[MWP]

95 FWB summer tinkering. Nuthin' major here, just little clean-up jobs, but they shed 15-16 lbs.

-Took off the throttle body, cleaned up the gunky innards, replaced all gaskets. Since I bypassed the throttle body coolant passageways years ago and sent the hose directly to the coolant reservoir, I followed the pics in another thread on the forum and sawed off the unneeded coolant passageways. Maybe a quarter pound gone, and a perfect time to replace the 25-y.o. rubber elbow from the PCV hardline to the intake under the TB.

--Recently removed the unneeded ELC compressor and line, used ABS pipe cement to repair the plastic panel that exploded during removal. 8+ pounds gone.

--Replaced the knee-capping bumper guards with hardware store SS carriage bolts. Wet-sanded the bolt heads with 1000 and 1500 paper, then a bit of cerium oxide powder to bring the shine out. 6 lbs gone.

--Home plate and FB are long-gone, but I decided to keep the black bracket. Dremeled off some unneeded tabs, drilled two holes to relocate wiring retainers, ground down the sharp edges and dabbed black Rustoleum for a cleaner look. Easier access now to things like vacuum lines, vapor canister purge valve, PCV valve. Quarter-pound gone.

--Undid the wiring conduit and removed most of the ABS harness back toward the firewall at the right rear of the intake manifold. 5-6 wires run into the PCM module harness. I taped off all remaining ends since at least a couple of them are hot (the large gauge red ones in the firewall harness). 1 lb gone. Still have to remove the ABS box and re-plumb the hardlines.

 

[Caddyshack95]

Looks great!

When you got rid of the ELC compressor, I suppose you weren't using it anymore or changed your shocks?

 

[MWP]

Correct. I really liked the ELC on my old '85 slantback Seville--I had done a number of things to make that car a pretty good handler, even with the ELC shocks, but it had 4-wheel independent suspension and better geometry to start with. But, the Fleetwood's stock FE1 suspension and ELC couldn't keep up with what I want. So, in addition to new control arms/bushings, I added Dick Miller triangulation braces, Moog variable-rate cargo-coil springs, and Bilstein shocks. The trailer hitch also adds some frame rigidity. The car had Airlift1000 bags for awhile, but so far I like it better without them. Up front is rebuilt suspension, the bigger swaybar and urethane bits, Bilsteins, a frame brace by the swaybar, 2.5 turn steering box with a Borgeson intermediate shaft and rebuilt steering column. So, nothing dramatic, but decent for a daily driver. Not as cushy as it was, but more fun to drive. Still stuck with 15-inch rims and squishy sidewalls, but it corners pretty flat and goes through twisties okay. When pushed to the tire limits, it's relatively neutral with slight understeer, easy to tweak with gas/brake. Sometime in the next year I hope to copy 96Black's conversion to 18" CTS rims and low-profile tires, which should make a huge difference.

 

[Caddyshack95]

Wow, you've done a lot! How easy was the attachment of the braces and do you really feel a difference?

There are so many different things I'd love to tackle if I could take it apart and work on stuff here and there. An extra car would be nice

 

[MWP]

Both the rear braces and the front were immediately noticeable. Takes some time, but it's not overly complicated.

 

[Caddyshack95]

Interesting, thank you. With stiffer steering in corners? The photo I saw looks like it's just bolted on... that's it. Am I missing something?

I'm tempted to remove the guards like you did, but it's nice to know that I have protection from a slight bump in both the rear in front...

 

[Caddyshack95]

@MWP What size carriage bolts did you use? Been eyeing my bumper and I think it will really clean up the front since I got rid of the front plate.

 

[MWP]

Maybe they were 1/4 or 3/8. Just measure the square hole and find somethign that fits and that has a head size you like. Only needs to be a half-inch or 3/4 inch long at most as you'll see. You'll need some washers to fill up the back since the squared-off shaft is longer than the bumper is thick.