970 Camaro discs and calipers. Comes with everything you need for a cool 450$. https://www.chevsofthe40s.com/detai...sc_Conversion_Front_192840_Straight_Axle.html
The Jalopy Journal
