I have talked to many people that have had this setup can anyone tell me how hard it is to do this. Aerostar's are everywhere down here . I see them for one to four hundred dollars all the time in the paper .



Thanks for all info.
Jason

 

It's suposed to be easier than a volare clip and gets you big brakes and rack&pinion. You have to notch the bottom of the frame and do a little building of the top of the frame rail to bolt the upper A arm to. You also have to tilt the R&P rearward and notch the crossmember for steering shaft clearence. I've seen some galleries here that detail it pretty well but don't remember who's done it. A memer known as TRUCKFARMER has but haven't seen or heard from him for a while. BTW welcome to FTE

 

OK Thanks for the info . I will look for him and look at his gallery. My only thought is if the aerostar is front wheel drive than how will the wheel bearings stay in place?


Thanks as always
Jason

 

Jason, I think the Windstar is front wheel drive, while the Aerostar is rear wheel.

John

 

OK now that makes sense . It hit me like a truck when i was reading your reply.
Great thanks . Jason

 

Jason, I think The Aerostar is built on the Ranger platform while the Windstar is built on the Taurus platform.

John

 

Good deal i hope to talk to TRUCKFARMER soon and find out all the details. I have my slick in the in my shop fixing some cancer and a few dents with a little luck i will prime it this weekend . Then i could upgrade the frontend.
Jason

 

Ringo should chime in here shortly. His awesome 64 MERC has an Aerostar front suspension.

Garbz.

 

The Aerostar and Ranger have some parts in common, but there also a lot of differences. The biggest I can think of is suspension. When the Aerostar came out as an '85 model, it had fully independent front suspension, rack and pinion steering, and coil springs in the rear. Rangers all have rear leaf springs, and the ones made when the Aerostar was first built still had twin-I-beam front suspension and recirculating ball steering.

 

Heard my name being tossed around here. While it may be true, I helped install one of the first Aerostar IFS in a truck, there are others here that have done the swap since, including that crazy Rinngo. The first one we did was on a 55 F100 frame that was given away as a door prize at the Dash to the Dells truck show. The winner sold it, it was sold to a guy in Florida, who in turn sold it on Ebay and I lost track of it. I always wanted to see how it sat and rode when completed. This was the easiest swap I have ever done. We did one on a 65 that it actually took longer to torch off the Twin-I beam suspension than it did to install the Aerostar.
The boys in the 48-60 forum have done an excellent job of writing a tech story on this modification. The frame width on their trucks is the same as ours so all of their collected info will apply to a Slick 60. They wrote 11 articles about different front suspension choices including the stock straight axle. A little something for everyone.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/article/...art_Eight.html

I can buy the front ends for $100-$150 around here. Oh, the Aerostar was available with all-wheel-drive. That is not what you want for this swap. If you need any more info, don't be afraid to ask here or email me.

 

limegold, I think when the reference is made to platform, it means that it is built in the same plant, maybe sharing base technology, engine/tranny sizes etc.

Maybe someone more in the know can chime in on the issue.

John

 

Great , thanks for the link . I cant wait to do this up grade . I got a lot of shows calling my name . I will look at the other threads on my break . keep any info coming that you have also . Thanks again

Jason

 

Try these links for photos. They are of 53-56 Fat fendered trucks but will give you a visual.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...?&albumid=1923

https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...?&albumid=9497

here is the 65 we did, added plenty of drop. Lots of photos.
http://groups.msn.com/slick60sfordfs...onversion.msnw

 

Thanks , looks good . I will see how mine turns out . looking now in junkyards to see what I can find. I also hope to post pics.

Thanks again masters of the slicks .

Jason

 

Simplest way to install the Aerostar invoves no notch in the frame, (although mine is, and gusseted). If you basically just sit the aero cross member under the frame, weld it on and use a thick spacer, you will have stock ride height.

Mine has a half a coil off the springs and is sunk in about an inch, it still rides fairly high with the 302 in it. This would be a good setup for a big block, there is certainly plenty of spring capaicty in the Aero, due to it's being designed to have the front passengers and the engine sitting on it.

Mine will finally be on the road this fall, judging by the way the supension bounces now I expect it to handle like a sports car! Built-in sway bar too!