I was inspired to post this based on this forum posted here in Bench Racing

http://www.chevelles.com/cgi-bin/forum/ultimatebb.cgi/topic/2/26989.html?

I think this will be an intersting subject for us 70 guys to ponder and comment and perhaps investigate..

Ok - About a year ago I got to look at some GM literature in the possesion of Muscle car kid - TC member. In the literature it pointed out that the SS had two round bushings in the lower control arm and the Malibu was given the round/oval bushing arm to soften the ride.

So I went on a mission to look at all the known documented 70 SS's I knew of - build dates varied. All had lower control arms with two round bushings, including my own Jan built 70. My Feb built Malibu has one round and one oval.

The topic becomes of interest here as the LS6 in the other post has lower control arms with round and oval bushings, so the questions is did the SS at one point come with the oval/round variation? Remeber - today, documents can be forged and blocks can be stamped and when you are dealing with a high value car anything is possible. Now I am not saying that the LS6 on e-bay is a clone but it does leave some question if the bushing theory is correct.

So any one with documented SS 1970 cars - check your lower arms and let us know what you have.

Pls this topic is purely for fun and investigating interesting trivia - lets have fun and see what we find.

Thks

Rich

As I mentioned in that thread, my new frame came from under a Maibu 400 (402/TH400/12-bolt car) and has ovals. Its not an SS, but it was a BB car.

I'm interested too, as I don't want to be passing along incorrect info smile.gif

round/round on mine.

My 70 has round bushings. I didn't realize it was a malibu/SS difference, my understanding was it was a change mid-production. My car is undocumented, but the instrument cluster and door panels are all dated late 69.

Chris,

It could have been - just not sure - would love to hear from some documented true SS cars built later.

Rich

Just thinking, maybe not a good forum to put this in maybe the moderator can move it to Chevelle Tech? Not sure - was hoping to attract more 70 owners. :(

70 owners where are you----- graemlins/waving.gif

richr,

My 70 SS was built the second week of February 1970. It doesn't have documenation but I've owned it since 1988 and took everything apart the first time myself so I know it's a true SS. Both lower control arms have the round bushings. Let me know if you need more info.

Rich, third week of March LS-5..round and round we go.

ALbert

2nd week Feb LS5, 2 Round Bushings

Well, I'll throw a wrench in the works. My current 70, an SS, has round/round.

My first 70, a Malibu with a 350, also had round/round - from the factory (2nd owner, next door neighbor was first owner). I believe they change depending on build date.

Round and oval. Who's to say one of the control arms wasn't changed over the cars 35 year history? Build date of feb.

round/round

Originally posted by saturnstyl:
Round and oval. Who's to say one of the control arms wasn't changed over the cars 35 year history? Build date of feb. My thought exacty. Guy runs his LS6 over a curb way back when,goes to junkyard and buys two used arms off a malibu. So now he's accused of selling a clone.Not a way to tell one way or the other,but useful when you consider all other factors on a car. BTW my 70 Malibu has one round one oval.

Both ovals on my malibu. But it had been in various accidents before I had it, so who knows....

I have a 70 LS5 chassis sitting around, I will see what arms are on it.

Round/Round. Documented 70 SS 396. Van Nuys, 1st week of December 69.

Round, Round, 70 SS396. 3rd week Nov, atlanta car.
Ron

2 Canadian built 70 Malibu cars both with oval.

I have a 70 LS5 built in canada sold in US documented and has round/round.. So it doesn't appear to be a canadian thing.. But, my car was built with the block cast in dec 69 and the car made in january...

Matt

Well - so far it seems the SS cars have the round/round bushings. I note the 350/350 Malibu Xtreme had was round/round as well - intersting - I wonder if that was an early car. I'd like to find som SS cars with later build dates, see if the oval came in then, but I seem to doubt it.

Saturn - your car has both type arms? Reason I ask as I had to change one of mine on my green SS - The shop bent one of the arms when putting in the bushings, I still have the original arm but I put a Malibu arm on the drivers side so yes it is definately possible over the years some arms were swapped out. In any case still trying to get a consensus that supports the documantation that Muscle Car Kid has.

So any later SS cars? So far the latest reported car here is 3/70.

Rich

Originally posted by richr:
So any later SS cars? So far the latest reported car here is 3/70.
Rich Rich, my buildsheet says 12-0789 in the upper left date box, Arlington plant. Never got around to decoding it, know what it means?

Finally,

Not sure - that's great though that you have a build sheet for an Arlington car, searched high and low in my Arlington car, never found one, only have a POP. I learned most Arlington cars were cheated from their build sheets.

Check the cowl tag - build date will be on the lower left corner, mine is 01C - Jan 3rd week.

12-0789 may be Dec 69 - early car - but not sure.

Rich

Originally posted by richr:
Finally,

Not sure - that's great though that you have a build sheet for an Arlington car, searched high and low in my Arlington car, never found one, only have a POP. I learned most Arlington cars were cheated from their build sheets.

Check the cowl tag - build date will be on the lower left corner, mine is 01C - Jan 3rd week.

12-0789 may be Dec 69 - early car - but not sure.

Rich Thanks Rich. I'll check it.

Rich... Kenny's 70 SS.... 4th week of April car has the original control arms and they are round/round. His other 70 SS is a March built car, which is also round/round...

My 70 SS Chevelle is not documented, but I believe to be original SS. Just took the suspension apart this past month.....round bushings

Hmm - Kenny's is the latest reported SS so far, I guess will all be looking at undercarraiges at car shows.

Keep the results coming, don't forget to include build dates.

Rich

Sorry I can't provide a build date on the Malibu... I know the car was never in an accident, but that doesn't mean the arms weren't swapped for another reason.

Originally posted by richr:
Saturn - your car has both type arms? Reason I ask as I had to change one of mine on my green SS - The shop bent one of the arms when putting in the bushings, I still have the original arm but I put a Malibu arm on the drivers side so yes it is definately possible over the years some arms were swapped out.


Rich Yes it has a round and an oval bushing. I forget which side has which.... We have a partial build sheet (most RPO codes missing) and a protect o plate that has everything pointing towards true SS. 350 horse 396, turbo 400 on column, all correct SS parts are there....
Thing is this car looks to have been to hell and back over its history. Being an SS I am sure they flogged it hard and put it away wet. It appears to have been flooded at some point, the original engine, tranny and rear end are gone. There is evidence of "water lines" and silt in places it couldn't have normally gotten in to. There is a bent section on the rear most part of the left frame rail and the rear crossmember is pulled back. 35 years is a long time, especially for a hotrod muscle car. I believe its had some parts changed, but surprisingly the A/C box is still there, the boxed lower control arma and rear control arm braces, the heavy duty suspension pieces are there, and the bolted steering column coupling with quick ratio box.
Hope this info helps some... Many of these cars have lived hard lives. This car is far beyond a numbers matching correct restoration, so we went a different route. You can see the protect o plate and build sheet on chevellestuff.com Its the leeds plant credited to Walter Lewis (my dad). The protect o plate shows oklahoma city as the original address. its the first one on the page for the leeds plant. The build sheet is the one that is in two pieces, its the worst looking one of the Kansas city plant build sheets.

Saturn,

The original arm I bet was round/round - was swapped as mine was - here is the info from Muscle car Kid;

The following is quoted from the 1970 Chevrolet Dealer Sales Album and quoted from his e-mail to me.

'Special Features"

"The new oval-shaped lower control arm rear bushing for Chevelle models (except SS 396) contributes to a smoother, quieter ride."

"If this is the case, one would believe that the 70 SS 396 and SS 454 Chevelles used round bushings in both positions on the front lower control arms. These round bushings gave a firmer performance ride and could have been a part of the F-41 suspension package which included heavier front anti sway bar and a rear sway bar with boxed rear lower control arms.

Anything could have happened on the assembly line as far a substitution of parts goes, but I would assume the build sheet would dictate what control arms were used on Malibus or SS cars in 1970.

Sincerely,
Musclecarkid,"

Thks

Rich

Rich, not to sound stupid, but are there any postings of pics of the two different bushings? I'd like to know what the two differences are, I am going to look at mine and see what they are.

On the lower front control arms, look at the rear-most bushing. Is it OVAL or ROUND? The difference is clearly visible.

My 70' El Camino has a round and oval bushing. in the lower control arm.

Mid Jan. Atlanta car - oval / oval.

Rich, Thanks for posting for me. After I typed all that above my reply disappeared.

My Malibu Convert is a June 70 build with oval bushings.

musclecarkid

I have owned 4 70's and all of them have had the ovals. The 71 4 door I had also had ovals.

Tire Burner,

I'll try and take a pic but it's pretty easy to spot - look at your lower control arm bushings the one in the front is round and the one in the back will either be round or oval, having a kind of flat surface.


Thks

Rich

and then there's guys like me. I learned about this difference years ago when we were oval track racing cars with the Chevelle chassis. We always went and found round bushing control arms. Now, I'm about to rebuild the front end of my Chevelle Malibu again, I already acquired a set of round bushing arms. Someday down the road somebody will see this never raced or wrecked car and wonder how it got those "SS control arms."

Tom

Ok thanks Rich, I am going to try and take a peek at the bushing tomorrow and see what I have. Now what is the deal for the 69's? are they just round?

Rich, I went back and checked the pics on that LS6 on ebay, the back bushing looks more oval, is that what I am looking for, where it sits in the control arm?

Originally posted by tireburner396:
Rich, I went back and checked the pics on that LS6 on ebay, the back bushing looks more oval, is that what I am looking for, where it sits in the control arm? Yes that is what to look for. The outer shell is either round or oval shaped, only the rear lower. Front lower and 2 uppers are always round.

I wonder as well if the presence of a 12-bolt rear might factor into this equation? The 300-hp 350 got the 12-bolt while the lesser engines got the 10-bolt (excepting 1970Deluxe's 300 Deluxe 6 cyl sedan with a factory 12-bolt!)
The archeologists will be debating this for years.
Good move Rich, to try and find some pattern to the installation rational.

I just went and checked my documented 70 SS built in the first week of May 1970 and it has both round lower bushings. It is an Arlington built car with no build sheet found to date, but I do have the POP and some original registration paperwork.

Jeff

Originally posted by Cam:
I wonder as well if the presence of a 12-bolt rear might factor into this equation? The 300-hp 350 got the 12-bolt while the lesser engines got the 10-bolt (excepting 1970Deluxe's 300 Deluxe 6 cyl sedan with a factory 12-bolt!)
The archeologists will be debating this for years.
Good move Rich, to try and find some pattern to the installation rational. The question relates to 70 SS only. Could not get anything but a big block in an SS in 70. All 70 SS came with 12 bolt as well, posi was optional. So your point is valid but Rich was trying to find another feature to look for when trying to identify a true SS. Did all 70 SS come with round rear bushings?

july built ss el camino round/round

Goerge,

I just ntd you advised your car has oval/oval - do you think the control arms are original, I know your car is a true SS so this could be a change in the idea. Can you re cnfm the back bushing is oval?

Thks

Rich

Rich,

11A 1969 build date....SS convertible....round / round.

After a long day of cruising, and fumes, I often find myself under the vehicle. The bushings talk to me, and sometimes they become oval, sometimes square. Depends on the amount of fumes.

Can't wait to hit some car shows with you and watch you crawling under cars! Good stuff.

Kidding aside, this is a very interesting post.

Happy Holidays, Joe

Hi Rich -

This same question came up a few years ago when I had the suspension rebuilt (new springs, shocks bushings etc.). The shop that did the work asked this very question about the control arm bushings before they would order the parts so I had to take a look underneath. I am pretty sure the arms are original - the brake calipers and spindles are - but there are other quirky things about this car also - the trans. cross member bolts are installed upside down and the door panels have carpeting at the bottom rail.

Happy Holiday
George

Thanks for the info guys! I will no longer be spreading mis-information (on this subject anyway ;) )

So do the round bushings help with handling?

Funny thing is though, if you want to build a 70SS clone, there's more than enough 68's and sooo many 69 cars built with round bushing arms.

Ovals are better if you want to run poly bushings. Poly round bushings are too hard on the frame mount. I can see the rounds being better back when rubber bushings were all there was though.

So far one documented SS here with Ovals - very intersting indeed, could be arms were swapped out at one time or the fty did indeed insatll them on that car - would love to hear from others as well - I guess this will be neat item to cover at the Chevelle shows.

Thks

Rich

round/round on our 70 'bu.
Built late '70 in Arlington Tx.

-c

Curt,

Just curious - how late - what was the date - did the car have any performance options ie Heavy Duty suspension? Any chance you have the build sheet - would love to see it maybe add some info on why this Malibu has round bushings.

Thks

Rich

1970 El Camino SS

built 9-24-69, Kansas

round/round

see sig. for buildsheet

No chance at a build sheet - this thing was in terrible shape when we got it and we've since stripped it to the frame. The upper/lower arms look to be original, but no idea if they actually are - they matched in condition to the rest of the car...

Had front/rear drums like most Malibu's, but we've since changed it over to front discs. Not sure about a heavy-duty suspension though, the car was missing it's orig engine, but it should have been a 350ci - we're dropping a 454 in it now and the front springs are no longer the originals. Small front bar, no rear bar, 256 gears :eek: .

Over-all, it looks to be a generic/run-of-the-mill 1970 Chevy Malibu...

I'll confirm the date of manufacture and (re)post with the complete VIN when I get home.

-c

My '70 Malibu originally with a 307 had oval bushings before I added Global West control arms.

Okay - here's the complete VIN for the 70 'bu with round and round:

136370R214211

maybe this can help a bit...

What does the assembly manual say about this? Does it show a choice of part numbers for lower control arm assemblies?

JW - I'll take a look - I do know when you order bushings for a 70 they ask which type of rear bushing in the arm, oval or round. I'll thumb thru the assembly manual and see. So far the only documentation that I have seen refferring the oval busing to the Malibu only is from Musclae Car Kid - he posted above.

Rgds

Rich

Round/Round

My 70 SS orignially had Round - Round. But the interesting thing is, quite a few components were pitted beyond belief on my car, so I used the A-arms from a known 72SS donor with a cracked frame. It had Oval on the lowers, one other interesting item was that its A-arms (upper and lower) were made from a thicker guage steel. I know this 72 was an SS for may reasons. Just something else to think about..........

Hi, i have 2 doc ss 70 396 chevelles 1 apr car 1 june car, both round, round. Also have three 70 malibu all round, oval. I was looking at my 1970 chevrlet dealer sales album, two times mention is made of new oval-shaped rear suspension lower control arm rubber bushing, contributes to a smoother, quieter ride. 1 states (except ss 396) the other states (except ss) so im not sure about the 454 ss, i have a friend who still has the 70 ls6 454 he bought new so i will be checking to see what his car has, ill let you know