1940 Ford Chassis - Chassis Assembly Tips

A Ford 351W engine and Ford AOD trans would be the front part of the drivetrain. The next crew selected a dummy block and trans housing to accurately install the engine/trans mounts.

A special jig was located at the front of the framerails. Dimensions were taken from this fixture.

The engine would need room up front for a water pump, a fan, and pulleys.

The crew checked the centerline of the AOD trans housing and engine, as well as the correct position forward/rearward.

It's also important to mount the engine/trans on a slight angle to position the driveshaft with the proper offsets. This eliminates the possibility of vibrations created by too much offset in the driveshaft/trans universal joint.

From underneath we could see the transmission-mounting bracket clamped in place. This bracket is bolted in place to allow the transmission to be removed without hoisting the engine.

The top transmission bracket is another safety item that will prevent a broken universal joint on the driveshaft from rupturing the floorboard and entering the cab. It also strengthens the chassis.

The Ford engine mounting brackets were welded securely to the inner wall of the frame-rail. There are some interesting structural forces, tension and compression, at work in the design of the brackets.

A few more welds were ground smooth before the chassis was turned bottom-side up.

The time was passing quickly, but the second crew was making good progress.

After the chassis was flipped bottom-side up, a C-notch was cut in the front of the framerail where the steering rack would pass under.

A curved piece of steel was welded in place to retain the structural strength of the framerail and prevent any sharp edges.

As mentioned earlier, the bottom transmission mounting bracket was bolted to the chassis to allow it to drop out-if the transmission needs to be removed without removing the engine.

Another strength of the TCI chassis is a round steel sleeve through the framerail where the back end of the leaf spring mounts to the chassis. Here the hole was being drilled to accept the round sleeve.

The sleeve was welded around the perimeter (on both sides) for strength-the welds were then ground smooth.

Another special jig was used to position the upper control arm and upper shock mounting brackets.

These two brackets are welded in place (directly in-line) over the front crossmember.

The second-stage chassis construction crew was Andre Hernandez, Laonel Hernandez and Freddie Gauvardo. Thanks for the great work, guys.

Geoffrey Oka, a member of the third crew, began to install the stainless steel brake lines.

David Hernandez was also on the brake line installation crew. Here he prepared to drill a hole for a mounting bracket on the inside of the framerail.

One of the lead members of the chassis crew was Diego Rodarte. Diego did the prototype design of the F-1 chassis (among others) for TCI. Here he mounted the master cylinder/ brake booster to the master cylinder/booster bracket.

The hard brake lines were mounted inside the framerail-a position that will protect them from flying road debris. The bottom bracket (on the framerail) secures the line where the braided/flexible hose connects to the hard-line.

The third chassis crew consisted of brake-component (proportioning valve) and brake-line installers Diego Rodarte, David Hernandez, and Geoffrey Oka. Each brake line is hand-bent for the chassis being built. One more big thanks to everyone at TCI who worked on my chassis.

The crew wrapped up the installation of the brake lines and brake components. Next it would go to be assembled by fabricator Ed Balser.

This overhead shot was taken after Ed assembled the front and rear suspension. TCI offers a variety of options, such as drum or disc brakes, chrome-plated steel upper and lower control arms, coilover rear suspension with four-link, antisway bars, and a plain or chrome-plated steel Panhard bar. These are just a few of the many options available. Check out TCI's website, www.totalcost involved.com-there are plenty of quality products to choose from.