So I took my 56 out for a drive on the public roads this weekend. It was an experience and a half, let me tell you!

I had about a 6 mile trip to get it to my friends garage who carries out MOT tests (UK Ministry of Transport test, Needed to be legal on UK roads.) The first thing I noticed when on the roads was the difficulty in keeping it aiming in the intended direction. I seemed to be constantly making quite violent movements with the steering wheel just to keep it on the correct (Left ) side of the road.

To cut a long story short, my front end is in serious need of complete overhaul. Kingpins/Shocks/Steering box/wheel bearings, pretty much everything that could wear out has .

I had decided that I was going to convert the front end to IFS when I rebuilt, but had hoped that I could drive the old girl around for a while before the tear down. But this has made my mind up. Its going to have to be the rebuild straight away. I just cant justify spending the money required on the standard setup for a few months worth of road use.

So my real question is what are peoples experiences of the aftermarket IFS kits out there? I dont expect to get a this is better than that type of response. But I would value any feedback gained from real world experience of these kits.

As I live in the UK, there is not the usual supply of Mustang II components avaialable. In fact I have a friend who has a MII and he is always complaining how there are no perts available in the UK. So I will probably end up having to go down the route of the complete hub to hub kit.

There seems to be so many companies making these things, some with Stainless arms etc for the price of standard steel from others. But before I end up paying out a lot of money (probably about twice what you would pay in the US, once shipping and Taxes are added on) I wanted to hear of any experiences, good or bad that others have had.

Thanks
Lee

 

Lee -

You are probably talking about a complete IFS kit from one of the many vendors out there: Heidts, No Limit, Fatman, etc. You have chosen a very pricy and technically challenging solution. The installation requires skill, tools and time. The parts are expensive. Budget at least $2000 for parts alone. More if you like bling (chrome/stainless A-arms, etc).

I have an MII IFS on my 56 and like it very much. Many folks on this forum have converted to IFS of one kind or another. The Volare torsion bar style is an option favored by some. The different variants are listed in the "Articles" Section at the forum header. The "Alternative Suspension..." article used to be a sticky at the top of the forum page and now is there in different sections. Use the link below to find and read them:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/article/idx/10/0/

May I suggest that you look at the stock rebuild first? You will spend MUCH LESS money! You may find that a refurbished stock front suspension is just swell for your uses. Many here have done that with excellent results and, I'm sure, some will be along soon with info on what they spent.

Good Luck either way.

 

I have heard of Jaguar front suspension being used in 48-52 trucks but don't know how it may work out in a 56. I think the units used are from the early to mid 80's. They are self contained suspension units like the volare set up so it should be a fairly easy swap ( as if any swap is ever easy) Maybe someone else can recall this swap?

 

Hi Lee

Glad to hear you're on the road

If I was doing a IFS swap I would go with the Jag setup
Readily available more than strong enough with big brakes

There was a good article in Custom Car a few years back, you may be able to get a back issue

Give Kris Brown at Pop Browns a ring www.popbrowns.co.uk he has just put one under his 56 panel, I have always found him very helpful

Stephen

P.S Don't throw away the old one the hot rod guys will pay good money for that

 

Hi Randy,
Yes that the sort of kit I am talking about. The reason I was thinking about one of these is that there just arn't the donor vehicles around over here MII/Volare etc.

I hear what you say re the stock build, but I am also wanting to lower by quite a bit, but need to raise to make it practical for use on the bad roads round my way. So this was sort of leading me down the airbag route.

Jwcnj45,
Thanks I was wondering if there were any UK vehicles that might be suitable for the IFS conversion. I will look into this. My only concern are the geometry. Although from what I have heard recently. Many of the aftermarket kits are all the same thing with just a different crossmember which means that the geometry is probably no good for many of the applications.

Hey Steve,
It will be a very short lived period on the road.
I will definately look into the Jag setup, and thanks for the details re Pop Browns. I will give them a call later today and have a chat about how the Panel conversion went.
Hope your truck is coming on well... have you got all that body rubbed down yet?

Cheers
Lee

 

Hi Lee

Just got to work a few dents out of the bonnet (I mean hood) and build a bed then its ready for paint

One other thing I meant to say, get your truck UK registered before you do the clip as too many modifications may mean you have to go through a SVA test.

Once its registered you can change whatever you like

Cheers

Stephen

 

I am of the stock front axle is very good if brought back to new condition and correct alignment. You can also lower one quite a ways, and will handle rough roads better than an IFS. I am also of the opinion that airbags are best left to the show cars because they have too many negatives for daily driving. If you are dead set on changing to IFS then the Jag sedan route would likely be the most viable for someone living on the other side of the pond.

 

DO you have many Holden's where you are??? If so, keep in mind that the Holden is a GM product and if abundant, may work for a front clip. I have heard it is a " Mid-Size" car and close to the American Ch**y Chevelle. I would Google it mate.

 

El C,
Holdens are Aussie GM products, He's in the UK, i.e. England to us who won the war.

 

Cheers Steve,
Yes I have already got the truck Registered, I had been told about the Possible SVA .

El Carbon,
We do now have Holdens over in the UK, but unfortunately none of the age to consider breaking for parts. We are now getting the nice V8 spec'd high performance models.

AX,
I hear what you say re the standard axles and I suppose that that would be the most practical and cheapest route. But I am just one of those guys that seems to have to do things differently. If you looked at any other cars that I have had/worked on, you would know what I mean. I like making things a bit different, if not unique.

I just like making things difficult for myself. It usually starts with a conversation and someone saying. That cant be done! I seem to take it as a direct challenge.

The truck would not be a daily driver, but I would want it to be a reasonable driver to take to meets etc. I have to admit, that I have been doing a fair bit or research now on the Air route and I get wildly differing views on Ride quality etc. all the way from it is a much better Ride with Air right to it is terrible on air. I think that may well come down to the way it is installed.

Thanks
Lee

 

Lee,

I am putting an early eighties complete xj sedan front end in my 49. The geometry is all controled by the drop out jag front crossmember. The only geometry you need to control is to set the crossmember in level (set a level on the top of the crossmember flat surface), center it and position for wheel base length. Jag does the rest for you. It is not a commen swap here across the pond, however anyone who has done it is very happy with the installation and the ride. And, oh by the way, if you look around for a front end or donor car it can be cheap!

 

Lee IMHO air bag ride quality varies drastically depending on how much air is in the bags. More air=stiffer ride. There is also the shocks (dampers or whatever you call them?) to consider. Their valving needs to be matched to the spring rate to work properly, but each time you change the bag pressure you change the spring rate. Then geometry comes into play, Manufacturers design their front end geometry for a certain ride height at rest and the camber (and sometimes caster) changes as the wheel moves up and down from that position with the intent on keeping the tire tread in full contact with the road as the chassis rolls in a turn. When you change the ride height up or down from the design height the geometry can go to he|| in a handbasket in a hurry. With the infinitely variable ride height of airbags, at what height do you align it for both for driving and the crossmember height during installation, and how do you reasonably return to that specific height when driving?
Understand, I'm playing devil's advocate here with you, these are issues the magazines don't talk about but could end up making you very unhappy with the truck or even make it dangerous to drive.

 

well said, Chuck

 

AX,

I really appreciate your feedback. Its those sort of things as you say that are never mentioned on the glossy adverts or even the how to sections in the mags ( as they are invariably sponsored, by the supplier of the kit).

My thoughts re the geometry etc.
I am aming for a lowered truck, but not that low. I intend to get the optimal ride height that will clear all of the speed humps and pot holes, then make this the mid point of travel. This will be my Driving position, that would be used probably 95% of the time.

The air would be used to be able to lower statically when parked up or at a meet to stick it near the floor. I would probably not need to go any higher than the normal driving position but I am sure that the travel of the bags would give the option if needed, although I cant really think of a situation where I wouold want to take it up in the air, other than to avoid a large obstacle maybe.

With all of this in Mind I am now looking at getting all of the required details together to make sure that I can acheive the desired effect with some standard OEM kit, of if need be I will look at using some aftermarket stuff or even look to make from scratch.

What would be helpful, is if someone could tell me a few dimensions if they have them, but they are also variable depending upon wheel size etc.

If I could get a few different sizes, I should be able to make sure of the correct geometry.

I am looking for:

Overal Flange to Flange width (Wheelhub to Wheelhub)
Chassis base to floor dimension - with wheels either level or 1" up inside Front Fender opening. Measured at Wheel centers.
Overall diameter of wheel and Tire.

Thanks

Lee

 

HEIDTS MUSTANG II is the only way to go...I love that kit....the truck drives great....rides great and looks clean when installed correctly. One thing I would do differently from the start is get the lower control arms that delete the strut rods...my tires rubbed on those stupid things...but the Mustang II kit is the best I have found..my buddy put the Volare kit in his 54 and he hated it and ended up gettin a different chasis w/a mustang II kit. Good luck w/your truck