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  1. #1

    Default DEATH TO WHEEL HOP! Help me eliminate it!

    1980 Mustang base model 2.3L, now has small block V8, Tremec 5 speed, 3:73 Ford 9 inch rear end with no quad shocks of course, 5 lug upgrade, 4 wheel disc brakes and sub frame connectors. Just now starting the suspension mods - no major changes yet. So obviously, we have mega-big wheel hop.

    New upper and lower rear control arms and torque box reinforcements already on the way. What else?

    I'm debating whether to go with lowering springs and Koni shocks, or maybe add coilovers (love the adjustability but not sure about pressure on the shock towers). But the wheel hop must die! What has worked best for you guys? Thanks for your thoughts.
    Last edited by sopwith21; 06-12-2021 at 01:43 PM.

  2. #2

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    I run Pro3i lowers with poly bushings, stock HD Ford uppers with new rubber bushings on diff side, Koni Blues and stock quad shocks and MM pinion snubber. Zero issues with wheel hop.
    Jeremiah

    1986 Mustang GT 5spd, 3.27's
    PimpXS ECU/Android Single DIN Touchscreen
    SN95 Cobra Brakes/SN95 Front LCA's/Axles/S197 Wheels
    1998 Explorer Engine/Stock HO Cam 281rwhp/326rwtq

  3. #3

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    Put quad shocks on the car. Ford did so for a good reason.
    Jack Hidley
    Maximum Motorsports Tech Support

  4. #4
    FEP Power Member Broncojunkie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jack Hidley View Post
    Put quad shocks on the car. Ford did so for a good reason.
    I always thought Ford did it as a band-aid to mask the real problem, which was flimsy control arms and torque boxes.
    79 Pace Car - 331, t5
    79 Pace Car- 302, 4 spd
    79 Cobra - working on 351w, t5
    82 Capri- working on 302, t5
    82gt - working on 408w, c4

  5. #5

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    In 1978, when the Fox chassis first came out, both ends of the RLCAs had round bushings in them. The put slapper bars (mini transient torque arms) on as a fix to control the wheel hop.

    Around 1982, to improve the ride quality, they changed the front bushing design to the oval one. This allows the entire rear suspension, wheels and tires to be able to move rearwards, when the rear tires hit a bump. This improves ride quality. It would have resulted in a large increase in wheel hop, because the axle housing is now free to rotate around the axle centerline more easily due to the increased compliance of the bushings in this direction. To fix the problem, Ford added dampers which are oriented so that when the axle housing tries to rotate around the axle centerline, the dampers get extended and compressed as much as possible. This is why they are oriented horizontally.

    Unless I absolutely had to, I would leave the quad shocks on the car. With any suspension design that can have wheel hop, they can only help improve things.
    Jack Hidley
    Maximum Motorsports Tech Support

  6. #6
    Moderator wraithracing's Avatar
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    What control arms are you currently using. Good chance they may be contributing to your wheel hop issue.
    ​Trey

    "I Don't build it hoping for your approval! I built it because it meets mine!"

    "I've spent most of my money on Mustangs, racing, and women... the rest I just wasted."

    Mustangs Past: Too many to remember!
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  7. #7
    FEP Senior Member gt4494's Avatar
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    On the '84 I left the 4 shock suspension alone and put a pair of square MAC LCAs on. Never a hop to be felt.
    "If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough."
    Albert Einstein

    1984 20th Anniversary GT350
    Almost "Stock"

  8. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by Broncojunkie View Post
    I always thought Ford did it as a band-aid to mask the real problem, which was flimsy control arms and torque boxes.
    Me too. But that doesn't mean they won't work. Maybe Jack is onto something.

  9. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by Jack Hidley View Post

    Unless I absolutely had to, I would leave the quad shocks on the car. With any suspension design that can have wheel hop, they can only help improve things.
    It's a base model 4 cylinder.

  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by wraithracing View Post
    What control arms are you currently using. Good chance they may be contributing to your wheel hop issue.
    Stock from the original 7.5 inch rear end. New control arms are already on the way. You're right... surely they've got to help.

  11. #11
    FEP Power Member fgross2006's Avatar
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    on my 84 5.0 LX vert, I swaped the 7.5 rear for a rebuilt, 8.8, put in new Gabriel Quads, and replaced the lower control arms with Maximum Motorsports control arms and I have never felt a wheel hop since.

  12. #12
    FEP Senior Member Patrick Olsen's Avatar
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    I've never experienced wheel hop in my '89 GT, including during the 7 years or so that I owned it with a stock rear suspension. The quads shocks work as intended.
    '89 GT convertible - not a four-eye
    '82 Zephyr Z7 - future track car

  13. #13

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    What about wheel hop on heavy braking? I’ve experienced wheel hop under hard braking(100-60mph). MM MAX grip box 85 fox. ST40 cobra brakes. I was told this can break trans tailshafts and it was really scary(lol).
    "40 year old beercan on wheels with too much motor" erratic50

  14. #14

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    If it happens during braking, then it is brake hop. You need to have an adjustable proportioning valve in the car and use it to reduce the amount of rear brake bias, until the brake hop stops. If you use a rear pad in the car with a lot of bite, that will make the car more likely to do it. It will break parts in the car, so you must avoid it at all costs.

    If you are downshifting from high speeds, that creates brake torque in the rear axles, which can also cause it. Make sure to match rpms well on the downshifts to stop it from happening.
    Jack Hidley
    Maximum Motorsports Tech Support

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