Video: Project BluePrint Gains Ridetech, SSBC & Billet Specialties

It’s been a few months now since we updated you on our latest Chevy project car, Project “BluePrint” Chevelle, but it wasn’t for a lack of work. The past couple months have been full of projects throughout the powerTV garage, including the first few steps to convert our GM A-Body into the pro-touring beast we’ve always wanted. But instead of just telling you about the BluePrint Chevelle’s new digs, we wanted to give you first hand experience with all the work we’ve done. So check out the video above for a look at our Chevelle’s Ridetech , SSBC, and Billet Specialties upgrades.

The first step to building a car that’s competitive in autocross and open track disciplines while maintaining its street cred’ is a proper suspension system, so we turned to one of the industry’s leading suspension companies for the perfect setup. Ridetech hooked us up with their complete bolt-on suspension system for the 1964-1967 GM A-Body.

This system comes complete with upper and lower A-arms and a splined sway bar for the front, and an upper and lower trailing arm kit and sway bar for the rear. A complete suspension system from Ridetech is the perfect upgrade for your classic muscle car because it takes the guesswork out of piecing together your new suspension.

Our full Ridetech suspension system also came with adjustable coilovers for all four corners and a pair of Ridetech spindles. Body roll is a pesky issue in old muscle cars, especially when lowered, so Ridetech supplied us with their MUSCLEbar to increase our BluePrint Chevelle’s stability when we put her through the ringer during autocross competitions.

Getting optimal handling from our Chevelle was key but we also wanted superior stopping power to be able to put a stop to our 3,500lb sledgehammer when necessary.

So we contacted SSBC for the skinny on what we needed and the fine folks over there set us up with their 13-inch Big Brake kit.

While we were able to manage with factory brakes and some new fluid at the Goodguys Fall Nationals at Del Mar when we first welcomed the BluePrint Chevelle into our garage, the upgraded brakes from SSBC are much more inline with our monumental pro-touring plans for the A-Body.

Our SSBC 13-inch Big Brake kit came with 2-inch drop spindles, complete 9-inch booster, master cylinder, Tri-power 3-piston aluminum calipers and slotted rotors. Once we removed our factory brake components, we were able to bolt our SSBC brake system on easily without changing the steering geometry thanks to the ability to bolt even our factory steering arms to the same location on the new spindles.

While suspension upgrades are essential for creating a corner-carving pro-touring beast, and performance brakes are essential for putting a stop to a factory-heavy muscle car, they’re no good if you don’t have proper wheels and tires to take full advantage of your performance upgrades. That’s why we opted to equip BluePrint Chevelle with a set of Street Smart series wheels from Billet Specialties and some new shoes.

Ordering our wheels was a breeze thanks to the fitment guide on Billet’s website, which led us to order 17×8-inch hoops for the front and 17×9.5s for the rear. These performance-proven wheels provide optimal strength while giving BluePrint Chevelle a classy look. For pavement sticking power, we wrapped out Billet Specialties wheels in some Continental rubber.

We have loads of plans still in the works for our Project BluePrint Chevelle, including the much anticipated 600hp LSX engine from BluePrint Engines, so stay tuned for future updates. And like we promise in the video, we’ll have more of those coming your way as well.

About the author

Lindsey Fisher

Lindsey is a freelance writer and lover of anything with a rumble. Hot rods, muscle cars, motorcycles - she's owned and driven it all. When she's not busy writing about them, she's out in her garage wrenching away. Who doesn't love a tech-savy gal that knows her way around a garage?
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