1968 Front Suspension Upgrades

[Mosesatm]

I'm looking for control arms that are better than stock (since our stock uppers are total garbage) but not necessarily race quality. Roller bearing control arms obviously respond much quicker than the stock units but will someone who drives at less than 9/10ths notice a significant difference?

Here are the rough numbers I've come up with so far, and I'm having a tough time justifying spending that kind of money without knowing if the upgraded products offer $800 worth of increased ride value.

The below prices are for uppers, lowers, and spring perches.

$270 - Stock
$1,150 - Control Freak
$1,200 - Global West
$1,400 - Total Control
$1,050 - Opentracker

The upgraded prices all include Opentracers's roller perches at $199.
Opentracker also makes regular upgraded upper control arms, but they do not use roller bearings. That gets their price down to $650.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

 

[CougarCJ]

Arlie, I like the Global West stuff, they have a couple of steps from 'better than stock' to 'close to race'.

At this planning stage for your improvements, you might want to consider a steering upgrade too.
Our vintage 1968 power steering design has lots of room for improvement.

 

[franklinair]

Since I drive mine less than 2,000 miles per year on conventional roads, moderate speeds(no gymkanas, road rallies, drags, etc) I can't justify the cost & work for the added benefits of modified suspension. But that's just me.
When I rebuild the front suspension, I go stock all the way. It's less expensive, and is adequate for the amount & type of driving I do (old geezer on local roads!)

Neil

 

[robert campbell]

Arlie,
I went stock with mine with the exception of the roller spring perches. I kinda agree with Scott, that unless you go to rack and pinion setup, you will not experience a huge benefit over new stock stuff.

Now when I say stock stuff, large sway bars and export brace are part of a good stock setup. Tim took me for a "white knuckle" tour through some windy roads near his house at our gathering in his car Midnight Special". With Steve (rvrtrash) in hot pursuit in Tim's 1970 Mach I. Midnight Special is lowered and has some tricks, which I think also include a rear sway bar. Tim was all over the 4 speed and both these cars were very tight and did not lean very much.

Steve is an old road racer with a 71-73 Mustang. I would like to see what Tim says they did to Midnight Special, and have Steve weigh in. Steve has some real world experience in this area without going to a rack and pinion.

Rob

 

[rvrtrash]

Arlie, what you go with depends on how you're going to drive the car. If you just want something that handles better, I've found the best bang for the buck is to lower the front end 1" (I like relocating the mounting point rather than just cutting the springs), put in heavier springs, good quality gas shocks, heavier front sway bar and a rear sway bar. A larger wheel with a lower profile tire will also remove unsprung weight and give less tire roll in a corner. Most of my experience is with the later ones that have better suspensions to start with, but unless you plan on using it as a road racer, the stock upper control arms aren't really that bad. The biggest problems with them is a bit of flex, slow return time due to the bushings and incorrect load angle on the upper ball joint if you lower the car. I'd bet 99 out of 100 people wouldn't be able to tell the difference in handling between stock and aftermarket upper arms, if everything else was equal. Just my opinion, for what it's worth.

Steve

 

[Mosesatm]

It looks like we all see it pretty much the same way.

The reason I asked is because one of my uppers has a torn boot so it needs to come off, and I can't get a grease gun on one of the zerks on the other upper. Hey, maybe I should just cut a hole in the shock tower!!!

Plus, I don't like the ride with the stiffer springs so I'm going to change those to something a little softer. Hey, what can I say, I'm getting old, and the car takes a serious beating on what passes for roads in Houston.

When I have the suspension torn apart I thought it would be a good time to make other changes if someone had built a better mouse trap, but at those prices I'll stay with what Ford designed.

$800 is a lot of money, that's beer and pizza for almost a month!

 

[GT/CS S Code]

Global West ...

I opted to buy Global West components for my 65 Fastback and bought the entire package from them. (What the heck ... it's only money ...)
I bought their sub frame connectors, the negative roll front end kit, 1" front sway bar, lowered the front end 1" (using their supplied template), bought the "semi-race" heavier rear replacement springs, etc., etc., etc.
This car is being turned into a GT350 Shelby clone and is not going to be in any way original, so I didn't feel bad about making such major changes in the suspension or the cars appearance. I don't plan to race the car, but wanted to improve the handling a great deal over stock performance. As well, all of the original suspension components were WELL worn (or just plain worn out!), so it needed to all be replaced regardless. On Global West's recommendation too, I bought a set of Vintage Racing 16" x 8" US Racing clone wheels (polished rims with grey spokes) and will run larger and wider tires than Shelby put on the original 65 GT350's. (15" x7")
I'd really think twice about making such major changes overall on our GT/CS, but wouldn't think twice about improving the front end geometry with minor changes and upgraded components. (I might even replace the rear springs eventually with something heavier from Global West) I thought hard about a rack and pinion steering change over, since the steering components in the GT/CS are well worn and torn too, but I opted to replace the steering box with an original (rebuilt) power box and a rebuilt (stock) power steering assembly. We might do the Global West A arms and front springs in this car eventually though, as I think that would be a big improvement.
Again, we're not planning on racing or abusing the GT/CS in the way we drive it either, but improved handling over stock is a big plus in general driveability in my personal opinion.
As always, in the end it's your car and you're the one that will be driving it, and it's your decision if you want to alter it from stock to lightly or greatly modified to get the results you'll be satisfied with.

 

[Midnight Special]

Arlie,
I went stock with mine with the exception of the roller spring perches. I kinda agree with Scott, that unless you go to rack and pinion setup, you will not experience a huge benefit over new stock stuff.

Now when I say stock stuff, large sway bars and export brace are part of a good stock setup. Tim took me for a "white knuckle" tour through some windy roads near his house at our gathering in his car Midnight Special". With Steve (rvrtrash) in hot pursuit in Tim's 1970 Mach I. Midnight Special is lowered and has some tricks, which I think also include a rear sway bar. Tim was all over the 4 speed and both these cars were very tight and did not lean very much.

Steve is an old road racer with a 71-73 Mustang. I would like to see what Tim says they did to Midnight Special, and have Steve weigh in. Steve has some real world experience in this area without going to a rack and pinion.

Rob

...Well, I pulled my receipts folder out and remembered doing a stock front-end rebuild with ball joints, 4 new (stock) springs (previous springs were cut too low), new power steering control valve and a rear sway bar kit. Nothing fancy or pricey. I also replaced the diff. pumkin with a 3:08 posi, new balanced driveline & rebuilt the T-10 4-speed.

I think the "fresh" suspension and close ratio 4-speed/ rear end combo is what made the day The ride is also pretty smooth compared to others I've driven. The T-10 enables the 302 4v to do battle in any gear on winding roads, so with the windows down, we could even hear Steve's tires barking over our's ;-)

 

[robert campbell]

Tim,
Ride was awesome! What tires and wheels? They also make a big difference. Arlie has Shelby ten spokes, but can't remember the size. I think they are 15's??

Rob

 

[Midnight Special]

...Tires are P215 R60/14 front and P245 rear. Both rated mud & snow on 14" styled steel wheels...

 

[rvrtrash]

... with the windows down, we could even hear Steve's tires barking over our's ;-)

I would like to add that I had a great time on that drive, although I was a little nervous about flogging Tim's Mach. It was the first time I'd driven it and the car and I weren't on a first name basis yet. It was also obviously my first time on that road so I didn't know what was around the next corner. In the back of my mind was the thought that it would put a damper on the "family weekend" if I stuffed the car into a ditch on my first day there.

Steve (you know-the guy who's right foot is heavier than the left and has weak ankles. :wink: )

 

[Midnight Special]

I would like to add that I had a great time on that drive, although I was a little nervous about flogging Tim's Mach. It was the first time I'd driven it and the car and I weren't on a first name basis yet. It was also obviously my first time on that road so I didn't know what was around the next corner. In the back of my mind was the thought that it would put a damper on the "family weekend" if I stuffed the car into a ditch on my first day there.

Steve (you know-the guy who's right foot is heavier than the left and has weak ankles. :wink: )

Indeed Steve. I knew all that from the beginning which is why I was able to impress Rob all the more! Next time I will really have to work at it!

Truly though... I never had any apprehension or worry. And if you did "kiss the ditch"?... We had the best talent in the world on hand to make it better than new