Ive got a 69 coupe. Ive been thinking seriously about doing a drop kit to finish off the look of the car.
I hope everyone knows what Im talking about when I say that on these cars , they appear to be higher in the front then in the back, because of fender flare or wheel well size or whatever. Would a drop kit eliminate that at the same time as giving the cooler look of a dropped car or do the front springs have to be custom cut to eliminate that.
Dont know if 1 or 2 inch kit would be better.
Maybe I am over thinking this? Are there any sites with pics of 69s with drop kits to check out?
The one certainty in lowering a classic Mustang is that there is no certainty. The same set of springs will have different effects on different cars. This is not because of pixie dust or any other supernatural cause. It is because the cars left the factory with a wide range of tolerances, by modern standards, because they are now between 35 and 43 years old, and because they have passed through many hands and many mods over the years.
Luckily, dialing in the front ride height is not hard. All you gotta do is remove the coils and cut them to get the ride height you want. If you're sure that you want to lose between an inch and an inch and a half off the bat, then you can start by cutting of a half coil. After that, it is wise to do only a quarter coil or less at a time.
As far as the rear, a one inch lowering block will give you exactly a one inch drop. Likewise with a half inch block, it will give you exactly a half inch drop. I would not go with lowering blocks any bigger than one inch, because of the leverage they introduce.
If you want to go lower than one inch, swapping leaf springs is the way. However, the model-to-model variations in results with the same sets of springs is even greater with the rear leafs than with the front coils. The best idea is to find a spring shop local to you and have them build you a custom spring pack. But first get the management to agree in advance that it will work with you to get the height and stiffness you want. The cost of going this route is no more than ordering springs from the mail order houses, and might be less than some (e.g., Mustangs Plus). It will definitely be cheaper than buying some mail order springs that end up too high or two low, then buying another set, and another, trying to get it right. Been there done that.
Drop kit? You mean lowering springs or cutting coils? I really hope you don't mean dop spindles!
one80out has good ideas and explanations, but he missed one VERY BIG elephant in the room. Those springs on the back of your car are 40 years old. Your '69 has that nose high look because you need new rear springs. They're tired and are sagging. They didn't come off the assembly line with their nose way up in the air.
Here's a pic of my '69 Sportsroof with stock front and rear springs for a car sporting a 351W.
formatting link
I'm running 215/65 15" tire in front and 295/50 15" tire in the back, and it has a nice stance with STOCK suspension.
Yes you are overthinking it. I would suggest the tried and true front and rear springs setup that people have been doing for almost 2 decades now with great results.
620lb/inch front springs. You can get these from almost any vendor and they will give you superb road feel without beatig your ass. Plus it will drop the front about 1". I have these on my mustang now. Sorry no pics at this time.
For the rearend you have a couple options. You can go with bone stock reproduction springs which will give you a nice ride at stock height. If you want to drop it a little you can always go the "lowering block" route. Cheap and easy. You can also get the stock spring rate with the lowering built in via changing where the "eye" is on the end of the springs where it attaches to the vehicle. Mid eye or reverse eye, which lowers the rearend anywhere from 1-2 inches. OR you can go with a more performance style leafspring and get them with an extra leaf or two. This will help you stick the road a little better but it will hit you in the backside a little more the more leaves you add.
I would suggest going with the 620's up front and maybe a 4 1/2 leaf rear spring with standard eye to give a little more performance without making the ride too firm. I wouldnt cut coils. I tried it and it was a pain in the ass taking the coils off and cutting them then putting them back on then taking them off and cutting again and over and over. And then when they finally settles after several days it sat too low and I drug my front spoiler over any manhole cover in the road. Hey, it looked like it was ready for Trans-Am and looked cool as hell but it was WAY too low and a pain in the ass to drive. Plus the front end wasnt dampened as it needed to be after the ride height change and it traveled too much smacking the lower crossmember on occasion going over a speed bump. NOT FUN!
620's up front and 4 1/2 leaf rear spring with standard eyes is exactly what I'm going to do when I can afford to finish off the rest of the suspension at the same time. And I can always lower it a bit if it sits too high with lowering blocks. One thing to remember is that when you install new rear springs it will sit high until the springs settle or "break in". That goes for both front AND rear springs.
I would suggest checking out the online vendors and some of the mustang catalogs out there to see what packages they ALREADY have setup for your specific ride and use (daily driver, weekend cruiser, drag racer, roundy rounds).
Check out
formatting link
formatting link
formatting link
formatting link
They all have the parts you need and in convenient kits also. They already know what you need and have premade kits to get you the right parts for your 'Stang.
Well these are not '69's and your car will act a little differently than these cars but at least they are mustangs with the same suspension type and the mods I've been telling you about. These pics give you the year of the Mustang and what mods were done specifically to show the new ride height.It should give you an idea and your car won't be too much different. There is a pic of a '68 Cougar near the bottom and the Cougar shared the same suspension as the mustang. '67-'69 Mustangs all had the same suspension, so this Cougar will show what your car will look like with those mods. Even though the '69 looks almost identical to the '70, they had different suspensions, so be careful when buying parts that are listed for '70. The '69 is just like the '68 so if it comes down to a part that is specific to either '68 or '70, take the one from '68.
Well that was a HUGE wad of info. Feel free to email me if you have other questions since we drive the same year car.
As one who has owned Mustangs beginning with a 5 year old 65 fastback, to my 72, up through the 65 Fastback I have now....early Mustangs have pretty much always had that nose in the air stance, and it isn't because of the rear springs being old. Put brand new springs on the rear and it wouldn't change it enough to really notice.
It's really part body design and part optical illusion.
Mine had brand new rear leafs (stock level 65 V8). The nose is in the air. Some cut the front spings to lower the nose. I kept the stock springs uncut (I went to a 16" wheel).
I did the cobra drop. There are two ways to go about this. You can buy a kit as sold by Mustangs Plus and others, or you can get the template from Tony Branda. I opted for the kit.
I was cautioned about the change to the steering, but investigating this further, I found that it really doesn't apply if you are using radial tires.
Many people who have admired my car have noted that the nose doesn't stick up in the air like a "normal" Mustang, and they like it that way. As for driving, it does just fine with the nose lowered.
MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.