have a gentleman wanting me to do a 1957 ford 2dr wagon lowered upgraded suspension. needs alot and i mean alot of work. floor is gone bottom of quarters gone bottom of fenders you guessed it the car is a heap but salvagable. I will start with what knowledge of the car i have and ask that any one with tech info or sites, other threads please chime in and help better educate me. the guy is bringing me a 1975 torino as a donor car, ie motor and trans and any other usables. One site says torino spindles will work but won't lower it and wrong bolt pattern? a torino has 5x4.5 pattern according to the net. what does a 57 have? I did see wear most are using 75-80 granada spindle with areostar springs and the result is 2.5 to 3" drop. next up would be steering would like to use 1964 steering box with rag joint. some say direct bolt in? others say no and you change pitman arm but still a good box to use? the guy doesn't want power so i'm looking for the best standard steering setup. He says motor in torino will bolt right in using 460 motor mounts turned upside down? I think the pan would be wrong. not for sure but isn't a y block motor front sump and a 400 ford rear sump?. next up what do the 57 guys recommend for patch panel companies? weather stripping? does anyone make a nut and bolt package for one of these. Did a 67 camaro ounce came to me in basket form and thank fully thier was a nut bolt kit for one and man did that make my life easy. glass? trim items?what is a good wheel and tire combo for these cars ? (no 18's or20's doing a taditional ride) a donor wagon for parts or a better start than what i am being given?. have seen lots of sites selling different items for the 57 fords but what do you guys recommend. the best part about these forums is touching base with other car guys that have been down this road and already know what was werth the money what worked and what doesen't Thanks for any education you can give me
macs or dennis carpenter for resto parts, ems for sheetmetal (hamber) , use aerostar coils springs for 21/2-3 inch drop, dont use anything from the camaro, does the 75 donor have an f/e? if so 352 mounts should bolt it in , if its a 460 the rad in the 57 needs to be mounted to the front side of the cor support, the 64 steering box will bolt to the frame may need to use the 57 style pitman , i have quite a bit of used parts laying about if you need something
i believe a 400 ford is a big block and no it is not an f/e motor 352 to 390. im not sure what series the 400 is I do know thier was the 400 and the 400 modfied. don't know alot about either. will the 57 pitman arm bolt on to a 64 gearbox
I can't even begin to answer all these questions before this system logs me off!!! So I will answer one. The '75 Torino spindles are different than the '57 Ford and Granada style. Not worth the effort. But the wheel bolt patterns are the same. Ok two guestions. '75 Torinos did not have FEs and the 400 is a front sump and will fit.
ok i misread your first post i thought you were asking about a 460 yeah the 400 shouldnt be a big deal to install
400 and 351m are 335 series, though the two have their own wide deck block. not a big block, not a small block, goofy block. thats all i can answer...
the 351m and 400m use the same motor mounts and bellhousing bolt pattern as the 429 and 460 if that helps
Wow.. that was hard to read..... I just put a 400/c6 in a 57 ranchero pretty easy but I used stands from the doner car and cut them down to get the motor where I wanted it and used the trans member from the doner as well, and just fabed up new mounts for it off the frame. Other guy is correct 400 is a 335 series block, and is considered a big block. Based off a 351cleveland hince 351 modified, just don't get it confused w/ a 351 w, as that is a small block. 64 box works but will have to change or modifiy the pitman arm. Macs, Dearborn Classics, and several others are out there for parts. Parts are easy to get for a 57.
The following thread has details of the floor and panels available starting on page 14 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=567430
I used the torino spindles on my 57 & 58, they are a little easier to find, bolt pattern is the same. You need to ream out for the balljoint, also camber changes. But the granadas also affect camber, they are a little more beefy than the granada spindle. Lots of parts out there for these cars, affordable. Mark
Bob's classic auto glass in Oregon. Steele Rubber I have 15x8 for the rear 15x6 for the front Cragar chrome reverse from Jeg's, the backspace is critical, i got the deepest i could find from all the catalogs, without going to Stockton Wheel, still had to cut the lip on the inner fender after narrowing the rear-end housing 1". and finally, Dearborn Classics will have various things.
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