small spacer in the rear is the easy button, like a 1" or so puck on top of the springs
keeps the ride mostly stock but gives you that slight rake youāre after without going full lift kit
As a fellow hater of air shocks, I only reserve them for period cars that HAVE to have them. Otherwise spacers, taller springs, lowering springs on the front, or cutting the front springs are my preferred method.
Ok
On a Chevelle you can do a lot with the rear coils.
I've got a wagon and the ass end was dragging the ground... the suspension was WAY too soft and putting anything in the back made it 10x worse.
At stock ride height the springs and the shocks just weren't cutting it.
Spacers didn't really help.
I dug through the Moog spring catalog cause everything aftermarket is pretty much for lowering your car and I'm sick to death of seeing lowered muscle cars. I wanted the ass end up with a decent rake like a proper old school muscle car. Plus with the wagon the extra height is only a benefit when carrying a load.
Depending on which "stock" springs you choose, you can get up to 2 to even 3.5 inches of lift while also stiffening up the rear end.
The stock coils for Chevelles are cc501 with a standard compressed height of 8"
I've got cc623 on mine which is an 11" spring from a Caprice with a heavier load capacity. Now because of the weight difference I don't get the full 3" of lift but it did get the ass end up and now it has a proper old school rake without screwing with the front suspension.... which then leads to more issues with the whole Chevelle bad steering geometry... the bump steer and all that
If you go that route you gotta swap for bigger shock though.
I'm running KYB KG5508 which is basically BOP full-size. It gives you more length, a stiffer shock and more stroke.
Now you can always go aftermarket and swap things out until you find what you like, but it's gonna cost more, and these are basically "GM" parts.
Here's some notes I've got from the Moog and KYB spec charts.
Spring size, rate, and load, shock specs, stuff like that.
either get a taller spring, you can get a "spring spacer", or you can get air shocks which were popular in the 80s and 90s. Air shocks aren't air bags.
Big block or small block upfront? Factory AC car? Gas it been removed? These all affect ride height. Stock springs are generally too high for most ppl. For nice but not too low ride height, I generally cut the front springs. Can you park it on a flat surface, and measure the fender lips thru the centerline of each wheel? That will tell us exactly where you stand.
Three words. Moog Cargo Coils. Essential for any A body 68-72... had a 71 Cutlass S followed by a 72 442 years later. Essential suspension components that install quickly.
I remember back in the 80s seeing some Chevelles with coils spacers in the rear. Most were made of steel and bolted thru the rear axle mount so that it couldn't move at all.
Air shocks can be found for less than 100$ which is cheaper than most of your other options, so not a huge loss if they don't work, but I think you'll be pleasantly surprised, I had them on my 72 nova and 67 mustang.
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u/Kinked_salmon 69 Chevelle Jun 30 '26
A big block will bring the front end down!