Okay, yeah I know, not exactly traditional and I am sure I will get verbally abused etc. And NO air baggy filth here please. I have a Willys with a beefed up Heidt's Mustang II front end - not my choice but that's the way it came. It has stock height spindles but, having fixed the rear suspension problems by fitting new Bil$$tein shocks and longer springs (the previous shocks were bottoming out) as well as taller tires, the front is too low. I cannot even get a low floor jack under it at the front unless I drive the car up on ramps first. It could do with heavier springs, which I am told by Heidts are 14" long no load, (currently I suspect around 300 lbs on a certified scaled front end weight of 1680 lbs. with full tank of gas, no passengers), which will help a little, but the fender to tire aspect ratio needs to be raised, so fitting bigger diameter wheels or taller tires is not an option (currently 205/65R15 on 15 x 6" Halibrands). I will be fitting larger front brakes, which will kick the wheels out 1/2" per side. Any more than that and I will risk having tire to fender contact when turning, and the A arms are already 5/8" narrower than stock. I need to raise it about 1", at the same time retaining the correct suspension geometry - it has slight bump steer currently. The lower A-arms sit about 2-3 degrees up from parallel to the ground (another indicator that slightly heavier springs may be in order). I am none to keen on rubber coil blocks as this seems like a 'Band Aid' fix to me. Any qualified suggestions would be welcomed, as I am beginning to scratch my head for other workable options. Thanks guys.
The lower control arm should be about level to the earth when the car is sitting at ride height so this is more than likely the cause of your bump steer. If I take your meaning as the ball joint on the lower control arm sits higher than the lower control arm mount to the frame than yes, a heavier spring may be in order. (sound like you know all this) But, other than the spring which should only be used to raise it enough to correct geometry, I don't know of a way to bring the front end up without bigger tires, of reinstalling the front crossmember.
Norrie, thanks for the response which confirms pretty much what I had concluded. This whole conundrum highlights one of the main reasons I am no fan of Mustang II front suspension. A longer spring will only screw up the geometry by changing the relative positions of the upper and lower A arms, and one of the main drawbacks of Mustang II type suspension is the relatively short stroke of the shock, leaving only marginally acceptable shock travel. 14" free spring length is about as far as one should go, so heavier springs and maybe a 70 series front tire is all that I can think of here. This is a finished car, and there is absolutely no question of relocating the front cross member. I guess I will measure the spring length at ride height, the spring wire diameter, and try and figure it out from there. The springs appear to have eight active coils and are not progressively wound. I have spoken with tech from several aftermarket M II manufacturers and shock and spring manufacturers and given them the exact same data in every case including front end weight, rear end weight, weight bias, engine setback relative to front cross member etc.. Spring rate suggestions have varied from 300 lbs to 600 lbs! This, sadly, is indicative of the level of 'knowledge' of the aftermarket.
We used some overload type shocks on a 34 p/u to pick the front up a tad. I think Monroe for a Monte carlo. You should be able to get the book at the auto supply and find these. $.02's worth
I had the same problem on my sedan, the cure was the springs. Fatman M II uses a stock replacement spring so I went to NAPA, told them I needed a pair of standard Mustang II front springs (V-6 with A/C). When installed they brought the front up a little more than an inch.....and it actually rides pretty well for a MII suspension). The lower arms are now paralell to the pavement when at ride heighth.
does the current installation have the factory rubber spring pads on top of the springs? they are up in the "hat" and not readily visible.
If the current spring rate is nice, other than too low, how about turning a couple rings out of aluminum to space the spring up. Put them up where those rubber pads go in the top hats. Make them a bit long to start, and fine tune to lower it to an acceptable height. Kinda a band-aid, but not too much.
I think MII springs came in three different types, probably a 4-cyl, 6-cyl, and either 6-cyl w/AC, (or an 8-cyl?). I recently installed a pair of 6-cyl springs with a half coil cut off, brought the front of my '37 Plymouth to about 5" off the ground, just right for me.
I realize this is an old thread. (was killin' time, surfing through a friends posts) However, I didn't see this posted and wanted to make note of it. You could've very well had 2" drop spindles installed. My guess is there is a good chance of it if the Heidt's was previously installed not by you. Look into factory height spindles. This should, for the most part maintain current steering/suspension geometry and give you 2 inches of lift.
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