My '55 Chevy BelAir Blog

From One Chevy Tri-Five Enthusiast To Another!

Shhh, Keep it down

With the headers finally installed, I needed to get the collectors welded on so I would not get pulled over for creating a disturbance. We all know we can’t drive around with open headers all the time creating noise pollution (as lovely as the sound is to most gear heads). But wow does the engine sound good!

I looked up a couple muffler shops to see who would be the lucky one to weld the collectors on and quiet this ride down. The first shop I went to put my car on on the lift and the first thing he told me was he would not be able to do it “properly” because the headers were too low and the pipes didn’t line up. So off to shop number two. Lucky for me the guy who ran this shop (John) was a talented guy who not only does exhaust work, but restores cars himself. I love it when I find knowledgeable people who are able to offer guidance and assistance.

Once on the lift, he did a quick inspection and called me out to see. one of the rear motor mount brackets was cracked from the stress of the weight of the transmission. All I had was front and rear motor mounts. No transmission mount or even a cross member (which I knew) but had not gotten around to working that in yet.

Well, now was the time. John told me he could weld the bracket, but in order for the job to be done properly I would need that cross member. He put a jack under the tranny and showed me where exactly everything would be once corrected. Looked good to me, so I headed home to search for the parts. After finding the parts online, I went back to let John know and he had already had the motor mount bracket welded up better than it was. He told me whenever the parts arrive to bring them over and he will finish the job up.

Waiting again…