I am in the process of restoring a 66 coupe. I am in the middle of replacing the front frame rails. I took off the bolt that held the cross member that connects the left and right frame rails and I forgot to replace it prior to welding it back together.

I will be installing a 302 short block along with a t-5 when its all said and done. My question is will the cross member still have to stay or will I have to install a different kind since I will be adding a 302, the car was previously a straight 6.

Thanks

 

the 64-66 B crossmember was identical regardless of the engine installed.

 

affirmative. I have a 1970 or 71 302 with T5 in my 1964 car. the car was 6cylinder as well and crossmember is still the original.
You just have to be careful about the pan you choose. For me it's a tight fit, but my pan seems a bit bigger than original.

 

You should see the clearance between that tube and a 390/428.

 

did they use the same one for later years (67+) or do you mean madmen who somehow manage to show such a block into 64-66 cars?

 

There were two crosstubes, the 64-66, and the 67-70. All 67-70 used the same tube.

 

Thank you for the advice, I guess now I have to figure out how I am going to replace the bolt since its all sealed up. Has anybody just welded it to the frame? I dont want to cut another hole to put it together and then re-seal it. Any thoughts?

 

Well, you'll need mad welding skills, but the normal procedure when this happens to existing rails is to drop a nut into the rail, maneuver it into place, and weld it from underneath.

 

Hmm, sounds challenging. Maybe I will just have to cut a square large enough to get the nut in place and re-weld it shut. Thanks for all the advice.