How well can they handle?

[cazsper]

I currently have a '73 Mach-1 with an all iron 4v Cleveland. With the aftermarket suspension parts available (tubular upper/lower control arms, torque arms, 4, 4 1/2, and 5 leaf rear springs and front coil over setups such as Total Control and Global West), how well can out cars actually handle?

It seems like most people set them up for just cruising or for straight line performance. I'm looking for a car that handles very well in the corners. My '68 coupe handles great with global west upper/lower control arms, strut rods, 600# coils, 165# leaf springs, 1 1/8" front sway bar and a 3/4" rear sway bar. I was wondering because of the increase in size and weight of the '71-'73s.. Thank you..

Happy new year..

Mike

 

[Qcode351mach]

I currently have a '73 Mach-1 with an all iron 4v Cleveland. With the aftermarket suspension parts available (tubular upper/lower control arms, torque arms, 4, 4 1/2, and 5 leaf rear springs and front coil over setups such as Total Control and Global West), how well can out cars actually handle?

It seems like most people set them up for just cruising or for straight line performance. I'm looking for a car that handles very well in the corners. My '68 coupe handles great with global west upper/lower control arms, strut rods, 600# coils, 165# leaf springs, 1 1/8" front sway bar and a 3/4" rear sway bar. I was wondering because of the increase in size and weight of the '71-'73s.. Thank you..

Happy new year..

Mike

Mike,

They can be made to handle EXTREMELY WELL I'm into canyon carving handling..You've seen my install videos of the STREET OR TRACK coilover conversion setup On My cars. I've posted up quite a few times the formula I've used to get these cars to handle..Doesn't really take much just a well balanced package of components + 17" or 18" Modern directional tires..My Green 72 Handles Drives amazing more on par with a 2014 not a 1972..

http://www.7173mustangs.com/thread-green-72-fastback-former-429-460

 

[MeZapU]

I don't believe you need to reinvent the wheel with tubular components with heim joints and redesigned geometries. If all the stock components are in good shape, big swaybars and good shocks go a long way towards a good handling 71-73. Even with my 15" wheels it will impresses.

 

[BigBlue]

I currently have a '73 Mach-1 with an all iron 4v Cleveland. With the aftermarket suspension parts available (tubular upper/lower control arms, torque arms, 4, 4 1/2, and 5 leaf rear springs and front coil over setups such as Total Control and Global West), how well can out cars actually handle?

It seems like most people set them up for just cruising or for straight line performance. I'm looking for a car that handles very well in the corners. My '68 coupe handles great with global west upper/lower control arms, strut rods, 600# coils, 165# leaf springs, 1 1/8" front sway bar and a 3/4" rear sway bar. I was wondering because of the increase in size and weight of the '71-'73s.. Thank you..

Happy new year..

Mike

Although the aftermarket for our cars isn't as strong in the suspension department as the earlier years, the have greater potential for track use. Weight aside, they have improved suspension geometry, a wider track and a stiffer chassis. Given the right parts, they can become very competitive; more so than the 65-70 models. The aftermarket is slowly becoming bigger for our models, so the options are becoming more plentiful.

The only downside to the 71-73s is the weight, but it's not as big a difference as some people make it seem. Plus, Chevy made a 3800 lb car handle like nobody's business, so it can definitely be done with one that weighs hundreds less.

I'm leaning toward the same road of handling instead of straight line performance, and have seen 71-73 track cars. It's definitely the way to go IMO. Not enough people tap into the handling potential of our Mustangs, and it's a great platform to start. Just my two cents.

 

[cazsper]

Thank you everyone. Any opinions on a torque arm?

 

[luxstang]

Mine handles extremely well with only minor modification.

The best and immediate improvement were the 18 inch rims with modern tires. That made a huge difference over the 15 inch wheels with white letter tires.

Getting the center of gravity lower also helped but was only the icing on the cake. The rims did most of it.

Good shocks are another part of good handling. They do not need to expensive. I've been using KYBs for years with great results.

I live in Europe and our roads are narrow and winding and the Mustang can take some serious abuse on those roads.

I also dare go faster in the Mustang than in my European daily drivers (VW Golf and Alfa Romeo Giulietta) on fun roads. I guess that says a lot.

 

[mustang7173]

cazsper

+1 with all responses. Still, IMO is the addition of sub frame connectors to the 71 - 73 mustangs. It is amazing what this one addition does a for the 1971 - 1973 Mustangs. BigBlue makes a good point that the aftermarket high performance parts are not as plentiful as those of the 1965 to 1970 mustang years! I did find that the original Shelby traction Masters would be a good addition to help control leaf spring wind up and help with the traction of the tires.

Here is the website. They make a kit for the 1971 - 1973 Mustangs! Yea!

http://www.tractionmaster.com/index.html

mustang7173

 

[cazsper]

Thanks.. I have already swapped to a 17x8 (245/45-17) and 17x9 (275/40-17) wheel/tire. I'm thinking I may just replicate the suspension that I have on my '68. Thanks everyone...

 

[Total Control Products]

Can they be made to handle? Heck yes!

Brian Gluck was one of the early TCP suspension testers and terrorized race days in Australia with his '73 Mach1. It had our front coilover conversion and they custom installed our power rack and pinion steering system. If I recall correctly, they even installed an early version of our Rear Pushrod Suspension with torque arm on his car.

More details at these links.

http://www.totalcontrolproducts.com/vehicles/vehicles_gluck71.html

and

http://www.darkhorseracing.net/aix_71_mustang.htm

 

[luxstang]

Ooooh, if our federal inspection guys weren´t such a PITA about originality I´d be all over that TCP stuff!

 

[cazsper]

Nice car.. So you have to keep everything original?

 

[luxstang]

Nice car.. So you have to keep everything original?

Yeah, more or less.

The good thing is, they're no experts on our cars, so you have a little wiggle room as long as it doesn't get too obvious. Nobody's noticed so far that my car is lowered as far as it would go.

The AOD is no problem either but don't try to go rack and pinion steering or tubular A arms or, and that's the biggest PITA, subframe connectors. The latter are considered chassis mods and you are not allowed to weld on the chassis. Patching rust holes on the frame is delicate too. They will be very watchful as to what and how you do in that area.