Like the title says, are there only certain years of MII front ends that work under a '53 chevy truck or were all the Mustang II suspensions the same?? Thanks, Steve
You're not thinking of taking one out of a mustang are you? If so, do yourself a favor and order the cross member from one of the many manufactures who make them for your truck.
Truck + factory Mustang II not good - truck too heavy. Try something like a Corvette C4. Truck crossmembers available from www.flatoutengineering.com. Or a Volare might be another option - my 0.02c.
If your trying to do this on the cheap you are gonna have problems. You would be better off buying the aftermarket crossmember to install the M2 or update the exisiting beam axle. New king pins and rod ends, disc brake kit, etc. Normal Norman
I already have a pacer front end in the truck but from a spare parts standpoint I was thinking MII. The only problem with the pacer front end which looks to be much more stout is the track is 5 inches wider and will not work for me, so my option is to cut a five inch section out of the pacer front end and re-weld and struggle to get parts or go with the MII susp, and have ample parts available. Steve
Do a S-10 front stub if you can, Its cheap and has everything you want or do a aftermarket mustang swap.
To answer your original question, Look for a '74 to '78 Mustang, Pinto, or Bobcat. The suspensions were all the same, the only difference was in the spring rate. However, you would be much better served to get an aftermarket MII crossmember. You will have to narrow your frame considerably (4 inches on the '48 to '52 Ford F-1's, I would imagine the Chevies are similar) to use the original MII cross member. Good Luck.
Check with Fatman Fabrications in Charlotte, NC. If a MII will work in it, Brent and his group have already done it! Good people, too!
Almost..... Pinto and bobcat are the same. The Mustang II is the same except for the strut rods are a different angle. The mounts for the strut rods are bolt in on mustang II and are part of the unibody on pinto / bobcat. I too think you would be better with and aftermarket front end made for your truck mustang II style is fine. If doing on the cheap look at other front clips that others have mentioned.
To add to this, the track on the Mustang II was about 1 inch wider. Someone told me this years ago and I didn't believe it until we measured it on two of my cars (one with a Mustang II crossmember and the other with a Pinto). All of the components are the same, but the crossmembers are different. The Mustang II frame rails are wider than the Pinto.
If I recall, an S-10 front frame section is really close in track width. You could simply lop off the front frame and have at it. Don't forget to add at least 1/2" to the wheelbase if you do either. Dropping the front on AD trucks without doing that will give it an "overbite" look as in wheels too far back. Good luck with either choice. Each has it's benefits and will net spares on the cheap.
I did not know that, but I guess I never did Measure them both.... Learn something new every day. That is why i love the HAMB !
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