Hot Rods Is it possible....

That the leaf springs on the rear of our 64 ranchero are so weak that when your really on her it squats down so far its pulling the front end up and causing the front tires to squeal.
Now I'm serious about this. She is far from a high horse power race car. She does have a late model 5.0 in her with some mods. And we installed a 9" rear end with trac lock. We did put on some ol skool slapper bars as well....... don't flame us to much....
We did replace all the front end with all brand new parts. 1965 mustang front suspension. Also new 2" drop coil springs. Not a Granada conversion! Yes we have had the car aligned after it was all installed.
For example after making passes at the drag strip you can look at the front and see that it sits higher. And the front tires are lets say the bottoms are leaning in. Positive camber.
I drove her to work and back today and played around a bit. And yea punching it in a straight line she lifts the front and the front tires squeal like a mofo.

 

Based on what you have described, it's entirely possible.
Seen this on drag cars until they get the chassis combination ironed out.

 

you sure the fan belt isn't slipping?

 

yup.

 

What gears and rear tires??

I'd say you're being awfully optimistic...

 

need pics

 

Mustang centrelink?

 

No. Falcon center link



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...........................Are you sure the alignment was done correctly?

 

Now I did drive albeit to much before the alignment and did put some pretty good wear on the inside edge of the front tires. Prior to the alignment I didn't have the toe in set even close and scrubbed off a good amount of rubber on the inside of the tire.
Tonight I'm going to rotate them to the back and see how it drives then. When it's apart I'll give the spindles and what not and good look.


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So when the front suspension tops out, the tires are tipped in at the top, alignment is out of whack while the poor wasted leaf springs twist up a little more. Pinion angle changes a little more each time the springs don't return to their original shape.
This is only my guess!
Are the spring eye bushings worn out,too?
Sounds a little scary.

 

Yes. Took it to a my guy who works at a very well know shop in my town. Well know for doing good work. And I've know the guy for over 20 years and even worked with him at one point in my career.


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Almost all of the Fords of that era lost a lot of tension in the rear springs over time (witness how many people flipped the shackles to re-gain some height). They all tended to sag with age, especially something like a Ranchero that may have suffered overloading during it's life. Helper springs along with the slapper bars might help.

 

They are the orig 1964 springs and bushings!! Yeah it can get a little sketchy at high speeds. It bugs me but knowing my 17 year old driving it down the track at 90 mph makes me very nervous.


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It's not too tough a job to pull those springs out, take them to a reliable spring shop and have them re-bushed and possibly re-arched.

 

3.50 gears and 215/60r15 tires. Now I'm not saying it does it when we dare I say launch the car.... It won't do it until your above say 45-50 and standing on the gas. Think of the front end floating


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It's gotta be easier than doing the springs on the rear of my 04 f150 4x4. Them bitches was heavy.


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....................Of course you may need to get it re-aligned afterwards.

 

Drag cars get the front end lined up different than street cars. A drag only car has it's front up, changing alignment. When these cars are done it is best to take a pic of it at speed. When on alignment rack you pull the back down and jack up the front to mimic the at speed look. It will make the car more stable at speed, and improve e.t. because of less drag. (not noticeable on a 90mph car) It is not good for a street car because you are not driving like that on the street.

 

So. Would it be fair to say when the car was aligned and it was aligned for street driving. Not drag racing or raising hell in town. That type of alignment is giving us our current situation? Also the old wore out leaf springs as well?


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I can't see where the weak rear springs will cause the front tires to squeal. I would guess you have a problem with the tie rods being wrong in some way. The spindle ends could be in a different position or the center link has changed position. You need to get everthing back to stock geometry.

 

If you have saggy rear springs and extra power, why not start with some new springs in back? Maybe get a couple extra leaves in the pack as well. A spring shop should be able to give you a new spring that will result in the same arch, but be stiffer.

 

That's the plan now!!! Why did I cheap out on rear leafs when building the whole car with upgraded parts? Who the fuck knows.


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I would be looking at excessive toe change on rebound. That's why I asked if you had used the wrong centerlink. I agree with Andy, if what you are describing is what's actually happening, I don't think it has anything to do with the rear springs.

 

What would cause the car to have excessive toe change on rebound?


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Lots of things, off the top of my head, I would start by looking at the length of the tie rod ends relative to the length of the lower control arms. If there's a big difference between the arc that the outer end of the lower control arm travels relative to the arc that the outer end of the tir rod end travels, it will cause excessive toe change at the extremes of the suspension travel.

Have you tried slowly jacking the front end of the car up while measuring toe change? That's where I would start.
Are the front shock towers good? Heavy rust damage can really weaken the shock towers in these car, and if they are moving around, you will never get it to hold an alignment. It's also pretty dangerous, I knew a guy that had his '70 mustang go end over end at 100 mph when a shock tower failed.

 

I have checked toe change by putting a piece of plywood on the hub, and using dial indicaters to check toe change with suspension movement. It is easier without the springs but you may get some data just by putting the car on jack stands and using a floor jack to move the suspension.
I totally agree with Falcongeorge

 

It's probably the reason why many drag cars were changed to straight axles. The geometry doesn't change as much when the front end lifts.

 

I haven't measured it while jacking it up. But I can say that with the front wheels off the floor it duplicates what the tires do under hard acceleration and high speed. Positive camber. Also if it is up for a good amount of time. Say doing the transmission half a dozen times..... See the meltdown thread. The wheels will stay in that positive camber when lowered to the ground. After a short a drive the ride height will return to normal.


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Oh and yes the shock towers are solid. Our car is a super solid unit. Only some minor rust in the drip rails. None in the shock towers or sub frame or torque boxes. Got lucky with this pile.


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