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k-member or mustang II

R

robrod1

New Member
Well guys i have been getting closer to my big decission on what to choose for my front end on my 67 efi coupe, 5speed and hope to install to install A 4 link after the front end gets done. There is nothing wrong with the original front end, and if i hear what some of yalls input is i may stay with the original just upgrade components. The aftermarket has proven to provide many upgrades for steering susp, and brakes. I am just interested in what AJE has to offer with a bolt in k member and then having the options blow up on brakes susp and steering. Has anybody seen this kit i speak of. If not check it out. I really would like some input if avaliable. Mustang II front ends are also the other choice i am looking towards. This is a big decission i need to make very soon and really only want to do it once...
My intentions with this car is drive it hard on the street, track, and any direction i point it to. I am the kind of person that will drive it if i got it, and enjoy every minute of it. Brakes are good to, we cant forget about good brakes. My original set up for wheels was a set of 15x3 1/2 up front, and 15x10 weld prostars out back. If not those then the 17 torque thrusts
Thanks for any input.
 
If you are going to put 3 1/2" wheels up front you can forget about any suspension mods as they will not matter. Those are for the strip only. You can drive on the street but do not expect to do any even mildly aggressive turning.

Unless you plan to do some hardcore road racing, upgrading the stock suspension to roller components, dropping your upper arms, upgrading your springs and shocks will give you more than enough for your purposes. If you want to spend more, you can upgrade your strut rods and sway bar.

You do not tell us what engine you have (will have) but unless you are looking to drop in something bigger (other than a stroker) the only advantage to a MII would be more space under the hood. Losing the shock towers does make quite a difference in room for headers, etc.

It sounds to me like you are still in the "dreaming" phase and need to get realistic about what the car needs to do before you start spending your cash.
 
I will just offer what i have done and let you soak it in. I have a 67 with a mild 429 big block. I do drive it everywhere. Even to WalMart. I have had this car 22 years I have done the ORP roller perches, the Arning/Shelby drop, eliminated the eccentric on the LCA's, Granada spindles and disc brakes. It is manual steering with the 16:1 PS box. I have the 620 front coils and 16x7 front wheels. Bigger sway bar and gas shocks and an export brace.
I have driven three long haul Power Tours, i driven it in 14 different states and done some open track laps at Nashville Speedway. My wife even drives it.
I will tell you its no fun to parallel Park but for a nose heavy car it drives great. I live in Kentucky with lots of hills and curves. Its not a new Mustang by any stretch but way better than a 40+ year old Mustang!
Good Luck with your decision!
 
Well to clear things up motor is now a 331, ported upper and lower system max intake, x cam, ford racing z heads.. Mated to a super duty t-5 2:95 first gear. Car still has stock 8 inch, i have 8.8 out of a 93 fox with a 5 lug conversion and 3:73 in it going in the car . Considering where the car will be driven all the time and the area of texas that i am from, curvy roads and sharp cornering are not what i will be faced with day to day. Instead miles of highways and long straight aways, drag racing at the nearest drag strip in San Antonio is what i have been doing for years with my previous fox body coupes. So that being said, i am in no dreaming phase! Funds, ability, and knowledge i have. This is my first 60's model i am doing. I was just wondering what yalls opinion was with the avaliability of a k-member or mustang II front end would be for a straigt line car. i was originally going to go with the roller pieces and upgrade the stock front end,and i still might use the same disc brake set up you have tarafield, with manual steering. But when i saw a bolt in k member for my 67 i figured it would be worth the change or at least something different. Horseplay, i really doubt i will do a mII front end but the thought of possibly moving up to a modular, or big block or any engine i come across down the road would be nice to know i have the room to do it. Since i have not made my purchase to my steering, susp, and front brakes, and now that you have an idea of what i will be doing with the car, i hope this clears up anything i left out in my first post. Thanks again guys
 
I can't compare the K member or the MII cuz I don't have those and have never driven any of them. I'm sure there are better suspension designs but the ORP roller perches are just the beginning. I think the adjustable strut rods and roller idler arm would be my next upgrades. My front sheet metal was pretty rusty and I could have gone with MII and that would have made my 429 easier to work on but it was a lot more money. Besides, you can probably tell from my sig pic that I have tried to keep my car as original as possible... :sarc
Is the K member you speak of the Fat Man front clip?
 
AJE sells the k member, it looks like a nice kit, check it out. For my intended use of this car i think it will be an awesome kit and be able to take such full advantage of the aftermarket.
 
That launch looks sweet, just curious what susp do you have in the rear. Your front you said is stock with roller perches
 
OK, took a look at the AJE piece. A lot of coin and you still need to buy spindles and brakes. The a-arms use bushings not bearings. The shocks are single adjustable, not the best for street or strip.

The Bad: You'll be close to $3k before brakes on a system that really doesn't do much for you over stock other than allow you to lose the towers. You could go full roller suspension, adjustable strut rods, good shocks/springs and really nice brakes for much less $$$. And did I mention, the car would handle and drive better? I would also be concerned about alignment adjustments.

The Good: You could save a fair amount of weight up front. You could lose the towers which would really open things up, although with just a 331 you don't have need for it.
 
I don't think you lose the shock towers with the AJE setup... I beleive the struts mount to the tower.

If you go this route, make sure the springs stay even slightly loaded when the suspension is at full droop. That seems to be one of the problems with the Ron Morris setup where the spring comes out of the pocket IIRC.
I'd imagine you could use virtually any fox equivilent strut if you wanted to go double adjustable... might be worth checking that out.

One thing to factor in is the cost of a rack and pinion conversion if you decide to do that and go along with stock style upgrades.

BTW, If your going to street drive it, it doesn't look like there are any provisions for a front sway bar.
 
"robrod1" said:
AJE sells the k member, it looks like a nice kit, check it out. For my intended use of this car i think it will be an awesome kit and be able to take such full advantage of the aftermarket.
Click to expand...

I can't comment about the AJE kit, but for the same money or less you could get into one of the Mustang II style kits complete with steering, brakes, spindles, sway bar etc. I installed the TCI front and rear assemblies on the 65 Mustang at the top of this page (header). It was a very clean install, the car handles like no tomorrow and having a clean engine bay is a great bonus. I will install a similar setup on my 67 fastback when the time comes.
 
"Larry G" said:
OK Craig, fess-up on the signature picture.
Click to expand...
okay, okay... I cheated. That's a photoshop job. Thanks Larry! :char
My car won't lift the front end, it just spins the tires... :rant
but to answer your question, if it matters now, I have "Grab-A-Track" 5-leaf mid eye rear springs, a Lincoln Versailles 9" with 3.25:1 LSD and 275/40-17's on 17x9.5 wheels with 5.5" BS.
but my car is almost completely stock concurs original... with just one or two minor changes :roll
72-200511113015-81141931.jpeg
 
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