Technical 31 Dodge suspension help...

I have a 32 Plymouth 3 window that I am getting ready to start on. Sometime during its previous life it had a torsion bar suspension added to the front of it. I cannot identify what car it came from is and there was no info that came from the previous owner. I would just keep it it as is but the strut rods attachment point on the frame sits way too low and is going to hit the ground. So im trying to find pictures and info on what the stock parallel leaf setup is supposed to look like and may consider going back to that setup. Either that or I am going to have to fix the strut rods by making knew mount and possibly custom strut rods. Any help is appreciated.

 

Model A stuff is probably easier to find...

 

Yes I know I am considering that. I am honestly hoping someone here may also know about torsion bar suspensions and what it may have come off of. My fear is that I'll never be able to figure out replacement parts like brake pads and bushings. The pic is ****py but you can see the strut rod mount is lowwww. I am pretty sure that it sits below the lip of the rim with no engine in it...

 

Ugly to boot, I'd cut all that off and put an A front crossmember. Give it a cleaner look. My ole 32 Plymouth had a 32 Chevy front half grafted on it sometime in the fifties

 

There may be part numbers tho if you start dis***embling it. I've seen an Anglia and fed's with nice clean torsion setups tho....race car stuff

 

Yeah, the actual torsion bars and crossmember set up is done pretty nicely and it also has a rear steer rack and pinion too. The torsion bars and bat wings don't look like anything pulled from a used car like the cross member and control arms do. I'm not positive but pretty sure that it was a different person who put those strut rods on there and it may have stopped the build as it was never completed. I'll try to get the car pulled out and get some better pics.

 

you will need alot better pics to get any kind of idea what you have

 

Understood. It's my next project as I am almost done with my '56 Chevy. Just trying to gain any info I can do I can hit the ground running. I'll try to drag it out of its hole this weekend for some better more detailed pictures.

 

Another strange detail is the torsion bar also acts as the lower control arm pivot bolt.

 

Really need better pics; could be anything from 57/58 Plymouth to Morris Minor T-bar stuff.

 

I put in a '32 Ply front suspension in my '32 DB PU so I could easily run the 5.5x5 bolt pattern, instead of the woodspoked wheels, anyways, send me a PM to remind me, and I'll get my kid to take some pics, infact I still have the front and rears with the leafs on them and the wood spoked wheels, so I can get some pics of what they look like out of the car as well, only difference is the hubs and the length of the pitman arms between the two.

 

That strut rod bushing should be on the same level as the torsion bar so the suspension works in a triangular fashion. If the pivot point on the strut rod is higher or lower than the torsion bar you will have a form of bump steer as the lower control arm and strut rod are pivoting on different arcs with incorrect geometry.
IMHO and save you more grief, remove the entire IFS ***embly as stated and use off the shelf Model A front cross member and dropped axle. Not worth all the grief trying to get it to work. Easier than OEM style parallel leafs and dropped axle.

What bolt pattern and disc brakes? Are they LH thread wheel nuts on driver's side wheel?

 

So at some point some one speculated it was a dodge setup but after looking at them pretty thoroughly I'm fairly certain it isn't. My question to you is have you ever seen a dodge torsion bar setup and how the strut rods go in a forward direction in a pretty extreme angle? It seems they are on a different plane than the Torsion bars. I was thinking I could make my own strut rods and bend them into a gradual S shape and significantly raise the mount on the frame. The torsion bars are basically horizontal.

I'm open to swapping it out, but what ford setup would you suggest? This era vehicle is pretty new to me as I have been working on all 60's - 70's Chevy stuff pretty much exclusively.

Bolt pattern seems to be a 5 on 4.5 and are right hand thread on drivers side. The calipers seem odd and honestly like they are from a foreign car.

I don't have enough info or pics clearly and I will try to change that today. I am trying to see if I can use what's there for two reasons, one to be a little budget concious and two for just general speed of getting it done. It's my fathers car and I am trying to get all of his cars completed for him before he gets too old to drive and enjoy them.

 

Back in the late 70's we took the original 1932 Plymouth PB front suspension out and installed a 1932 Ford front cross member and a complete Pete & Jake's 4 bar front suspension and dropped axle and this car road and drove great. HRP

 

Looks like Toyota pickup to me...... does it have 5 on 4.5 bolt pattern? The brake calipers are one clue. and the control arms. will see if i can find you a picture.......John

 

look at this thread the toyota stuff matches up http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/sub-frame-torsion-bar-suspension-type.954611/

 

looks like they flipped the steering to the rear, added rack and pinion and moved the strut rods to the rear also.

 

Yep looks exactly like it. And yes they flipped everything around, calipers are on the front, strut rods and steering to the back....so what's the right way to get rid of this **** and switch it out for ford stuff? I was looking in the speedway catalog but not sure what's the good setup to have and what isn't.

Or can I work with what's there at all?

 

If your going full fender you could leave it. if not just cut it all out and go with a axle set up.....John

 

No, I'm going open wheel for the time being, I didn't get any fenders or hood with the car at all. I'm just mostly concerned about drive ability and safety. And really if I can work with what's there and not have to cut it up and get in over my head that would be nice.

 

I'm working on a 31 Plymouth coupe now. I kept the original leaf spring design. Here is my build thread. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/index.php?threads/951308/. If you need close-up photos or dimensions if you decide to go that direction I'm happy to help.

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Thanks! I'll scope it out and maybe hit you up for some closeup photos and dimensions depending on what route I go!

 

So I took some more pics today of the front end. The torsion bars are almost horizontal. You can see in one pic the relation of the T bar to the strut rods.

So anyone have input on building strut rods? I'm thinking about getting the dynamic mopar ones and mounting them on top of the lower control arms.

Also fwiw I am putting a 331 hemi and a 4 speed in this car. Should be pretty cool.

 

I am thinking that is a Toyota Pick Up set up. Definitely not Mopar. It has some resemblance to my High Lux motorhome.....

If anyone else caught this being from a "Yoda", then I am sorry for missing your post. I got a phone call halfway through this thread.

I picked up a 1947 Ford car front end for my 1936 Dodge truck. My truck got the front frame rails cut off. It was in a major crash, so I have to re-shape the frame. Being that I have to modify the front end anyway, I thought that the look of the split wishbone would be best going fenderless. And it is more accommodating in allowing me to get steering around my 354 Hemi.....

I can't wait to see what you do. Seems to be a awesome project!

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Good eye, another member called and looks to match a 1980 Toyota 2wd pickup. Thanks though!

 

Looks like a 60's Dodge Dart.

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After much reflection and head scratching I have come to the conclusion that this toyota stuff needs to go. The adjust-ability of the torsion bars would be nice but there just is not enough travel. There is only about 4 inches between the bump stops and the frame and the deal with the strut rods is a difficult fix without creating bump steer issues. So I am going to remove the toyota stuff, but I need to know what I should replace it with? Mustang 2 stuff? Or tube axle/transverse leaf? Or...? And who should I be looking at for whatever kit I use? This is about 40 years older than my normal projects so I am a bit out of my knowledge base but I love learning new stuff so I will absorb whatever knowledge can be p***ed on to me.

 

Are you sure that is a '32 Plymouth? The Cowl looks earlier, 30 / 31 maybe. I am building a 32 Plymouth Sedan Convertible right now, and below are a couple pictures of the original suspension. The owners wanted a Fat-Man IFS, so that is what it got. Maybe the pics will help you decide which way to go.

Here is what I started with.



I know IFS is frowned upon, but the Fat Man crossmember was simple to install, and I didn't even have to remove the original crossmember which kept radiator and grill mounting a breeze.



To point this back in a traditional direction. Here is the motor going into the car.



The IFS with the grill and Front Fenders mocked up.

 

I am not 100% sure it's a '32. It's got 3 windows and the doors open normal as opposed to suicide style. I need to pull the numbers off the plate and check them.