Just wanted to know how you gentleman are lowering your 55-56 plyms. I have 2" blocks on the work bench but wanted to confirm that it was safe to run. The previous owner put a ford 302 with AOD and 8" rear. Hoping this driveline swap wont throw off my geometry too much. Thanks guys!
Been running 2" blocks in the rear and one coil cut in the front for over 10 years on my '55 Dodge. To date no problems at all. The front suspention, other than the cut coils, is stone stock....
There are lowered spindles available from FATMAN fabrications however when using these you need to realign your steering arm to match the drop to maintain the correct steering angle. While that may be OK in the USA its not legal to heat and bend any steering component here in NZ so each place has its own rules and specifications. There was an article on this in a "hot rod" style magazine some years ago and i'll dig it out if you want to take this option further? Another option is to play with rims size also - a good older style 14" MAG will bolt on and looks good on these cars - saw one like that with 14" 5 spoke mags back in '82 and been in love with the style and looks ever since.
2" blocks are safe and have no negative consequences. Except of course lower road clearance. You might need to be a little careful if you frequently carry a full load of p***engers and baggage. In that case a set of air shocks will set you right. The Ford engine is about 100 to 200 pounds lighter than the original. Does the front end sit high? You can lower it by taking out the front springs and cutting off 1 or 1 1/2 coil.
In addition to my earlier post. I'm still running the original Dodge Hemi. It's pretty hefty. With the one cut on the coils and the 2" blocks I'm still able to ride two people in the back seat and have no bottoming problems. The rear springs are still stock. The Dodge and Plymouth for '55 have the same setup....
Has anyone heard of or used the Areostar front spring? the Ford guys all do this swap for about a 2" drop. It is a progressive spring too.... Does anyone know if it will fit the 55-56 Dodge?
I would not recomend cutting coils out of coil springs, or using any spring that lowers more then 1 inch. Geometry and driveability to me is first. Fatman fab has a tech article called " Stop Drop & Roll " The only thing, I would not use plydo for parts. I would use brake tech solutions..... Fatman fab dropped uprights are the best. and an easy part to install. Progressive springs are any spring that have wide coils and close coils on either side of the spring.
Also interested in this answer too. Have seen late 40's Plymouth guys are using these coils to drop the front. Anyone familiar with the springs know if 55 springs are similar to say ... 1947. Thanks
One other thing that comes to mind with the front coils. Like I stated I cut one coil, I did not heat a coil to drop it. You can really run into problems by heating them. I definately would not suggest doing that. Take them out and cut with a powere hacksaw. That way no heat is applied. ---www.kkoanorthevent.yolasite.com ---
All we need are the spring dimensions and rate to compare. Easily found in a parts catalog. If any autoparts store actually used parts catalogs these days :/
This one I sold about three years or so back, I had 2" blocks in back and a spring guy reset the front coils by 2".
Whilst this is not a 1955-56 Plymouth the suspension is the same......this is mine with 2" blocks on the rear and 1 coil cut from the front, nothing hits or rubs with 15x6 and 15x7 rims and 195/75 and 235/75x 15 tyres......andyd.
When I was working on my 55 plymouth Suburban I replaced all of the springs with new ones from Eaton. One of my rear main leafs was broken so new springs seemed the best way to go. I specified that I wanted the car to sit 2 inches lower and they made up the springs to accomplish that. Eaton did have patterns and specs for the rear springs and they are dearched to accomplish the lowering. They did not have patterns or specs for the front coils so I sent in my stock coils and they were able to use them for patterns. Less than two weeks later I had my new springs (as well as my original springs) delivered. Eaton has great people to work with. I realize that this may not be the direction for some (or most?) but it worked for me.
I don't think that a person would have any issues with aligning the front end on that model with one or one and a half coils cut off the front springs. I also don't see any issue with cutting them off with a cut off wheel on an angle grinder. Contrary to some people's beliefs you aren't going to get the spring hot enough to bother it with the cut off wheel. A little bit of the end will be hardened a bit but you aren't going to chuck the thing in a lathe and machine it afterwords so that isn't an issue. Cut for a quarter inch, let it cool and cut again and repeat if you are paranoid about getting it hot. The only thing about aligning a front end with coils that are cut a coil or so is that some alignment techs cannot get their brain out of the little box it is in when it comes to aligning a front end. Meaning if things have been changed they can't think past that and just align it. You just have to take the car to someone who is used to working on modified cars to have it done.
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