TwinTorino

[RS_Customs]

Nice build!



I'll have to find the time to read through the posts and not just catch the pictures, lol.

Robert

[SVTforme]

Front wheels went out a week or so ago to Weldcraft Wheels to get narrowed 1" to 18x9 and we expect one set back this week. After that the car can actually sit on the ground on actual suspension and not have the tires rub on something. Replaced the rear wheel bearings on the IRS as they are a weak point in the design and one was on its way out. They are done and back in the car again now after cleaning them up and pressing in new bearings. Also mocked up the front sway bar and fabricated most of the parts needed for the rear spring perches. Need to grab some more pictures and post them.

[ProjectSideOiler]

waaaaay cool project! Just read the entire post too.

Looking forward to more progress pics.

[streetrod77]

Since the other car is quickly approaching build time, we are finishing up finding all the odds and ends we need for it. Finally found a used set (although not really used) on Ebay from someone that bought the set and did not use. They are Maximum Motorsports Fox body Mustang forward offset control arms with Delrin bushings.



Finally after all this time, the car has been put back on the ground. It is still floating on the rotisserie for the time being. Just need to get springs on the car and it will roll around after that. The front wheels go in this week for narrowing to 18x9. To bad 315's don't work on the front - they sure make the car look mean. Will have roll the car outside soon and get some good pictures for a change.

Did the 315's fit your 18x10 rims's?

[SVTforme]

Did the 315's fit your 18x10 rims's?

They actually fit better than I had expected. I think the PS2's are a bit narrower that some 315's are. The rims are actually slightly wider than 10" which helped tot. Ideally I would have likely 10.5-11", but these will work for now.

[SVTforme]

Finally time for some inspirationsal shots. Got the wheels back yesterday from Weldcraft - they did an excellent job. I measured run-out on the machine and they were near perfect. They also took very little weight to balance.




We mounted up the wheels yesterday and dropped the car on the ground and rolled it outside for the first time in years. Got the ride height pretty close to where it will be - looks pretty mean. Front suspension is riding on the coil-overs, and the rear is just blocked up using wood for now (waiting on springs).




Figued we may as well try throwing one of the engines in to see how everything fits while we are at it. Everything fits surprisingly well. Just need to establish where to drill holes in the relocated motor mounts to get the engine as far back as possible. Big thing is the supercharger clears the hood with lots of room to spare. May not end up running the hood scoop in the to keep the stealth theme going .

[Motown 454]

That looks like it will be a nice ride height.

[bonecrrusher]

Your wheels say wood.... hehehe...

Sorry.. had to!

[705.0Merc]

Looks pretty!

[garner67]

Nice to see some new update pics.

The wheels turned out great, and the stance looks just right.

With the current temp engine install, how much ground clearance do you have between the oil pan and the ground?

Keep up the great work!

[SVTforme]

Your wheels say wood.... hehehe...

Sorry.. had to!

Haha.. saw that one coming .

Nice to see some new update pics.

The wheels turned out great, and the stance looks just right.

With the current temp engine install, how much ground clearance do you have between the oil pan and the ground?

Keep up the great work!

The nice thing about this is there is actually lots of clearance. We have the suspension set up at stock 99-04 Mustang ride height (not lowered). I think there is around 6.5" clearance to the ground. The k-member is slightly lower and ahead of it to protect the pan. The lowest point on the car will likely be the long tube headers. Will likely find that out this weekend.

[dusterbd13]

seeing it sit on the ground makes me miss my 68.

looks really good.
have you thought about the tire height or wheelwell mods to fill it in a little better?

[John Wright]

Love those cars...my "late" uncle bought a dark blue talladega torino brand new with a 428 CJ and I have pictures around here somewhere of that car at his wedding when I(5yo) was the ring bearer...cool memory, I can remember hearing that thing rumble as they drove off from the church.

[chunger]

Craig,

It's really coming together now. Love the fuzzy dice!

Throw some primer on that thing and you'll be at least halfway done!

[HectorM52]

have you thought about the tire height or wheelwell mods to fill it in a little better?

I had the same question in my head when I saw it. Rear wheel actually appears smaller - must be the angle.

Either way, the rear needs more meat.

[streetrod77]

Cool, I see Weldcraft has a fast turn a round rate. I was thinking about adding 1.5 inches to my rear wheels but was wondering how long it took.

[SVTforme]

I had the same question in my head when I saw it. Rear wheel actually appears smaller - must be the angle.

Either way, the rear needs more meat.

It would be nice to have a slightly larger tire.. but unfortunately available tire sizes and space in the front wheel well dictate otherwise. The cars have fairly wide openings unfortunately.

The front and rear tire OD's are nearly identical. We are running Michelin Pilot Sport PS2's 275/35/18's (25.6" OD) on the front and 315/30/R18 (25.5" OD) on the rear. The 315's only come in 30 series.. so there is not much choice there. Originally wanted to go with 335's, but they just won't fit with the IRS there. Also got all 4 tires nearly new for under $400.. so they will stay until it is time to replace next time .

The 275's barely clear the fender with the wheels turned and the suspension compressed. A tire that is any taller will make a mess on the fender and on the tire. The options here are to increase the ride height to get a taller tire, reduce the tire widths front and rear to be able to get taller tires, change tire brands, or cut up the fenders. We did not want to opt for any of these options so here we stand.

I think in the picture since you can see things through the rear wells it actually looks worse than it is. Once the gas tank and exhaust go in it will tend to black things out a bit.

Cool, I see Weldcraft has a fast turn a round rate. I was thinking about adding 1.5 inches to my rear wheels but was wondering how long it took.

They were really fast for us.. have the other two wheels for the other car almost done too. James is great to work with over at Weldcraft.

[jdburton3]

you said with the suspension fully compressed. would putting a "bump stop" in there gain you any significant space? my guess is it won’t. but don't remember any mention of a bump stop in the thread, and i know you are working with "stock" mustang suspension. i know you raised the shock towers to lower the car can't remember at this moment if you have lowering springs etc. so i assume there is more travel than most lowered suspension set-ups, just another thought.
love the look and ingenuity, can't wait to see the pics of the rear spring perch set up. i have a 99 irs waiting to go in my 84 gt. not as much fab work as yours to install, but those radiused tubes you used look so much cleaner and stronger than the crimped, stock tubes. i might have to put in the effort to do something similar to get the tidy look you have, and get the car lower without changing the geometry as much, if at all.

[SVTforme]

The struts and shocks have integrated jounce and rebound bumpers which dictate the amout of travel in the suspension. I suppose these could be changed if we really wanted to.

The suspension on our cars is in the exact same position as a Mustang that just rolled off the assembly line (control arm angles etc). This allows up to keep the same jounce and rebound travel as well. We cheated with ours as we are able to move any point around on the suspension since we are fabricating everything anyway. We put the suspension in the design position, and lowered the car on top of it to where we wanted it. The limitations here were control arm to frame clearance, engine to hood clearance and trans to floor clearance.

To do the same thing we did on a stock Mustang, you would need to move the strut mount up and move the k-member up (which moves the control arm pivot points). Some of this you can achieve by using an aftermarket k-member and caster camber plates. Some aftermarket k-members move the control arm and steering points upwards. The problem with lowering a car is you lose some of your jounce travel, as well as the obvious bump steer issues. Certain caster camber plates allow you to move the strut shaft up using custom spacers depending on the amount the car is lowered. This gets you some of the jounce travel back. Moving the IRS mounting points up would be a tough one and I am not even sure how this could be done without major modifications.

I think getting an IRS into a Fox body is a relatively straighforward process, although I am not sure which years this applies to. I think there are many websites out there with the complete procedure.

[jdburton3]

using a set of radiused tubes like yours could allow me to shift the whole irs frame upward. and if i do it @ 1.5" or 2" in conjunction with a yet to be determined set of lowering springs then the rear geometry shouldn't get all out of whack. it's an idea i am toying with. won't know for sure untill i get under it and start measuring. look forward to more of your build.

jason