Hi all, Malcolm here! I currently own a 1969 Ford Mustang fastback, which I'm looking to upgrade with a better front end suspension. I am not keen into the mustang II suspension kit given that it requires considerable alterations to the front end, and I like to keep alterations to the body/chassis down to zero. In view of this, I have been looking at coil over kits offered by various companies.
These kits seem to be a direct bolt on, with no modifications to the body needed, which would make them ideal for my application. However there is something that has been making me feel a bit uneasy about their design, in particularly, the way in which the coil spring is now attached directly on the lower control arm, as against the upper control arm. In the former configuration the lower ball joint would be taking all the stress/weight of the car and would be constantly being "pulled away" from the spindle. This is not the case in the standard configuration whereas the upper arm ball joint took all the force of the car and its ball joint would be on the contrary being pushed against the spindle.
Please bear in mind that I am no mechanical engineer or in any way criticizing the design of these kits, but I am currently seeking information/personal experience about this coilover design and whether the concerns about the lower ball joint being constantly pulled away from the spindle is something to worry about or not.
You won’t go wrong with www.streetortrack.com The quality of parts is only surpassed by the customer service and support. Shaun’s parts are street and track tested. There aren’t many that can share that experience in the parts they engineer and sell.
Fifteen years ago when I was looking into a coil over front suspension that mounted to the lower arm, I was also concerned about the forces on the lower arm. In theory it might be a problem, but in reality that design has a boat load of miles on it without issue.
Street or Track has that design you're asking about, along with Wilwood brakes, and no one bad mouths his stuff.
You won’t go wrong with www.streetortrack.com The quality of parts is only surpassed by the customer service and support. Shaun’s parts are street and track tested. There aren’t many that can share that experience in the parts they engineer and sell.
Unless you need the additional room under the hood the only "upgrades" I'd recommend would be....
a. "Arning Drop" relocation of the upper control arm mounting holes.
b. Replacement of any worn out components with quality replacements.
c. Heim-jointed strut rods.
d. Biilstein or Koni (Red) shocks.
e. Coil spring choice to match your driving style.
Optionally, if you're going to be driving really hard...
1. Boxed or aftermarket competition control arms.
2. Eccentric eliminator for lower control arm mount.
3. Spherical bearing/bushing lower control arm pivot.
Sure, ADJUSTABLE coilovers that use the original shock towers DO provide the flexibility of being able to change the spring rate without having to pull and replace the coil spring but, after you set it, hardly anyone goes back and ever touches the adjustment again.
All this advice goes out the window if you're building a track car. That requires a careful selection of components that not only work well together but also meet the requirements of the sanctioning body.
Another vote for Shaun here! I used his entire front end collection-coil over conversion, adjustable strut rods, spindles, 13“ front brakes, R&P steering-on my ‘69 Cougar.
+1 to Shaun's stuff here as well. I have his front coil-over kit and am slowly putting together the pieces I need to buy his rear coil-over kit as well.
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