Topic: 67 NJ Export Brace

[J_Speegle]

As a little background from 65 the export package included a one piece shock tower support brace that bridged between the firewall to cowl pinch weld and each shock tower at the upper shock mounting location. On 65-66 car there was an addition supported welded and sealed to the firewall to strenghten the area. This is offered only to being some of you up to speed and provide background for the following.

On these early export braces the four bolts that attached them to the firewall and cowl were equally spaced along the edge of the brace requiring that workers redrill the unibody. In 67 the design changed to eliminate the need for this and spaced them to match the predrilled holes in the firewall and cowl lip saving money and time.

During a recent discussion elsewhere and some investigation I found that I had pictures of almost a half dozen examples from the spring of 1967 at the New Jersey plant suggesting that a order was delivered with eight bolt holes in that rear edge of the export brace. Just wanted to share the findings so that it may be applied, discussion or investigated further.  So far all have been from the April to May 67 time period

Two of the clear examples

[Bob Gaines]

As a addition to Jeff's post the hole pattern are uniform in size and spacing. I have seen PO modified braces that have odd size holes and are not precisely drilled. These modified braces come up every so often because a owner takes a more common 67-70 unequal spaced bolt pattern brace and modifies it to make a more rare and valuable equal spaced bolt pattern 65/66 brace. Sometimes they will go so far as welding up the holes to disguise the modification. The hole size and precision the holes are drilled in Jeff's example help me justify that a anomaly like that is legitimate. 

[J_Speegle]

Yes the purpose of the thread it to, on the off chance you own or run across a 67 NJ car built during the period identified and that is an export car, not to intermediately dismiss the finding as a home made or altered (by owner) export brace. 

Just one of those oddities that can and has been now documented that make the studying of these cars a little more interesting.