COILOVER CONVERSION QUESTION

[MyCreation68]

Ask Bill about the Air Ride tops for the shocks - nice pieces if you don't want to go the bushing route.

hmm I wonder on that point if you could just go with the air ride shocks.

[375InStroke]

What's so great about having a Honda Civic front end?   

[Ace]

What's so great about having a Honda Civic front end?   

??

[Bill_Reilly]

honda civic?

[Bill_Reilly]

The air ride shocks don't fit. You can do a little grinding and fit a set of the rear shockwaves in there - which is basically the "kit" air ride sells for E-bodies, but they wont hold the car up alone, you have to keep the t-bars and use them as a helper. Not the best arrangement...

[MVRCorp]

What's so great about having a Honda Civic front end?   

you on crack? where did that come from? 

[bigtimeauto]

The air ride shocks don't fit. You can do a little grinding and fit a set of the rear shockwaves in there - which is basically the "kit" air ride sells for E-bodies, but they wont hold the car up alone, you have to keep the t-bars and use them as a helper. Not the best arrangement...

They must have copied that idea from the lincoln navigator

[wickedfirefighter]

What's so great about having a Honda Civic front end?

ok guys im sorry but ima leader [engine captain] at work and im always telling my fire fighters. " THE ONLY STUPID QUESTION IS THE ONE THAT ISNT ASKED"    '
'

[MyCreation68]

The air ride shocks don't fit. You can do a little grinding and fit a set of the rear shockwaves in there - which is basically the "kit" air ride sells for E-bodies, but they wont hold the car up alone, you have to keep the t-bars and use them as a helper. Not the best arrangement...

ah ok thanks bill.

On the Honda Civic comment. Coil overs are used for lots of vehicles many performance vehicles use coil overs i.e. offroad buggies, stock cars, drag cars and many actually fast import tuner rides use them.

[montanamopar]

I am looking into same setup why couldnt you drill a 1/2 inch or so horizonal hole below where the upper shock stud would go and bush it side to side and use coilovers that use bolts upper and lower?

[bbscamp]

What about a shock tower bar going over the top of the motor?  Unsightly, yes...but wouldn't the bar stop the inward bending of the inner fenders?  You could make to top plates for over the shock top...then make a mating plate and bar assy. to transfer the load to the other side.  could look cool if done right.

I'm thinking about going to coil overs too for the next shop project.

[Ace]

I too was going to do a shock tower brace.  Early Mustangs are running them, I figured it would help the A-Body Mopars too.

[Bill_Reilly]

Shock tower braces, and the old "monte carlo bar" setup are both great ideas that help alot. They just usually have to be made by the end user because of engine clearances - too many engine possibilities to make a universal kit...

[Ace]

Shock tower braces, and the old "monte carlo bar" setup are both great ideas that help alot. They just usually have to be made by the end user because of engine clearances - too many engine possibilities to make a universal kit...

Yeah, I figured two heim joints into a threaded bar and making two mounting plates out of 1/8" steel to go to the top of the shock towers would work.  Or triangulate it to the fire wall and then across to each shock tower.

[wickedfirefighter]

i have already been pondering this for awhile but i havent got very far .. i have only a few ideas sketched and measured out ..

my freinds got a 68 cougar that has bars going to the fire wall from the factory but they allways seem to be in the way but his dont unbolt ..
plus i also have a six pack going into this car so rooms gonna ba issue for me .. 

i wouldnt mind seeing anything that someone els comes up with pics ,sketches etc..

[sr71mopar]

Ford shock towers suck.

[wickedfirefighter]

it was just a example  ..those bars  arent really  bars they are just strips of metal ...

i was thinkin of something like chromoly tubing powder coated but in the same place they are ...

[MyCreation68]

xvmotorsports engine compartment brace. they only have them available for the b,e body but you probably could fab something up.

[Ace]

Ford shock towers suck.

Torsion bars suck.......

[ep87]

Ford shock towers suck.

Torsion bars suck.......

 

[7Dart2]

Torsion bars suck.......

Tell me why? I am not trying to start an argument, I just want to find out why nobody likes them.

[NYrr496]

Not to knock anyone doing a coil spring conversion or using an Alterkation, In my life, I've never seen a torsion bar break. I can't begin to tell you how many cars and trucks I've seen on the side of the road with a broken coil spring. Repair guys all said the same thing. BUT... Torsion bars suck ass when it comes time to run big headers. I've not yet had coil springs in a Mopar, but I'd be willing to bet the car handles better with coils than T bars.

[wickedfirefighter]

handling is better .. you can adjust the ride with coilovers for what type of driving you want to do .. but torsion bars do make feel like you are floating over bumps ..

torsion bars are kinda heavy compared to coilovers ..

room .. without the torsion bars you have alot more room to work with underneat..

plus it looks alot better ...

[Ace]

In addition changing spring rate is a lot easier on a coil over.  Parts availability in the aftermarket, along with what's already been said.  If I could do the Alter-K I would, so I will be going the coil over change for now.  Glad I found this, I was bumming about the suspension of the A-Body.

[Ciscodog]

Some folks have asked me about how I retained the LCA on the pivot with the torsion bars removed.  I finally found the pics.  Weld a nut on the back of the pin, then put some loctite on it to keep the bolt from backing out.

[gt]

Ciscodog.
Excellent idea, thanks for the pic.
Several people just remove the torsion bar and install the coil over shocks as mentioned by BoB. I still wonder how/why the lower control arm does not come out. It might be the driving force of the vehicle keeping them in place.
None the less, if and when I convert I will definitely mode the lower control arm pivot as you did but maybe use a stud welded on instead of a nut.
Once again thanks for the pic.

gt

[Ciscodog]

That's a great idea - wish I'd thought of it!  Oh well, this works

[MyCreation68]

Not to knock anyone doing a coil spring conversion or using an Alterkation, In my life, I've never seen a torsion bar break. I can't begin to tell you how many cars and trucks I've seen on the side of the road with a broken coil spring. Repair guys all said the same thing. BUT... Torsion bars suck ass when it comes time to run big headers. I've not yet had coil springs in a Mopar, but I'd be willing to bet the car handles better with coils than T bars.

sorry to bump but hehe what about a torsion bar mount crossmember broken? heres mine on my 68:


instead of fussing around fixing it I'll just cut it out and replace it with a piece of rectangle tubing. Nobody makes a repair piece for this their all just repair caps, and personally I like the coil overs better so the idea of cutting one out of another car is just to much work.

I do have a question for bill tho maybe he'll chime in. I'm wondering if those air ride mounts that were mentioned earlier would work and if bill sells them? I'd rather buy from Bill then someone else.

[NYrr496]

WOW!! That sucks. Now that I think about it, when I heard a career auto repair guy say that, it was probably about 1985. Our cars hadn't rusted out yet. My GMC Yukon has T bars as well. I've still never actually seen a torsion bar break.

[scott]

Well....the AlterKtion is the best option. 

.

Your cuda pic's look great!
look's like it's coming along nicely!
My son want's one bad. I told him to save up.
I'm gonna do up a 65 dart with a back half for him for his 1st mopar to get him started.
Have a good time with that project..Look's good.