We’ve been tuning Mike Rioch’s 1995 Trans Am to squeeze out every possible drop of performance at the track, and today, we’re addressing the traction issue.

Mike’s Trans Am has run a best of 13.64 at 100 mph, but the car has a problem with wheelhop. Today, we’re installing a stronger torque arm, a new panhard rod, and a shock tower brace from BMR Fabrication to help this car launch better.

Every car will benefit from a stiff chassis, and the BMR strut tower brace is designed to keep the front shock towers from flexing while cornering. Installation is simple, just remove the air conditioning sensor, remove the bolts from the studs, and slip the new brace in place. It tightens down with supplied washers. The BMR shock tower brace is made from strong one-quarter inch mounting plates and inch-and-a-quarter by ninety-five thousandths-inch tubing to insure zero deflection under load. It’s available in red or black powdercoat, additional colors also available by special order. Be sure to reconnect the A/C sensor.

 Under the car, 4th generation Camaros and Firebirds utilize a bar called a Torque Arm which ties the transmission to the rear end to prevent the rear axle from rotating rearward during acceleration. However, the stock stamped steel piece and rubber bushing can flex under acceleration and contribute to the wheel hop we’re trying to eliminate. Again, we’re using a replacement from BMR Fabrication. The BMR arm is made from MIG welded one and a quarter inch by one-hundred-twenty-thousands thick tubing with heavy duty quarter inch mounting plates. It also features a low-deflection polyurethane front mounting bushing to help solidify the suspension.

Installation is pretty straightforward. You have to remove the x-brace under the car to gain access to the mounting bolts on the transmission tailshaft housing. Loosen all the bolts you can, and then move to the rear of the car and remove the long bolts that attach the arm to the rear axle. Because the rear axle is not at ride height while on a lift, you’ll have to use a jack to rotate the rear axle housing back to separate the torque arm from the rear end. Then you can pull it out of the front mount to completely remove it from the car.

Next, the transmission crossmember needs to be loosened to remove the front bushing mount.

After the bushing mount is removed, use a vice, a grinder, and a punch to take out the rivets holding the original rubber bushing. You’ll have to reuse the clamshell style bushing mount over again, so don’t destroy it. Now you can begin the installation of the BMR piece. Install the BMR bushing into the original mount, and bolt it back on the transmission. Now you can slip the BMR torque arm into the bushing. Use some silicone lube to help the arm slide in better. Slide the rear of the torque arm onto the rear axle, and work it around to line up the bolt holes. Reinstall the long bolts, but don’t tighten them all the way yet. Now you can re attach the transmission crossmember to the bottom of the car and tighten the mount bolts. Then go back and tighten the rear mount bolts to 100 foot-pounds. Finally, you can reinstall the x-brace.

We also added a BMR tubular panhard rod. Again, the original is a flimsy stamped steel rod, and this piece has the responsibility of keeping the rear end inline, so we thought the tubular BMR part with polyurethane bushings will improve handling. We broke one of the original bolts, so be prepared to have a grinder or cutting wheel handy if your hardware has any rust on it. The BMR piece installs in place of the original. Nice and easy.

While we had full use of the lift at Schwartz Extreme Performance, we took advantage of the lift and decided to do an oil change and switch this car to Royal Purple Racing 21 synthetic oil, but that didn’t go too smoothly. It only took a few minutes to clean up.

Next time, we’re going to finish up our suspension tune up with some new control arms, relocators and subframe connectors. Then we’ll see if we fixed our traction problem back at the racetrack. We were really impressed with the high quality of the BMR Fabrication parts. Check out the BMR site for trick suspension parts for your car!

SOURCES

BMR Fabrication

Schwartz Extreme Performance

Royal Purple

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