Modifications to Our Beretta

Here I am installing the rear axle from a 95 Grand Am. You can see the 22 mm internal bar that runs the full width of the axle and is welded in place. NO BUSHING HERE! Special thanks to Jason Sherrill for helping with the install.

 

Here is a good shot of my rear coil over shocks. They are simply helper springs that I bought from a local auto parts store. They really help stiffen the rear end and improve handling.

 

Here is a picture of what sits behind my open grill. It is a transmission cooler that is capable of keeping the transmission cool for a vehicle up to 22,500 pounds. I love overkill. =)

 

Here is the 28 mm bar that I took out (the top, dirty one) and the 30 mm bar I put in (the bottom, shiny one). You can tell in this picture that the 30 mm is bigger, but you can't really get an appreciation for how much bigger it really is unless you hold it in your hands.

And in goes the 300 horsepower turbo V6. Yeah, I wish. Actually this is a picture from the front sway bar project. Since you have to unbolt the lower frame supports, the manual suggests getting an engine support. I couldn't find one that just fits under the hood, so I went with the full hoist. I don't know if you really need it, but I wasn't about to have my engine fall out.

 

Here is a picture of my one inch rear sway bar from Addco. There aren't many '95s out there with external rear bars. That's because they changed the rear axle in '95. The front part of the bar bolts up to the axle with no problem, but I had to mount bolt the rear to the spring plate using three 3/8th inch grade 8 bolts on each side (three may be excessive, but once again, I love over kill). See the picture below for more detail. You can also see my rear sub frame brace, err hitch, here too. =)

 

This is a picture taken through the dirty wheel of the end link. I bolted it to the spring plate. If you look carefully, you can see spring. First I had to go buy two more bushing brackets that had a bolt hole on each side because this bar was designed for a rear axle before '95 that had a slot for the front of the bracket to slide into. My local performance shop had a set of 1 inch Energy suspension bushings. Then I had to cut three 1 inch wide by 3/16 inch thick pieces of steel for spacers in order for the bar to clear the spring plate on the axle. Then I drilled through the spacers and through the spring plate. I used three 3/8 inch bolts; one on each end of the bushing bracket and one right in the middle of the steel spacers, which required drilling out the base of the polyurethane bushing a bit.

 

Here is a list of all the mods

 Dyne Max Ultra Floe muffler  
Rapid Fire Spark plugs  
8 mm spark plug wires  
16 X 7.5 " polished aluminum wheels  
225 / 50 R16 Dunlop D60 A Tires  
Abash Pro Kit springs  
Coil over rear shocks  
GM upper strut tower brace  
Shock tower brace  
KYB front struts  
James cone filter  
Transmission cooler (for a vehicle up to 22,500 pounds)  
Z26 Front bumper
Z26 Rear bumper  
Z26 side ground effects  
JVC CD player w/ detachable face  
8 speakers  
Le Bra  
Ungo Alarm  
 95 Grand Am rear Axle w/ 22 mm bar  
 Polyurethane front bushings  
30 mm front sway bar from a Grand Am with urethane bushings  
 Lumina Z34 hood vents  
 Carbon Metallic brake pads  
 One inch rear sway bar  
 225/50/R15 Kumhos for racing on 15" American Eagle type 041 wheels.  
 Battery mounted in the trunk  
   
   
   

 

Future Mods

 Port & Polish upper and lower intake  
 Port & polish exhaust manifolds  
 2.25" exhaust all the way back (preferably mandrel bent)  
 Smooth intake from filter to throttle body  
 lower final drive ratio  
 Sparko sport seats with harnesses  
 Fast Chipps computer  
 auxiliary fan behind the tranny cooler  
Stainless steel brake lines  
 Z26 Dash  
Cold air intake  
   
   
   
   

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