55.2-59 1958 Saab story

[gottattooz]

I pulled it out of the shop and let it air up and measured at the rocker behind the front fender and in front of the rear wheel. It's 7 1/2 inches up front and 8 1/4 at the rear. It looks level enough for me not to mess with it, and it's not sagging in the rear.

-Josh

[gottattooz]

Well the exhaust issue is fixed, which was a huge relief. While driving around, I was trying to pay attention to the headlight coverage and cut off to make sure I'm not blinding oncoming traffic with 4 low beams. My driveway to the shop is a bit of an uphill, so I think it gives a pretty good example of the low and high beam outputs.

-Josh

[dsraven]

stance looks bang on to me, quite level instead of a big rake angle. lights are really bright too. do you get guys flashing their high beams from oncoming traffic?

[gottattooz]

Surprisingly not. I thought for sure every other car would be flashing me, but I think maybe twice so far. A lot of people around the Atlanta area run their high beams, so I get to see their faces (literally) when I let them know with my high beams.

-Josh

[gottattooz]

Rear shocks came in, so I replaced those.

-Josh

[gottattooz]

I mounted and wired up a reverse camera. Has to pull the driver's seat and center console to run the cable, but everything works, so it was worth the effort.

-Josh

[Madkidd007]

Originally Posted by gottattooz

I mounted and wired up a reverse camera. Has to pull the driver's seat and center console to run the cable, but everything works, so it was worth the effort.

-Josh

That’s funny. I always wanted to add one since it had the right radio already.

[gottattooz]

Madkidd wanted to know what the truck weighed since the body swap. It was his Saab that I used as a donor and he said it felt lighter and more responsive when he drove it, so we weighed it at his dad's house with racing scales.

-Josh

[gottattooz]

Since the ignition switch is in the center console, I wanted to hide it and make it look like a cup holder.

-Josh

[gottattooz]

I bought a "stash can" online, drilled out a slot on the bottom and secured the ignition key with epoxy. The only key I have to carry is the door lock key.

-Josh

[gottattooz]

Madkidd told me my rear turn signals weren't very bright, so I replaced the top tail lights with another set. They're definitely brighter.

And I wired in a wiper switch, since the wiper setup I'm using is controlled with all power outputs instead of completing ground circuits like the factory setup.

-Josh

[gottattooz]

https://youtube.com/shorts/4feNSczON7g?feature=share

Quick video of the ignition switch.

-Josh

[6DoF]

that's absurd! i love it!

[joedoh]

Originally Posted by gottattooz

I bought a "stash can" online, drilled out a slot on the bottom and secured the ignition key with epoxy.

Originally Posted by gottattooz

https://youtube.com/shorts/4feNSczON7g?feature=share

Quick video of the ignition switch.

-Josh

hahahahaa

might want to pop the top though, someone way less likely to steal a stale mt dew.

[gottattooz]

I took the day off work and spent my dad's birthday at the summit racing car show.

-Josh

[G&R's57GMC]

Now that’s a great pair !

Father and son , oh and the trucks .

Oh and Happy Birthday dad .

[gottattooz]

I removed the old cardboard (probably asbestos) sounds deadening material and found a few surprises. Some really old matches and a mouse's nest

-Josh

[gottattooz]

This is the same stuff I used on the roof of the Jeep. It kept oil canning at high speeds, and it fixed the issue, along with extra roof braces. It's called mat66.

After I finished putting everything back together, dad and I took it for a drive. It was loud and tinny before and conversations were muffled. Now I can have a normal conversation without shouting.

-Josh

[6DoF]

very nice

[gottattooz]

Well the compressor went out for the rear suspension, and I had to save up because I bought another project. So $385.00 later, she's up and running. It was looking pretty pathetic in the garage with the rear wheels stuck in the fender wells, but I took her for a test drive to run through the gears and shake it down and everything's working correctly.

-Josh

[6DoF]

hopefully it was easy to get to with the new body on there

[dsraven]

The last one of those I changed was near the $1000 mark, CAD. you can also swap out to the coils, they are a direct drop in. All you need is the coils and rubber pads from a wreck ( or new ones)

[Madkidd007]

Originally Posted by dsraven

The last one of those I changed was near the $1000 mark, CAD. you can also swap out to the coils, they are a direct drop in. All you need is the coils and rubber pads from a wreck ( or new ones)

He is fully awAre. There is a reason why he left the air ride system.

[dsraven]

yeah, I figured he knew that, pretty sharp guy. just posted it for the lurkers in case somebody else is doing something with a trailblazer/envoy.
cool looking unit.

[gottattooz]

Originally Posted by 6DoF

hopefully it was easy to get to with the new body on there

This is exactly the reason I made the floor panels removable. Putting the bolts in blind was fun, but I'm a diesel mechanic so I'm used to changing parts by feel instead of sight.

-Josh