GM makes that shared spindles in '55

[DSMtuned]

Ok first off I have a 1955 Olds Starfire 98. I want to convert to disc brakes all the way around. I can't find anyone that sells disc brake conversion kits for this vehicle.

Sooo, I am wondering which other GM vehicles shared spindles with the Olds Ninety-Eight in 1955. Does anyone know?

Thanks so much!

-Craig

[novaman]

I'm not real fimilar with the different Olds models for that era but my book list: oldsmobile'53-56 being used only on those cars. the only others I see listed are the F85 and Toronado which are later models, so I'm presuming that the '53-'56 is for all Olds

[DSMtuned]

What *other* GM vehicles shared spindles with the Olds in 1955?

Thank you!

-Craig

[special55]

I believe the Buick was the same as the Olds in 55. There is a gentleman that makes a kit for both vehicles (front conversion only). He has posted his info here before and the price seems quite resonable. Search the Buick forum for "disc brak conversion" and you should find something. The kit does require you to purchase the calipers, rotors, MC, etc or get a doner vehicle. He provides the caliper brackets, parts list and instructions.

Good Luck,

Rich

I found the gentleman's name after my initial post. It is Mike Pemberton and his website is at discbrakemike.com

Good luck

[novaman]

My infromation I gave you was from a Hollanders interchange manual (the one they use in the salvage yards)and it was saying that NO other GM vehicles shared THAT spindle.

[novaman]

According to the Hollanders Interchance Manual, the '54-'55 buick used GM#1391617 & 1391618 and the Olds '53-'56 used GM# 562402 & 562403 and are not interchangeable. The book does not tell me what the differances are between them.

[Pontiac59]

GM cars did not begin to share suspension components until the late 1950s (1957 Pontiac and Olds rearends are the earliest that come to mind), but it was not until the mid-60's that most GM platforms were standardized from make to make. Heck, the Buick still had a torque tube drive through 1960.

With careful driving, power drum brakes are plenty adequate; I drove a Pontiac with manual drums for over 30,000 miles and never had a problem. A dual-chamber master cylinder is a good addition, though.

[special55]

First let me apologize if I posted some inaccurate info in my previous post. I know there are kits available for both Olds and Buicks of that model year. I made an assumption that they may have shared spindles (we all know what happens when we assume).

However, Mike does offer kits to fit your application. I have not personally used them as I wanted to keep my vehicle original. He has received some good feedback from others on this forum.

As for the rear brakes, I've not seen any conversion kit of any kind. It may be necessary to use a different rear axle to achieve this. It could end up being a very big job due to the torque tube mentioned by one of the other posts. Not impossible but could be a lot of work for minimal return on the rear.