front clip replacement?

[woodsnake]

Is it better/cheaper/more economical to replace a complete front suspension clip, or, is it more feasible to replace front pieces like shock towers and the engine cross member individually?

 

[RocketFoot]

You'll probably be more likely to find the parts individually...as far as I know, no one reproduces the shock tower and front xmember but you may be able to find decent used ones.

I have the same problem on the coupe...but I was able to find nice shock towers from Don at Ohio Mustang Supply!

 

[Qcode351mach]

Is it better/cheaper/more economical to replace a complete front suspension clip, or, is it more feasible to replace front pieces like shock towers and the engine cross member individually?

Looking at your picture it appears the left shock tower is ok ? & what you really have there is a hard hit to the center cross member. Unless you have serious rust issues I would repair or fabricate a new center cross member..(Tn fastback made his own center cross member) Much easier job ! A front clip is a major undertaking & you need to have the car set up on some sort of jig to do it correctly.

 

[72HCODE]

depends on the extent of rust damage, how soft the front rails are, how bad the cowl area is, and what is available to you.

It is more expensive to change out the individual pieces. alignment can be difficult getting one piece at a time realigned.

when i did my front end a full front clip was not available, i ended up doing it piece by piece with a TON of fabrication work needed.

when it was all said and done, my front end ended up with a small twist in it which required more work and adjusting body panels.

this was due to previous accident damage.

had a full clip been used the twist would of been cut out.

If you have access to a front clip i would recommend going that route if the rust damage warrants it.

you would need a detailed inspection to see how much needs to come out for each panel on its own, if your looking at aprons plus 2 shock tower bottoms plus the rails need to be re-boxed, then go with the clip.

if the aprons just need a lower patch the towers need a small patch on the bottom and the rails are solid then you don't need a full clip replacement.

from the picture i can see your engine cradle took a good hit on the bottom.

mine was bent backwards and flattened on the bottom, i had to replace my engine cradle as well.

 

[woodsnake]

The car is a mostly rust free example, which is why I bought it. I had hoped to be able to get it running and flip it, so that both my self, the previous owner and the new owner could all make a few bucks.

Apparently, that ain't gonna happen.

I don't think I need a full front clip, but I don't want to pay the three hundred the bone yard wants for the replacement shock towers and cross member, plus the re installation.....I really would love to find this car a new home while I can afford to sell it...

 

[Qcode351mach]

The car is a mostly rust free example, which is why I bought it. I had hoped to be able to get it running and flip it, so that both my self, the previous owner and the new owner could all make a few bucks.

Apparently, that ain't gonna happen.

I don't think I need a full front clip, but I don't want to pay the three hundred the bone yard wants for the replacement shock towers and cross member, plus the re installation.....I really would love to find this car a new home while I can afford to sell it...

Well no matter how you slice the pie you have an expensive repair That has to be done on a frame machince by a qualified collision shop. Rough Idea if that rolled into my shop going by the pictures $2000.00 TO spec out the front frame & repair whats there. PM me the details on the car & how much your looking for. I might be interested.

 

[Go Time]

By the looks of the pic the bottom of the shock tower looks good, mine has holes right at the bottom and is a common location. If you can repair those and purchase a used crossmember that might help. There is a guy named Don from Ohio Mustang Supply that has gained a lot of respect from the members on this board (from what I have read). I don't know him personally and have not done any business with him yet but I intend to. Id try him first, if he doesn't have what you need you might get some parts from west coast classic cougar. It is where I purchased my full front clip, the cougar and the mustang have the same parts in certain cars and applications. I needed a full clip because of extensive rust, like I said earlier yours looks way better than mine and if I could have fabricated I would have that was my original intention but there is just to much rot. By the way Im new to this board but there are a lot of guys on here that know their stuff and are so willing to help it is truly amazing.

 

[URUGUAYAN_FASTBACK]

Why are you talking about changing the hole front structure guys??... I may be missunderstanding something!!... As i was gone for a couple of monthes, my english got worst!! jeje!!

As i can see in the pics, the problem here is a hard hit in the crossmember and that should be it...It can be that hard or expensive to repair, even if you have to re-align the shock towers that may be moved due to that crossmember hit...

Rust, as i can see in the pic, is no issue at all....

 

[Tnfastbk]

Do it yourself and beef it up. We made our own, but remember to measure, brace, measure, and measure.

 

[URUGUAYAN_FASTBACK]

You´ve said it Roy...

 

[Go Time]

Thats a nice looking crossmember Tnfastbk, well done sir!!

 

[Steven Harris]

Roy seems to have found the answer!

Very well done.

 

[woodsnake]

Very well done indeed! Welder is not a tool I own yet though. I will have to buy the used pieces and have the body shop take care of this problem....The car should be worth more running, don't you think??

 

[Steven Harris]

Very well done indeed! Welder is not a tool I own yet though. I will have to buy the used pieces and have the body shop take care of this problem....The car should be worth more running, don't you think??

There is no doubt but that the car will sell for more if it is running. The question though would be if you could recoup the cost of having the work that is needed done by someone else.

It would be a matter of weighing that.