I was wondering if anyone had any info on Spohn making a k-member. From what i heard, his design was supposed to be strong enough for everyday use. I have his adj torque arm and sbfcs and i'm saving for the front coil over kit. i love his work and quality. i just hope that he does go through with this design. So if anyone knows anything, let me know.

 

i e-mailed him on this about 2 weeks ago and asked him if it would be done before june(when i'm planning on doing my ls1 swap) and he said it would be done with it before then and that he was working on it as we speak.

 

So Steve is making two versions? A factory replacement tubular k-memeber and an LS1 k-member?

 

well only difference is going to be the motor mounts. You can order a PA unit with ls1, sbc, and lt1 mounts.

 

ahhh I see....did Steve by any chance mention an estimated price for the k-member?

 

no he didnt but if i were to guess it would be 500.

 

hey thanks alot for the info....if you talk to Steve, tell him to keep up the good work

 

i called him a few days ago, i was told they started it a while ago but had to stop because they are extremely busy with orders right now. they didnt make much progress on it and wont be able to start on it again for another two months (may)

if they are out before june i will be extremely surprised.

 

Yea who knows just telling you what he told me, but i do know how things work with things like this. So i wouldnt be suprised if it was later, which if so i'm going with either PA or Hawks.

Justin

 

I'd go with Hawks. It is atleast made right.

Kat

 

they say off road and drag use. my car sees the street alot, and the road tracks more then the drag strips. i need a k member before may 15th, what are my options? heard bad things about pa and aje, who makes hawks? anybody ever deal with a company called racecraft in streator illinois? http://www.racecraft.com/

 

From what I know Hawks has a local place that makes NASCAR parts making them. Soooo yeah.

Kat

 

I really hope its everything you want it to be..

-- Joe

 

Yea i was leaning towards the Hawks just becuase he uses it in his car on the street he said with no problems, but i was going to give each a call and see what they each got to say about themselves.

Thanks
Justin

 

wouldnt buying a regular 3rd gen sbc k-member and using the LS1 adapters leave you more options for the future without creating problems?

 

depends on the adapters you use.

the 3rdgen specific adapters (hawks style) use bolt holes that exist on the factory Kmember, but not on any tubular ones....

the aftermarket ones that bolt to the LS1 to make it work like a SBC should work fine..... but i havent tried it to be sure.

 

my tubular k member has the same holes as a stock k-member so that arguement is moot. Yours doesn't?

 

noo.. the hawks engine mounts dont go into the stock bolt holes for the engine mounts.


it uses two of the rear holes... and then holes that are BEHIND the point of the regular motor mount bolt holes.


thoes rear holes are nothing but air on the aftermarket Kmembers.

 

what about the spohn and f-bodymotorsports thirdgen LS1 mounts?

 

all of the mounts that look like this:



have the same prob...



heres a pic of exactly what im talking about.

the red arrow is the edge of the Kmember.

the green arrow is the front bolt hole location that remains un-used.

 

so in that picture the tube K is not using about half the bolts in the mounts?


on a stock k member do you drill the extra holes?

 

yes... its only using the adapters two front bolts (aka the two rear engine mount bolts)

also it should be noted that the passenger side engine mount location is in the same place the AC compressor would be on a LS1....



on the stock Kmember, the "extra" bolt holes already exist.... why, i donno. but they're there on my 91s stock k-member, and on a nearby junker 83..... so id assume all years have the holes.

 

well I hope this might help, and thank you for the explanation. You have improved my understanding of the situation.


click for broadband only hugeness

for your issue you could fix it right up with one of these? maybe Spohn or someone could get on board with a premade plate for regular k-member owners.



My whole idea behind wanting to use the regular 3rd gen mount k-member was for versatility. Using a chevy mounted k-member give you the versatility to change engine if you ever needed/wanted to. Im not just talking about a SBC or BBC or LT1 swap.

My friend is considering this swap and Im looking to the future. Knowing him as I do I feel that he might wish to install some motor not even released yet. say 10 years down the road he desides to install some engine we cant even fathom yet.

For an example I will use a fictional future engine called the LX3. The LX3 uses cylinder on demand technology, has 500 cubic inches in a small light package, makes 1000hp, gets 45 MPG (on pump methanol) and exists currently only in my dreams.

So maybe my friend wants to install one of these in his previously swapped LS1 thirdgen. He was smart and purchased a chevy mounted 3rd gen k-member instead of marrying himself to the LS1 only mount pads. Since swap mounts to install these LX3 engines in all manner of cars are being released left and right, he can simply just pick up a set and place them on his k-member.

Sadly here on the TGO site we will be seeing guys actually cutting and welding (GASP!) on thier precious (now out of production) after market k-members in their now classic third gens.

just something to think about

 

KagA152
evenso people in here might tell you something else
there was a company (the first way back then) back in 88 doing a k-member that really made sense...it was in a hot rod mag or so with pics and way back then the strut mounts where change already to a better design tooooo...today some folks talk about design stealing and claiming there products to be their idea which is wrong!

the a-arm guru Art -morrison didnt jump on it way back then...we wrote them no answer about a k-member this was in the late 80´ssssss!

Bell tech just needs to pop out a spindle out of there design basement !!!!!!again a company telling us there is no 3rd gen market hahahahah!

with all the 3rd gen stuff coming out now we would have busted FORD in 88-92 with there sales!

Compare a age old Ford Motorsport and summit catalog and look up the Mustang parts and try this on a 3rd gen ....Ford was a winner with provinding all stuff a racer or streeter wanted ....with in no way better cars!

Different time same mistakes!





B4Ctom1 you are right with the idea to keep a "basic" k-member and just change mounts with the engines that might come up in the future!
nice plate idea but this thing might get loose and it would be better to change the design of the block mount....




Mr. Dude we had this topic before about the k-member and for the major crowd in here it is ok to go to a LS1 only K-member while some wanna try out the rest of there engine park!

the optimum k-member would use the 4th gen rack (manual rack set ups are being sold to the 4th gen crowd, we could "steal" this for race 3rd gens)
the other now offered racks are out of side money wise....!
A already installed rack option would make things easier as the swapper gets into further upgrades/changes like headers and blabla

i would love to see all offered k-members in a comparo....
the AJE seems to create more ground clearence being straight at the oilpan while others swing down in a way.....
again this might be only a topic for owners who look for a ground
and lower stance with a dry sump oil pan!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

wont know until it comes out.

 

I think you will need some bracing for the adapter plate. From that diagram, it looks like it's just dangling there and flexing. Add a brace back to the k-member and it should be fine. The cantilevering against the bolts will stretch the bolts (cyclical loading) and possibly loosen things up, and not to mention having an engine move around too much.

Minimize the movement and the plate will work out fine, IMHO. I'm not a MechE though, other than a course or two on structural mechanics at university, so take that with a huge grain of salt. I'd think how much bracing depends on the materials involved and the forces that will be applied.

 

thats for the stock k memeber. right? the AC compressor would clear the tubular one, correct?

 

you mean like the one I diagramed for him?

 

Just to let everyone know that i talked to BMR today and they said they are just waiting on one last final piece and they will have a 3rd gen k-member out the first of the next month.

Personaly i really dont care about if the k-member is just for a ls1 or not becuase i see that i will have this motor for quit some time and when it comes time when i want to switch motor's to one uses a different mount i'll just buy a new k-member. Its not like there 1000 dollars or anything, and after 10 years i figure why not switch to a new one(might be a better one out then), but thats just me could be different for others.

Justin

 

so i have a question... there is going to be obvious differences here in weight.... what will using the tubular k-member, coil over kit, and tubular a arms do for a 3rd gen all spohn stuff of course...
what benifits is there,

 

Please buy the Spohn unit and not the PA racing unit. Support our site and it's advertisers. The spohn a-arms are much safer looking than my PA-racing units and my PA racing unit is a bit too flimsy. I bought it back when there wasnt anything else (around 1999-2000). I wouldn't recommend the PA-Racing unit for long term or too much street use.

I really cant speak for the spohn weights but if you want to see the weights on my 91 Z28 project they are in my post about it here:

https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...d&pagenumber=2

the totals as scaled for just the k-member, a-arms and coil over swap as follows:

stock K-member with motor mounts, a-arms, and springs ~ 113.25 lbs


PA mild steel K-member, A-arms, mounts, and coil over kit ~ 44 lbs

I took pictures with the intent of making a webpage dedicated to the info on the swap. For those of you interested here are all my swap pics:

http://www.outlawperformance.com/ima...mods_09-25-04/

enjoy

Like I said "Buy Spohn", if I had my choice I would be running theirs now even if it meant adding a few pounds for strength.

 

.

 

Yea, i dont knwo i've heard good things from 4th gen guys about BMR, but i can't really say to much all i have from them is a STB and it looks good to me, but others could have had diferent expericences. I'm just telling you what i know, but i do KNOW that spohn stuff is very nice. Most of my suspension is by them as you can see in my sig and i'm more then happy with his service and products.

Justin

 

Not quite. I think you need a brace from the end of the motor mount (LS1) back to the k-member. It's not as bad as dangling it on the last 2 bolts, but I think there should be more support.

If you don't see what I mean, take a ruler, put it on a table with half of it sticking out and push on the end without support. The fulcrum point will be the first point of support (the edge of the table) and it will lift up on the other end of the ruler. If you support the free end of the ruler by taking a stick and bracing it against the leg of the table, it won't do that.

 

I understand what you are saying and your idea is more ideal, I was just trying to come up with a "better than he has now" and "simple" improvement to his current situation.

 

People have been waiting to buy the Spohn k-member for I don't know how long now. I for one will not be buying one, hell I doubt it'll be out within the next six months (if it is, I'd be surprised). Why wont I buy one? For me, they're probably going to be too damn heavy, just like his a-arms are, to justify the cash for a "lighter" part. I'm sure others will be happy but I wouldn't be.

 

can somone please explain to me the benifit of the k member, a arms and coil overs??? the pros and cons??

 

The stuff is just too expencive these days..

I had some problems with my k-member and rack clearing the exhaust. I called Profab.. Vern was like "dude, just send it back to me, i'll send you one with a pinto rack and it will clear" I was like "but its all scratched up, its 6 months old" hes like "who cares!"

I ended up figuring out a decent angle for the steering, but the fact is the support is GREAT, and so is the price.

Just because someone is a "sponsor" doesn't mean the parts are the best.. I'm happy with what I have from spohn (panhard, lca's, reloc brackets), but I'm not impressed with the rest of the product line and the prices.

-- Joe

 

think about this.

thoes of us with the ability to cut and weld motor mounts, would be able to cut off the old ones and make whatevers needed for this entirely new fictional motor......



anyhoo, here was my solution.

 

tubular with LS1 mounts? yes.

tubular with SBC mounts and adapters? no.

 

why would you cut the mounting pad for the ac pump when you can just get a simple bracket to allow the use of the factory AC 3rd gen pump on the LS1 in the right spot?


EDIT: never mind! $300! are they out of their minds!!!

 

Yea thats what i thought with 300 dollars i can almost buy a new k-member.

 

I guess I would buy to avoid "sectioning" a stocker.

 

you mean besides the insane price?


because id rather use the low mounted, quiet, more efficent, computer controled on-a-single-belt-that-i-can-remove-for-the-track stock LS1 one.....



keep in mind, the Kmember is made... you just mock any motor you want in there, and make a simple mount. a motor mount doesnt require a jig, and ton of work.... but making a square, straight Kmember is a bit more envolved.... so i have no prob cutting up mine. besides, they're only $250 from PA or Profab...

 

besides... if you dont want the car to look like a hackjob, and you want it to look really clean like everything was ment to go together, you need to do little things that arnt easy to undo.

 

Hello 300$ fans... i finally got the deal the bracket for a air con reposition is 300$?????????????

is someone looking for a 10000000 $ k-member im selling mine!

I guess with so many K-member copy cats...... the price will fall and the options like motormounts and so on are getting back down to earth....!