Ideas for brakes and rear: '84 LTD LX

[FoxChassis]

It's got the stock stuff now (10.06" disc/10" drum), including a rear that needs to be (not just because I want to) replaced. It also has the 4-lug, 15" 'ten hole' wheels on it.

I definately want larger disc and an 8.8" rear w/ a 3.55:1, 3.73:1, or 4.10:1 gearset (car has factory AOD that may get changed to a T-5 or TR-3550). From there I'm wide open to possibilities....'84-'92 Linocln Mk VII rear? Switch to 5-lug? SN95 brakes and suspension all around? Whatever? It'd be nice if I could increase the front and rear track width a little bit (which leans towards Mark 7/SN95 stuff).

So start throwing some ideas at me. Just don't make 'em too big....I'm getting old so I can't dodge things as well anymore. :lol:

[eric5oh]

I vote for sn95 setup, front and rear. Use the 13" cobra brakes. You have to use 17" wheels though.

[frankiesaysrelax]

Well, if you run a Mark VII 8.8 it will be 1 1/4 wider on each side, but if you run the Lincoln wheels as well they have a deeper offset and will fit, or at least they did on a buddy's '85. It looked cool with the 16" Lincoln mags. I would imagine you could find this stuff dirt cheap. Almost all of the Mark VII rears came with 3.27s and a few were posi (LMAO :P Traction-Loc), usually in the LSCs. If not, it is easy enough to swap carriers. Oh, one othet thing, LSC rears do not have quad shock mounts.

The matching Lincoln front brakes & spindles will get you 5 lug up front, but won't increase the track width. '96 up Mustang spindles will increase it by 8mm on each side. Other ways to increase your front track are:

Run '87-'88 T-bird or SN95 control arms. They are .75 longer on each side and will give you better steering geometry. SN95 arms will of course have SN95 ball joints, which are an improved design but will require matching SN95 spindles. T-bird arms have regular Mustang ball joints.

Use an '88-'93 (maybe '94-'95 too, not sure) K frame. They are one inch wider and perhaps 20 pounds lighter than the '78-'86 K-frames. They will widen your track half an inch on each side. I think they are a bolt-in to your car but I'm not an expert on LTDs by any means. Also, '90'-93 Mustang K-frames have improved anti-dive geometry.

Hope this helps.

[LTDScott]

Well the first thing you need to think about is whether you want to stay 4 lug or go to 5 lug.

If you go 5 lug, you only have 2 main choices, either SN95 or Mark VII.

I don't know much about SN95, but if you use the Lincoln brakes you can either go with the stock setup or use brackets from North Cobra to make them sit inwards further.

You've probably seen this site before, but the information there is awesome:

http://www.svo73mm.cjb.net/

FYI I'm running 13" Cobra discs with 96+ control arms up front, and stock Lincoln rear discs on my car. This setup will increase your track width quite a bit. This in turn makes the handling much better and makes the stance of the car much more aggressive (IMO), but the sacrifice is there is not much tire clearance. My front and rear tires (245/45/17) rub under certain circumstances on my 99 Cobra wheels. I used to have some aftermarket Eagle wheels that had a perfect fit but I didn't like the looks (on the right).

http://www.ltdlx.org/albums/SVT-LTD/clearance1_001.sized.jpg

So I think next time I buy tires I think I might step down to 235/45/17s for less rubbing.

http://www.ltdlx.org/albums/SVT-LTD/DSCN0112.sized.jpg

[Dean_T]

Out of hand, i'd recommend the Sn95 spindles and the Cobra brakes. The '94-'95 Mustang spindles would be closer to stock front track.

I didn't know the later Mustangs front track were wider due to the K-member. That could explain why my front tire/rims will not clear the fenders at all - plus I used the '96+ spindles but 8 mil is only about .3 inches and I think I'm over by an inch. My '78 Fairmont will need some subtle fender flares...

'94-'98 rear axle assembly will be 1.5" wider over all - the housing is the same width but the alxes are .75' wider -so I'm told but I have a problem of being about 1/8" off in regards to the rear Cobra calipers clearing the rear rotors. I've given up figuring out why and will just stuff a shim between the caliper and the mounting bracket on the rear axle housing.

I like the Sn95 front brakes because the rotor is not integral with the hub. Plus, no more repacking the front bearings after 20K miles.

Regards,

Dean T

[LTDScott]

On my car 96+ front spindles were used but correct camber settings could not be achieved so 96+ control arms had to be installed as well. This increased the track width, but I believe the different geometry gave a better ride because my car rides much smoother and less jarringly (is that a word) than Frink's LTD LX, even though he has the same struts, springs, and higher profile tires!

But if you want to keep the stock track width, Dean is right. Use 94/95-only spindles.

[FoxChassis]

I would really like to increase the track, both the front and rear but not at the expense of the tires rubbing the fenders and quarter panels. I suppose I could roll the fenders/quarters to gain a tad bit of clearance but I'd rather not.

Keeping the 4-lug, 15" wheels would be nice as tires would be less expensive and they'll fit right in there with minimal fuss, even if I increase the track. And if I get '87-'93 ten-hole wheels I could still fit 11" brakes up front. That would mean I'd have to get '87-'93 V8 Mustang/'87-'88 Thunderbird TC front brakes and a complete '87-'88 TC rear (which gets me an 8.8" rear, 3.55 or 3.73 gears, and disc brakes).

However, I do like the '99+ GT and Cobra wheels but they're both 17"x8" which dictates a 245mm tire (235mm are sucked in too much on an 8" wheel, in my opinion, so I will NOT be doing that). Plus the SN95 spindles offer increased Ackerman.

Decisions, decisions....

[frankiesaysrelax]

Well, there's always that turbocoupe on eBay, I think the auction is still live anyway.

[zak]

The 11 inch upgrade using 87 to 93 Fox mustang spindles is mandatory in my mind, makes a real difference in stopping distance. You can also add the 73 mm lincon front calipers but it would be best to get the SVO master cylinder. Rear discs would require a proportioning valve switch, that and the light weight of the 10 inch drums is why my LX still has them on the rear.

Scott - I had been mulling voer an SN95 swap for awhile, since a friend gave me a 99 Mustang disc and caliper setup. Did you do any bumpsteer measurements with the 96+ spindles in place, w or w/o the longer control arms?

I suspect your better ride might be partly due to the lower wheel rate caused by the longer a-arms (more leverage)

As a point of info, the 85 LTD LX does use the lower track width crossmember, its about 3/8 inboard per side compared to 87-93 piece. The SVO crossmember is purported to be even narrower (to fit 1 inch longer a-arms) but the actual measuremnets don't bear this out, instead the "skew" of the crossmember a-arms is different.

If I do go to SN95 am struggling to keep track width the same, which would likely require doing a Mathis style mod to the a-arm pick-points.
zak

[FoxChassis]

Stripped the 7.5 yesterday. Set the backing plates, axles, and brake line aside to go in/on an 8.8 w/ 3.73s from an '88 Turbocoupe.

The TC rear with stock 10" drums and 11" front disc w/ 73 mm calipers will suffice for now.

Eventually I want to go five-lug so I can use the better SN95 front setup. Undecided whether fronts will then be 11" or 13". The rear I'll use stock-length five-lug axles and come up with a disc set-up. But then I'll have to mess with trying to fit a larger booster on the firewall. The five-lug stuff may finds its way onto the car before it gets back on the road, which is really what I want to do. Gotta do more research.

[93-331-29PSI]

Don't forget about the 99 and newer GT brake set up. It will provide the twin piston caliper and 11.56 inch rotor allowing you to use the 15 inch wheels that you mentioned. I would opt for a 94-98 GT complete rear to get the wider track and disk brakes.

You may even be able to find a junk 94 and up V6 car that will give you everything you need from the spindles to the brake booster/MC and all brake lines. Of course you will have to use your 8.8 rear but the 7.5 brakes will bolt right to it. I see them around me with trashed bodies for sale all the time.

[Marz]

Don't forget about the 99 and newer GT brake set up. It will provide the twin piston caliper and 11.56 inch rotor allowing you to use the 15 inch wheels that you mentioned. I would opt for a 94-98 GT complete rear to get the wider track and disk brakes.

You may even be able to find a junk 94 and up V6 car that will give you everything you need from the spindles to the brake booster/MC and all brake lines. Of course you will have to use your 8.8 rear but the 7.5 brakes will bolt right to it. I see them around me with trashed bodies for sale all the time.

Funny thing... theres an SN95 sitting right infront of my apt building. Unfortunetly it's been wrecked in all the wrong places... so that suspencion is done for.

[FoxChassis]

Stripped the 7.5 yesterday. Set the backing plates, axles, and brake line aside to go in/on an 8.8 w/ 3.73s from an '88 Turbocoupe.

The TC rear with stock 10" drums and 11" front disc w/ 73 mm calipers will suffice for now.
The 8.8" TC rear's differential has been rebuilt with an extra clutch per side. Using the thinnest shim (.025") per side still resulted in a very tight assembly. The cross pin barely slid in. The LX backing plates have been bolted on and the original (7.5") axles slid in. The axles have zero end-play once everything is re-assembled. The original brake line is very hard to get to behind the axle dampner ("Quad Shock") brackets. I had to keep flipping the line wrench after 1/8 turns. I may be converting to rear disc sooner than I planned since I do not want to cut the axle dampner brackets off, as I want to use them later.

[LTDScott]

The original brake line is very hard to get to behind the axle dampner ("Quad Shock") brackets. I had to keep flipping the line wrench after 1/8 turns. I may be converting to rear disc sooner than I planned since I do not want to cut the axle dampner brackets off, as I want to use them later.

Must be a TC thing, because I had no problem reusing the brake hard line on the Mustang 8.8 with quad shock bracket that I installed in my old car.

[FoxChassis]

The brackets are taller on the TC rear. They require holes be drilled about 2" lower in each bracket if the housing and axle dampners are used in/on a Mustang. I never knew the TC axle dampner brackets were in a different location than the Mustang brackets.