F100 CROWN VIC SWAP...WTF???

I said this before, it's too wide... stock is about 63 and vic is about 67 @ wms,,, putting the stock vic cross member is just gonna cause issues down the road... like it doesn't leave the option of getting the front low enough.. next no tires and rims fit!!!

so what am I missing??? do you have to run mustang wheels or nothing... can you change, or do you have to run differant brakes???

I wanna run steel 15 x 5 wheels.... or maybe 16'' will fit???... I have stacks of wheels... mostly 5 on 5.5 pattern... my truck is a 57 big window and I want it to lean more to the traditional look... and 20'' mustang wheels is not an option..

and please don't post,,, don't worry about what others think or say... truth is...If ever one says it has the wrong wheels most likely it's cause it has the wrong wheels..

 

Every one I've heard that's done it used different offset wheels

 

ok, like what wheels??? from wheel ms to fender lip is 3 1/4.. +- then you have to deal with the big ass brakes...

 

Honestly most of the people I know personally just used stock wheels from an early 2000s police interceptor crown vic

 

Which would be 16"

 

nothing against the guys truck... I just don't like the wheels

1959 Ford F100 Restomod build, Crown Vic P71, walk around

 

There are companies that make shorter control arms but most 15" wheels won't clear the brakes.

 

thanks for posting

 

it fits 15 x 10 in the rear...

 

thanks for posting.... I might have to 17''

 

What about the 91 to 02 crown Vick frame, it doesn’t use sealed bearings and I thought the early 90s model had 15” wheels…

 

thanks for the post
will it go on my spindles???? the vic swap is done...just wanna get differant wheels

 

I’m not sure what in the suspension if anything is different other than the hub/roter but the sealed bearings require a negative offset wheel and the other doesn’t. So I don’t know where the Track width would come from. It could be cross member, A arms or spindle. But to go from zero to a positive offset wheels and maintain track width something’s different.

 

what I wanted to do was put steel wheels on it... I can get 5'' or 6'' with the right offset, but have to go to 16'' or 17'' wheels.. this is one those. "the one I've always wanted" trucks... to me the 57 big window short bed is the top of the fridge trucks....

the cammer motor looks too cool in there and it's a frame off build with everything new and done right...but with out pissing some one off, and all due respect, gonna say not how I would have done the truck..

and like I said years ago...the crown vic is not the right suspension swap... it's too wide... but thousands have done it and rave about it...
kinda reminds me of back in the day everyone raving about doing the gm sub frame... we did one after another,,, I would cringe every time I'd see a truck with the front half of the frame cut off.... and say... there's gonna come a day when people are gonna be sorry they did that

my sons came over, the oldest said,, What I would put on that truck is a for sell sign!!!!

So... what I'm thinking is the whole truck is F$#%K'd because of the motor and suspension fo me... I see them everywhere,... and the new wavers seem to dig them,,,. just not for me I guess...

would like to see some pic's of crown vic swaps... where they look good....or look good to me...

 

Or, a swap back to original type frame?

 

it's a lot of money invested to go back, better to sell and get a different truck I would say....

 

You've already got the one you always wanted. You need to make it your own.

 

Front and rear bubble type fender skirts. Hide the wheels

 

So, it's a new dawn...really starting to warm up to this truck...Here's what I think...
I don't have much history... but here's what I think has happened..Some one wanted a new truck.. looked at the sticker price and said... I'd rather have a 57 big window..

So with open check book... found a truck... hauled to the local builder and started writing checks.. started with a complete frame off build... wanted the best ride he could get... and modern power,.. and all that goes with it.. power steering ,power disc brakes. tilt wheel,... I'm sure that all was going well.. chassis gets done...every thing new and painted.. pro wired to computer and such... but by then years had went by... truck sets at the shop... owner start getting tired of writing checks and gets slow to pay...the cab is on.. primary circuit wired and it starts and runs... body all in pieces...gets all new glass and rubbers, gets every piece of chrome new, bumpers grille, mirrors handles and such...

But like said... starts loosing interest, tired of writing checks.. wants it done.... but by then, north of 40k and maybe even 50k.. what started as cost is not an object, turned to it's the whole object...starts thinking he spent too much and thinks the shop owes him...or flat ran out of money...maybe even robbed his 401k to do it..

so check book gets real hard to open...shop say's no money no work... he tries to get a budget from the shop. like whats it gonna take to get it painted and back together...get a hard price, see's it's gonna be over 80k to be done....So...pays his bill and comes get the truck..... and takes it to another shop....he's now 10 years and 50k in...at the new shop.. they say we can finish it for 10k, he thinks... that save me 30k... no brainer right??

the new shop wants 5 k deposit... so he writes the check... months go by, truck sits in the corner, then turns into years... gets with the shop ower, owner say's man I'm sorry,we worked on the truck, and you are out of money. I miss quoted this job and can't do it for 10k....so you can take it if you want...but, I can finish it and have it done in 2 weeks... but I need 15k more... and need half up front.....

so he takes the truck... finds another shop that says they can paint it and put it all back together for 10k... so he goes for it...half down and done in 2 weeks....2 weeks go by,, some parts are in primer.... shop owner starts bitching... complains that the owner said all he had to do was prime and paint...and they have done a ton of body work....owner says....you looked at it!!!!! I want it done... so they stopped blocking and painted it....

the truck still needed finished... but the owner was at the , I'm just gonna take my hickey and move on... not spending another dime on it... so it just sat in a garage up in oregon some where..

 

A tale told too many times. My son in law has a 65 Mustang. It’s been sitting for 4 years now at a body shop in Ponca City OK . He paid a large deposit to get it painted. It’s sitting in primer for the last 3 years. The guy got a divorce, left town, came back and is working for his Uncle at Klinger body and paint . I’ve told my SIL let’s go get your car before the bank foreclosures on the shop it’s sitting in .

 

I've been on the other side of the fence ... when I operated under "LAS VEGAS STREETRODS"
we did we did T's A's and 32'S.. and all the rest....guys would come in with the moneys no object, I want it built my way... back then it would hover around the 50k mark to build all new glass 32 hiboy.// i would tell people that it's not a good idea... I'd say you can go to pomona swap meet and get one for 25k all done.. every build got about 1/2 done and they'd start squaking about how "I" owed them, or they were out of money.. some took the cars not done to barn yard billy to finish... then they would tell everyone we built it... bout then I got out of streetrods and just did general auto and mufflers...very rare did a car stay over night...people loved dropping their car off in the morning and picking it up that night...my boys do long travel off road, air bagged frame scrapers and fab work.. custom fabbed exhaust... so my rule went away... they wine all the time about dealing with moneys no object customers..

 

I get all that, builds not getting done. Not on time. Not on budget.

What's next for the 57 frig?

 

People don’t understand the amount of hours that go into a build. Even if most things can be ordered out of a catalog and are supposed ready to bolt on . Murphy will always show up and cause a problem. The guy told my SIL that he couldn’t get the toner for the paint because of Covid . I talked to a couple of buddies that run body shops and they didn’t have any issues. Ugh

 

wifes birthday yesterday. so 2 sons can over...they were like, why you wanna change the wheels??? they match the motor and the suspension. It's so far in one direction...just finish it and drive the wheels off it..

so spent some time fixing and cleaning,... put the wheels back on and took the seats out... not that bad looking of a truck....
not how I would have done it,,, but I wouldn't know any other way,,,

 

probley do some tire size swapping.... and they have a few different ways of lowering the front that I found.. I think I can flip the front hanger in the rear to get that down also..

 

well shit... everybody that looked at it said the same thing..."YOU SHOULD JUST SELL IT TO ME!!!" guess I'm too old school for this truck.....sold... bye bye 57...

 

I do think your assessment of the original builder wanting a new truck but didnt want the ugly new junk is dead on

 

The CV swap is pretty common all the way up through the mid 70s model years. One of my buddies has a '59 F100 that CV swapped. He used the original CV steel wheels with the little dog dish hubcaps. Black wheel, chrome cap. For the rear, which has a standard width rear-end, he had the the CV centers put into some 8" wide hoops with fat tires. So the rear has a bit more depth than the front, but it's a nice look. Sorry I don't have a photo handy.
That said, while I think the CV swap is good for some, I wouldn't go that way with mine. The main reason is pretty much the same as you. I don't like the "flat" wheels required. Plus, I still use mine as an actual truck, and after putting in dropped beams (twin I beam) and 1999 explorer front springs with KYB gas shocks, the ride quality is pretty dang good.
If you don't like the CV swap, probably best to sell it on, and get something else. Nobody here says you have to like it. If ya don't like it, ya don't like it. Simple as that.

 

I have a new 2025 coyote powered 150...I have drove to so cal and back to vegas.....hauls ass...

 

I bet next time I see that 57 it will lay'n frame....nothing against bagged stuff.... I just don't like it....