Buildup! '03 Crown Vic IFS into '58 F100
 

Today I started preparing my 1958 F100 for the CV IFS swap. I read about this swap on this forum about two months ago and started researching what I needed to do at every stage of the swap. Now the day has FINALLY came for me to begin the swap. I will be posting pictures through every stage of the buildup and try to get on here every night to add descriptions and possibly answer any questions some of ya'll may have. I may have questions for ya'll too. Wish me luck!

Have fun. Hope it goes as planned. Looking forward to pics. Did you read all the stuff from elgemcdlf about his bump?

-DAY 1-
Here are some pictures of what I got done today. There are a couple of pics that I took of a measuring tape. That is the distance from the floor to the highest part of the wheel arch with the motor out of the truck.


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Ok here is something to consider. Now is the time if you desire to stretch the wheelbase. Once the front axle is out (mark your centerline first before you pull the axle) then with the wheels & tires on the front suspension slide it under the truck moving it into the position you want inside the fender. Stretching the wheelbase will give you a better ride. Now I am not talking about much change as you need it to look correct and the difference in ride will be minimal BUT every little bit helps. By moving the front axle forward you are also altering you front to rear weight distribution which gives better handling. Again it will be slight but it will still be there. I stretched my wheelbase between 1" & 2" with the front and rear swaps. Not an obvious alteration but beneficial.

I have read about other guys moving the CV IFS forward like 3/4" and I never understood why. I never thought of that. My only concern is how far can I go forward without the tires rubbing the fender wells when I turn. Another thing is that I have very little clearance between the pulleys and the radiator. I am going to mount the motor to the CV X member so I probably will have to leave it in the same location. One thing I am going to try and do is mount the motor as low as I possibly can so it may help the handling a little.

Your engine stays in the same position. You will fab mounts accordingly regardless of crossmember location

-DAY 2-
I got a lot done today even though it doesn't look like it. I got the old axle out and cut the fender wells out to clear the top frame mount. I also got one of the shock mounts off of the frame. Then I got the CV IFS kind of in place to see what I will need to do to get it positioned correctly.

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What is the "block" between the rail and the crossmember on the one side? Looks like sheet metal. Sheet metal is nowhere near strong enough to be used as a block between the rail and crossmember. Are you not planning on mounting the crossmember against the rail directly?

That piece is the frame section the spacers are in from the CV. I just had it on there to see of I could use it or not. I cut out the top of the CV frame section so I could slide it onto the truck frame. It isn't permanent I was just trying it out. And yes I am planning on mounting the X member to the bottom of the frame. I want the truck to be lowered, I don't want the stock ride height.

-DAY 3-
I cut out more of the fender wells to clear the "shock towers". Also I got the CV X member semi lined up to where it needs to be. I also got the steering box off of the steering shaft along with the worm gear, which will allow me to keep the original column and steering wheel.

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Keeping the original column will be a nice thing. Looks like you are having fun.

I will be surprised if you can use your original column. It looks like there is no bearing at the base of your column which would not be out of line since it went straight into the box. This will allow your shaft to move around making for play in the wheel. With the close ratio rack it could prove dangerous. You will understand this when you drive the truck. The rack takes so little movement of the wheel to turn the truck that any play in the steering connection is amplified compared to the old box. It is taking shape. You are not going to believe how much better your truck drives when you get this finished.

You should be able to buy the bearing for the bottom of the steering column. It would be the same one that people use to add power steering using a Toyota box. Mid fifty should carry them, as well as some other suppliers.

I thought of this problem as well, elgemcdlf. I was thinking that I can make a bracket with a bearing that I can mount to the frame to stabilize the column. As of right now the shaft moves around inside the steering column as well as in and out of the column (you can pull the steering wheel up without moving the column). And the column itself moves in all directions. By making a bracket with a bearing mounted to the frame it should stabilize all those movements related to the shaft. As for the movements of the column I believe I can make another mount that attaches to the column and bolts to the floor (Similar to the one that holds the column to the dash from the factory). This should fix all of those problems.

Here is a very quick sketch of my idea for stabilizing the shaft along with a small and hard to see sketch of my idea for securing the column on the upper right.

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