I am installing both braces right now, and none of the holes are lining up. I have had the car on jackstands for about a month, so it should have settled by now. It seems like the engine bay should still be pushed out a little further than it is. Any ideas on how to do this?

Are most of the braces and bars pretty much the same, or are there better quality ones and crappy ones? I got mine from Oklahoma Mustangs.

 

I've heard that all of the export braces are pretty much the same regardless of what company you buy it from. You might have to use some tough lovin to get them in.

On my export brace, the bolts around the shock tower caps lined right up but only 2 of the 4 firewall bolts lined up. I had to pry on it in various ways to get the bolts started, and then beat them down with a hammer.

The monte carlo bar went in pretty nice, but still, I had to beat it down alittle. I'd suggest getting a nice rubber mallet so u can swing away with no worries of marring the surface. BTW, I didnt think of it at first, but measure your monte carlo car from a bolt on the shock tower cap to make sure you get it perfectly straight.

 

for the export brace, i had to make a tool that spread apart the inner fenders and shock towers so it could drop right it....prbably one of the hardest things ive had to install on my car. once i got the shock tower bolts to line up, the four bolts on the firewall didnt line up, so i had to loosen everything up and use a crow bar to wedge the bar over so i could get at least one bolt in place. once i got the export brace on, the monte carlo bar was a sinch. didnt have to adjust anything, it just sat right it.

for the tool i made: it looked just like a monte carlo bar, except one end had a long, 3/4 inch bolt and nut on it. i slid the nut and bolt into the 1 inch pipeing i had and when you tighten up the bolt, it lengthens the bar and pushes it out so the fenders would spread apart. i welded the bolt to some angle iron and bolted it to one side, and welded the pipe to another piece of angle iron and bolted them to the fenders just like the monte carlo bar would.

[IMG]local://upfiles/62282/EE4030CB144F4942BCA7E5F67A97A021.jpg[/IMG]

 

Thanks for the info, I guess I will just keep plugging away. The tool you made sounds like a good idea, I will use that as a last resort. Thanks again.

 

i know some who used a pneumatic jack or something to push the fender walls apart, but those cost some money

 

After reading all of these threads about installation problems, I was very worried. When it was my turn, I was shocked when both the bar and brace dropped right in and bolted up. What does that have to say about the past of my car? Was it driven only on Sundays by a little old lady and never put under any stresses?

 

Having to spread the shock towers slightly is common when installing a brace and bar. The tool above is good. However, you could prob borrow a port-a-power hydraulic ram. It works like a charm. And, not all braces etc. are created the same. I am always leary about adjusting the chassis w/o confirming hte fitment of the parts. Helps if you have another mustang you know is true. Anyway, if you just need to move it a pinch or so, the porta-a-power willdo the trick.

Good luck.

 

When you spread the shock towers what does that do to the fender/hood alignment? Do you loosen the fenders?

For my application I cut the Monte Bar on both end to work the end flanges (complex angles) for a better fit and to shorten the bar. Then I welded the bar in place, removed it, cleaned it up, painted it and put it back. No hanging, no jacks, no power tools, no "persuading" at all. It's a thing of beauty.

 

Hi,

Had a similar issue. Was the most difficult part to install.
First I jacked the car under the firewall and got the brace to fit on the towers.
Then the brace would be too long to get bolted to the firewall.
So I jacked the car pretty far away from the engine, probably under the floorpan so the weight of the engine would drop the front and then I could bolt the braces to the firewall.

JC

 

here i found a picture of the tool i made...

[IMG]local://upfiles/62282/56C12E2448B24534907877666DB7D357.jpg[/IMG]