To replace the bushings I decided to use polyurethane ones.
Years ago I tried them on the
rear axle and they were as hard as blackened aluminium. Hopefully
they had softened them up.
Ford sells entire a-arms for a couple hundred a piece,
but aftermarket parts were under fifty for the kit. As I had
t-bird a-arms they were ten bucks more than mustang stuff, which
is still cheaper than buying different arms.
I ordered Energy Suspension polyurethane replacements from Summit. The local speed shop said it would take a month to get the order, while it only took a week by mail.
The rear bushing is huge.
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The first part of the project was to get the a-arms out.
The rear bolt was rusted solid to the metal insert again. ( I have a page about this that is called 'one in a million'. From what I read it should be called 'pretty freakin' often'. Many people have this problem.)
Even with the thrashing needed to get it out, it looks like the rear bushing was trash. Hence the strange handling. I knew it couldn't be me.
The a-arm was still in good shape otherwise.
The sealed ball joint was still tight and the Ford sticker could
be read.
The bushings were removed by heating the metal shell
with a propane torch until the rubber got greasy, then pushing
and beating them out, and cleaning the hole with a wire brush.
After test fitting the arms I ground a bit off the
rear edges to ensure they didn't touch the crossmember.
I sandblasted the bottom of the balljoint, and 'boiled'
the rest in the rust remover solution, followed by rust paint
and a foamy brush.
To get the arm out I had to cut the frame again as I did on the passenger side years before. As the holes were going to be moved anyway it didn't matter that much.
The rear hole was left as is with the others
raised to match it. I found the notes I made still in the book.
The other holes were ovaled out with an air grinder.
Then washers were welded on in the new position. The front and
rear holes had nuts welded on. This would allow me to take off
the arm next time without removing the rack. The front nuts were
ground down to prevent touching the rack bellows.
The final result was 3/4 inch up, 1/4 in. That's all my crossmember could take.
I left the calipers attached until the end to keep the brake fluid in.
After that I sandblasted, pressure washed, and painted with a touchup gun. The color is dark blue rust paint mixed with flecto almond, which came close to the cars color.
While I was there, paper was slipped behind the fuel lines and they were re-sprayed silver.
To attach the SN-95 spindle to the older ball joint a spacer is needed. This prevents the nut from bottoming out, and lines up the cotter pin hole. Some places sell specially made items, but two fat washers work as well.
The sealed for life balljoints were left as is, but the boot was pulled up at the top and a thin syringe from a printer refill kit was used to inject white grease inside. Couldn't hurt.
Hey look! A wild jack rabbit sleeping in my backyard. Actually there's four of them hanging around. What's up doc?
This would be where a picture of the bushing install was placed. Except I didn't take any. I blame the rabbit.
The bushings were tight and had
to be tapped in with a hammer. As others have noticed, the bushings
were longer than the metal sleeves. Some say this causes squeeking.
So a beltsander shortened them to the same length
as the steel and the flat big end was rounded over. A fender
washer made up the difference in overall width. The special urethane
grease was applied before final assembly.
The arms and bushings were also drilled and tapped
for grease fittings for future maintenance.
The A-arms were installed after the bolts were sandblasted, painted, covered with anti-seize, and greased. Those suckers aren't seizing again!
I used bolts from the wrecking yard, and was able to get them from the rear of the arms of 4 cyl cars by prying them out, even with the spring in place.
The arms moved very freely. If I let them go they slowly sank to this downward position.
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The inner tie rod on the passenger side was very loose and could be used to send morse code. The other was just limp. As the rack was a rebuilt about six years old it was not surprising.
They have a roll pin holding them in, but a big wrench will ...wrench them apart. The roll pin must be some soft metal.
Upon disassembly I noticed the inside had a square hole that fit a 1/4 drive perfectly. At first it wouldn't turn, but when a second roll pin was drilled out it screwed in and the tie rod tightened up. So I undid it, squirted grease in, and tightened it up. A torque spec would have been nice, but I didn't have one, so tightened it until the assembly stayed erect, as it was when new.
We'll see how long they last.
I also noted an inner from a newer 1995 rack screwed right on to the fox rack. The outer threads changed but the inners seem to be the same.
Years ago a Rancho Phase III sway bar kit was installed. The front sway bar was removed for a big later model 5.0 version after the rod ends wore out.( Do they still make car parts?)
The front bracket was still a Rancho part, and it was all bent up from the strain. It's just a flat piece of plate.
The bracket from a 1995 was cut down and welded back together to create a much stronger support.
Early foxes also have a frame
bracket that is bolted in, not spot welded as later cars so it
was taken out and cleaned.
The two little 5/16 bolts holding the sway bar were screwed
in from the bottom, and were probably overstressed, so were replaced
with 3/8 that were welded in from above. This also makes it easier
to line up the sway bar and bracket.
Getting there. All the parts loosely attached.
I'm using the same Bullitt struts and springs as before.
Because the spindles are 95 and the calipers are the dual piston 1999 and newer, there may be interference in the areas where the two arrows are pointing. A bit of grinding will solve the problem for sure.
I didn't use the splash shields because they were smashed up, and the car hasn't used them for years.
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The early fox mustangs also had brake lines that ran differently than later ones. The fittings are the same size but the bracket is angled to the rear. The hole had to enlarged . Then a spot weld in the opening matched a slot in the hose fitting.
After experimenting it seemed the 2000 hoses would bolt up okay. The spindle was worked left and right with no problems.
The tin foil protects my fresh paint from brake fluid.
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The big nut in the SN-95 spindle needs 250 ft.lbs. to tighten it down. My torque wrench goes up to 140.
Luckily you can add an extension. Here is a webpage that lets you plug in numbers, or you can download the program.
http://www.belknaptools.com/extcalc.asp
I used an extension, slipped into a piece of water pipe welded squarely to a spare socket to a length of 18 inches. The socket should be a 36mm, but a 1 3/8 inch works.
The wheels and tires were found at the wreckers on a big old 'bluesmobile' dodge. Ten bucks each. The wheels were gold, but some black paint and a foamy brush fixed that.
The tires are like new but the old style rims stick out too much for their width. Just temporary anyway.
And then they don't fit. The four slots are created by bending the metal inward. These barely but firmly jammed against the big aluminium caliper and the car wouldn't move. That puzzled me for a bit.
The quick fix was to cut a slice from each slot.
Here's my caster camber
plate that was made years ago. Start with the stock 'onion head'
strut mount. This is the original type mount for Foxes before
it was changed for a squishier mount that gave a better ride.
If you want rubber and performance this is it.
It is normally mounted underneath, but was cut down
to an oval and welded in to the adjustment plate.
Another plate is used below with three bolts welded to it and a collar that holds the rubber sleeve over the strut.
The plate is also welded at a slight angle to match the strut. It looks tack-welded but is fully welded on the bottom.
Quick alignment tech. In the pic I'm holding everything and using the camera, so it's a bit wonky.
Caster is first. Push the struts tops all the way back. If it later veers to one side, pull that strut top forward a bit.
Camber is how the wheel tilts in or out. I found a web tip that uses a level beside the wheel. Make sure it is level then the top of the wheel should be 5/16 " inward. This is about 1 degree negative. I use a drill bit shaft instead of fiddling with a ruler.
Toe is the wheels front toed in or out. For the street a slight bit in is best, say 1/16". A simple way to measure is with a frame that lays on the ground and has two arms that reach out to each wheel. Measure at the back, then the front. I have a sliding bolt on one side and measure how much is sticking out. The actual number doesn't matter. Only the difference.
With the wider spindles and wheels the old frame barely fits.
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FINISHED!!
Lots of
troubles, but it was worth it. Handles better, and drives much
nicer. Some small bumps are harsher, but big bumps are better.
270 degree on-ramps are my favorite. Keep the pedal
down and it keeps sticking.
I haven't noticed any 'wow' difference with the brakes, but haven't really pushed them either. And they have stock pads, versus the carbon metallics with the old calipers.
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