Looking for tricks on this suspension lowering but keeping the knee action ? And any other help so not to skew anything up . Its a barn find .
Put tube-type shocks on the front and rear-replace the knee-action. They make the brackets, I did it a hundred years ago to my 38. Maybe put a 250 6cly and a turbo 350 (great combo, easy-peasy), and drive that baby. You will need a more modern rear end to do that swap, it's really easy too. 37 Chevys are really pretty cars, congrats. The above mentioned mods won't lower the value, or screw up the car, but they will make it tons more driveable.
lowering it would be low on my priority list. glass, running, rust removable, safe wiring, cleaning the yard, gutters, fixing the facia, etc.........
1. Mechanical- get it running, brakes, lights, tire, decent glass. 2. Rust control 3. Then worry about cool factor- (honestly the car has that covered without lowering or any of that stuff) but- to each his own. You have a nice car that appears to be in pretty good shape, enjoy it and take good care of it. There just aren't many of them left.
Brakes, suspension, steering, tyres and glass would be a top safety priority. CLR the body after cleaning? I've no idea on the condition of mechanicals; engine, differential or transmission. Gas tank will most likely require cleaning with carb needing a rebuild. What's the interior like, passable for a driver?
...that's just the way I'd like to find a 37,..I've had a few of em, nicest lookin coupe Chevy ever made in the early years...if your's has the real "knee action" front,..I'd replace it with leaf springs/axle...
My "vote"; I'd go early to mid 60's vibe. Front axle, Vintage BOP mill (maybe dual quads), fenderwell headers, 4 speed, Olds rear. Competition orange, unpolished original Torque Thrusts or Cragar S/S, "pipe" rear bumper, deep six the front bumper. Vintage buckets with black diamond or narrow pleat interior, chrome garnish and column, vintage gauges, column mounted tach... Keep the black CA plates!
Its still has ok interior and new glass is ordered with rubbers along with a fuel tank the motor turns over after putting in Some marvels in it . I will Treat the surface rust after the winter is over i have decided to keep it stockish except for stance have the carb off and rebuilding it now flushed the radiator and am working on the brakes now and are haveing keys made too . Am going to order new springs for the suspension and cut them down to Get it where i want it . Hopefully the motor n trans are good and i will Leave them in if not i have a 350/350 ready and waiting . Thanks for your advice . Steve
Hi, Steve. There's a small group of 216 owners HERE:https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/social-forums/chevy-216s.551/ Check us out. Some interesting stuff among us.
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...-feature-rip-don.1079788/page-2#post-12251301 Hello, For the short time I knew and conversed with Don Nowell, that 37 Chevy Coupe of his was the epitome of a very nicely done, street gas coupe for the B/Gas class. Our 40 Willys 671 SBC coupe or some other build, would have been competitors in that class by the time he was a record setter in the mid-to late 60s. His 37 Chevy had the look and go of what most would call a real, Gas Coupe. It was a street coupe driven on the streets and very competitive at the drags. As all gas coupes and sedans go during our time from 1958-60, there was one Tahitian red, 1937 Chevy coupe that was at the forefront of the Gas Coupe/Sedan Class in C/Gas and later, B/Gas. Doug Cook 1958-59 Lions Dragstrip Doug Cook 37 Chevy My favorite from 1958-60 was Doug Cook’s Tahitian Red, 37 Chevy Coupe. My brother and I would spend all day at Lions from opening gate time to the late night time closing after the final elimination race. It was just the thing to do for us teenagers. Almost every weekend, this cool looking 37 Chevy coupe would be sitting in the pits and racing. There would be a guy in a rolled sleeve, white t-shirt and Levis running around fixing things on his Chevy coupe. We were impressed that he also drove this cool street car in the Gas Coupe Class. When he fired up to roll to the starting gates, it sounded outstanding. What is that kid with the blue nylon jacket/Levis/desert boots doing in the pits? We could immediately picture ourselves driving this Chevy gas coupe through our favorite drive-in restaurant parking lot, with the envious stares of others. It was a street driven car that was also very fast at Lions, too. That scene every week, played an important role in our drag racing exploits within the next year or two. We were racing the 58 Impala in the A/Stock class with some successful trophy wins. But, deep in our minds, it must have been creating an idea for later, as we watched this guy work on his car weekly in the Lion’s pits. Lions Dragstrip Pits 1958-59. My brother taking a photo of me looking for “speed secrets” in the 37 Chevy coupe. Jnaki The top two gas coupe racers at the time were Doug Cook and Junior Thompson. The sound from both cars could be exchanged as they both sounded powerful. If you closed your eyes, the sound from both of these cars was so similar when firing up and going down the dragstrip. These were our local gas coupe inspirations for our future 1940 Willys Coupe build coming up in 1959-60. Junior Thompson's 1941 Studebaker sedan SOUND film: TURN THE VOLUME UP! Close your eyes and imagine this Tahitian Red 37 Chevy going down the dragstrip, shifting in precise times, etc... similarities did exist back then. July 2018 HAMB thread https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...e-37-or-38-chevy-coupe.1115216/#post-12655425 Let’s get the best seat in the house for this popular, Chevy vs Willys race…1959
To me, Don Nowell's coupe is the 554 of '37 Chevys. I love that car, and have a 1/25 scale approximation of it downstairs.
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