Project Impala Part Three

By Jim Aust

Courtesy of Rod & Custom Magazine

The CPP kit comes with just about everything we'll need to bring down the rear of the '62 and give it some more stopping power.

The best place to start with any project is with what you know best, and when it comes to Classic Performance Products '62 Impala project, what they know best is suspension. Last month, the rebuild of their '62 started with the installation of CPP's Big Brake front disc brake kit. In this issue the work continues with the installation of CPP's new Rear Big Brake Kit.

This rear disc brake system uses 12-inch cross-drilled, gas-slotted and zinc-washed rotors that mount to the rear axles with supplied longer studs, and mate up to a Lincoln Continental emergency brake-style caliper that mounts to the rear axlehousing with a custom CPP caliper mounting bracket    Classic Performance Products' rear brake kits include all the rotors, calipers, brake lines, brackets, cables, hoses, clips, instructions, and hardware to assure a hassle-free installation.

This kit requires the use of 15-inch (or larger) wheels designed for use with disc brakes. Dropped rear coils, new bushings, and performance shock absorbers used in this story are also available from CPP. With plenty of new reliable stopping power now in place, the next step of the rebuild will focus on improved steering and roll control with a pair of new large-diameter sway bars.    We have a couple more installations to do that'll get the chassis in shape and then we'll be hitting the track again to get you some numbers to see if we've been spending our time and money wisely.

After removing the rear shocks and original coil springs (with the rearend supported by a screw jack stand) the factory nonadjustable Panhard bar was removed. Before we completely removed the upper trailing arms, we secured the rearend with a tie strap to keep it from accidentally rotating off the support stand-a small insurance to prevent a tragedy. As to be expected with a 44-year-old car, the poor condition of the rearend trailing arm bushings was no surprise (no problem, as new ones were supplied). We used a small press to halp remove them, working slowly so we wouldn't damage the arms. The trailing arms were cleaned up and painted and the new bushings were pressed in with a little help from the press and a small dab of silicon grease. The rebuilt arms were then rein- stalled using the original hardware (after it was inspected). The lower trailing arms and lower shock mounts were then removed, rebuilt, and reinstalled. The dry western climate conditions have been very kind to the Impala and all the pieces unbolted very easily.

The new adjustable Panhard bar was installed using the factory mounting points. The new lowered rear coils slipped easily into place and then fresh KYB performance shocks finished the suspension rehab. We then moved on to the rear brakes. A little persuasion from a dead blow mallet helped loosen the axle and backing plate from the housing. Before pressing on a fresh pair of rear axle bearings, a 1/4-inch shim was added to compensate for the new 3/B-inch-thick caliper brackets. Because of the added braking force of the new disc brakes, beefier wheel studs are necessary so the old wheel studs were knocked loose from the axle flanges to be drilled to accept the new larger studs.

The new wheel studs are almost twice the size of the originals. A hydraulic press makes the installation of the new studs a snap but could also be done using some large washers and a lug nut. A local machine shop can handle this step if you are not equipped. The caliper bracket was set in place and then the axle with a new bearing was carefully slid into the housing. They were then secured using the new hardware.   The new 12-inch cross-drilled rotors were slipped on and the calipers were bolted on. All that was left to do after that was to hook up the supplied new brake lines and e-brake cables. The master cylinder installed in the front brake portion of the build-up has all the necessary proportioning inside to eliminate any guesswork.

Part I  >Part II  >Part III  >Part IV