New Capri - need some advice

[Lippy]

Hey guys, first post.

My son and I just bought an 85 Capri 5.0 RS. We pick it up later this week. Pretty amazing 26k original mile car, but we still want to mod it as a project. We're thinking our first mods will be to tighten up the suspension and brakes, and later we may change heads/intake/cam/carb.

For the suspension, we are thinking front and rear springs and shocks, sway bar bushings and maybe sway bars, maybe control arms, and tie rod ends. Anything else we should be thinking to tighten up the car?

For the brakes, I need to do more research, but for now we'd like to keep the 4-lug set up and stock wheels, and would like to improve performance somewhat without breaking the bank. We don't want to spend a ton on something like Wilwood or Baer. Maybe SVO front calipers and disks? Is it worth it to upgrade to rear disks, as there are several 4-lug kits? Can we keep the stock master cylinder and proportioning valve, or would we need to upgrade to get serious gains?

Any thoughts/recommendations/experiences would be welcome.

[Sask84gt]

Welcome to the forums! You Should look at getting some subframe connectors put on. I’d recommend the maximum motorsports full length ones.

[wraithracing]

The best bang for the buck in regards to brakes and keeping the 4 lug would be to swap to the 87-93 V8 Mustang spindles and calipers. Buy a quality set of front rotors (not Autozone/Oreilly off the shelf) and then install a quality set of brakes pads such as Hawk, Performance Friction, etc.

Here is a kit for the 87-93 cars that will fit your vehicle if you swap the front spindle and calipers from the 87-93 V8 cars. https://www.maximummotorsports.com/B...7-93-P676.aspx
The rear brake hose will require modifications to fit your 85, but you might be able to call Maximum Motorsports and see if they have the correct hose for you application. This will not require any changes to your Master Cylinder nor your proportioning valve and will be BIG improvement over stock. Rear disc are nice, but for most people probably not worth the cost and added modifications to run on most street cars.

Suspension changes/alterations will be dependent upon what you plan to use the Capri for. Daily Driver, Cruiser, Road Racer, Autocross, Drag Racing, etc. as all have specific needs or compromises that need to be considered for the intended use. Let us know and Welcome to FEP!

[Lippy]

Great stuff, thank you. That is exactly the type of mod I’m looking for on the brakes. Is it easy to find the spindles new, or do you need to get them from a junkyard. I’m assuming the calipers are readily available.

For the suspension it’s just street, but we want to tighten things up as much as we can. Any guidance is appreciated.

[wraithracing]

Spindles will have to be used. No one reproduces them at this point in time. They are the 87-93 V8 cars only spindles. The 4 cyl cars use the same spindle as your Capri does. Calipers can be bought from Rock Auto online or most local parts stores.

IMHO if you are looking for the best bang for the buck on suspension go with this setup. https://www.maximummotorsports.com/E...axle-P809.aspx

You will need to add a pair of these to the rear axle for the rear shocks https://www.maximummotorsports.com/1...-kit-P610.aspx although an upgrade to the 8.8 rear axle from the 86-93 cars is highly recommend. That may make the rear brake hose modifications easier.

I also recommend these for the best alignment https://www.maximummotorsports.com/M...1989-P252.aspx

Add these springs too for a slight lowering and slight improvement in spring rate without being too harsh for regular street driving. https://www.maximummotorsports.com/E...-IRS-P738.aspx

I also highly recommend a set of full length SFC https://www.maximummotorsports.com/M...bare-P580.aspx

These two items will stiffen up the front suspension and improve the handling.
https://www.maximummotorsports.com/1...eted-P592.aspx

https://www.maximummotorsports.com/4...dtop-P810.aspx

These for the steering rack to replace the soft and most likely worn stock rubber bushings. https://www.maximummotorsports.com/S...tang-P464.aspx

This if you want to improve header clearance and remove slop in the steering https://www.maximummotorsports.com/S...tang-P980.aspx

For the lower control arms, I prefer to rebuild them using the OEM Ford Sn95 balljoints if possible. They don't use a castle nut, but they are much better than aftermarket ball joints. I replace the rubber bushings with Urethane either with https://www.maximummotorsports.com/F...ells-P405.aspx
or without shells. https://www.maximummotorsports.com/F...3-93-P404.aspx

Use the stock swaybars and replace the bushings with urethane https://www.maximummotorsports.com/F...ings-C219.aspx

Replace the stock endlinks with urethane bushings also https://www.maximummotorsports.com/F...inks-C220.aspx

You can gain improved handling and ride quality by replacing the front 1 5/16" sway bar with the earlier 1 1/8" that was also used on the 93 Cobra.

1990-93 quality tie rods ends are an improved design over the OEM ones you currently have. I believe most replacement parts are now that style, but I still order them for the 90-93 model to be sure.

Rear controls are improvements are here depending on your personal choice https://www.maximummotorsports.com/1...tang-C425.aspx

Upper control arms are here https://www.maximummotorsports.com/U...-Arms-C98.aspx DO NOT put urethane bushings in the upper control arms for a street car. You learn more here https://www.maximummotorsports.com/t...susp_rlca.aspx

This is another great addition to a Fox Body, but now we are getting more involved in suspension upgrades. https://www.maximummotorsports.com/P...tang-P480.aspx

That should about cover it and give you enough homework to keep you busy for a couple of days.

[Lippy]

Thank you! Completely great info and exactly what I was looking for.