I have some more questions about the front suspension in my brotehr's 74 Duster.

The intended use of the vehicle is adaily driver. I am trying to make it as safe as reasonably possible and to make it handle better than a new 74 A body, and as close to modern cars as reasonably possible.

To that end I have converted it to 73-76 disc brakes, I am installing "340" torsion bars up front (I think they are 0.87 inches), I have installed six leaf factory rear springs out of a 360 74 Duster, it has an 8 1/4 rear axle with posi(!) 3.2 gears, it has power steering, it is running 15x7 rims (front) and 15x8 rims (rear). It will also end up with a reinforced K frame, reinforced lower control arms (with the factory sway bar tabs), upgraded steering linkage with C body tie rod sleeves.

I currently have the K fram and lower control arms off the car for a K frame and steering gearbox and pump refurbishment.

With the intended goal of a safe and fun daily driver, are there any other upgrades/modification people would recommend for a daily driver? It has manual disc brakes and AC. Sway bar? Front or rear or both? Alignment settings? Any other things I can do while I am in there?

Thanks!

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Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

Sway bar.....YES!

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Yeah....Im the one who destroyed this rare, vintage automobile.....

12" rotors up front. Larger T-bars. You can also use Jeep rear disk brakes on that 8.25 axle
.

Subframe connectors will be good idea with those upgrades.

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1976 Feather Duster /6 4sp
1984 W100 318 727 np241
1972 'Cuda 340 4sp
1985 D250 360 46RH

Sway bar - OK! I will save up and try to find a good one.

Subframes- YES. Those are on my list of things to add. There is actually a complete chassis stiffening kit I want to save up and get:

http://store.uscartool.com/a-body-chass ... g-kit.html

But I will probably have to sell a kidney or something to afford that.

Rear disc brakes- I want to, but for some reason my brother wants to keep the 11 inch drums on the axle now. Yes, 11 inch C body drums. We'll see how long that lasts. I will keep my eyes open for a cheap Jeep rear axle I can rob the parts from.

12 inch rotors - Possibly. I want to see how it does with the stock rotors first. If more stopping power is needed, then bigger rortors will be added.

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Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

This is the sway bar that I would get but not until you stiffen the chassis.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/hel- ... wAodlRwNQA

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1976 Feather Duster /6 4sp
1984 W100 318 727 np241
1972 'Cuda 340 4sp
1985 D250 360 46RH

I am going to try one of those Hellwig tubular sway bars on my 68 Dart soon.

I have found that "normal" parts store susp parts are mostly garbage these days. I believe Spicer has a "professional" line and Pro Forged is supposed to be good. I will soon be rebuilding my 68 front end with Pro Forged stuff. Moog is junk now, unless you can find 20 yr old parts.

Use rubber UCA and LCA bushings, and get the offset "problem solver" Moog bushings (still OK, I think) to run more caster.

Alignment recommendations:
caster: +2 to +4 deg, match both sides within 0.5 deg
camber: -0.5 to -1 deg, match both sides within 0.25 deg
toe: ~ 1/16 to 1/8" in

The 11.75" brakes, preferably with Wilwood dynalite/dynapro calipers, would be a nice upgrade, but the 11" are good too. You should consider Hawk pads (yellow?) to up the bite. Parts store pads appear to be all wrong these days (increase pedal effort, decrease braking, but maybe they last 100k miles?).

You can stiffen the chassis yourself with just box tubing and a welder. I see no reason to buy expensive kits. These are pretty stiff cars from the factory, ASSUMING you have all the bolts good and tight and there is minimal or no rust.

Good tires are probably the BEST investment you can make. Will this be driven in winter or in heavy rain? If not, get summer tires (200-350 treadwear). I can recommend exact ones if you wish.

That's a start. I'll see if I can think of anything else.

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988

Thanks Lou! It is hard to find 15 inch tires that will clear the fender opening on 68 Dart fenders, so my sleection will be limited. The front suspension has been rebuild with older Moog components form when Moog was still made in the US, but I didn't get the problem solver bushings. I might still do that, though, since I will likely be stripping the car down to a shell for sandblasting.

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Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

You can usually get +1 or 2 deg pos caster with stock UCA bushings and that would be fine too unless you want to do lots of 90+ MPH driving...
215-60-15s or 225-50-15s should work just fine with that car/bodywork. What rim width and offset? Offset will be critical for wide tires.

If you want real handling, don't bother with anything less than 6" width, 7-8" preferred. Really, getting some Ford 16X7 or similar rims will open up many more possibilities for tires. The Ranger/Explorer rims are dirt cheap and fit nicely.

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988

NO NO NO!!!! My brother already has too many speeding tickets. If he gets one or two more his insurance rates will go up again! The whoile reason I am building him a slant six car and nota V-8 car is to try and limit his ability to go too fast.
If memory serves the fronts are 15x7 with a 4 inch backspace. I believe I currently have 215/60s on the front. Once we get the front suspension and heetmetal finally and fully assembled, i will have a better idea about clearances. Plus the stiffer torsion bars and front sway bar should mean I can run closer clearances on the tires.
I agree. But my brother really likes the old slotted mags we found for his Duster and we don't have the budget to buy some of the new 16 inch reproductions. I think his current rims will be fine for a daily driver. He doesn't race or autocross, I am just trying to put together a car that can keep up with modern crazy traffic around Seattle (crappy roads with bad drivers).
Reed

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Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

Sounds good, Reed. 15X7 Mopar rims (4.25" backspace) should be fine with 215/60-15s, I believe. Maybe a skosh of front lower fender lip trimming, directly in front of the tire...

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988

Thanks! I won't hae a problem trimming these fendrs, even if they are genuine GTS fenders. The previous owner (who restored the GTS these came off of) had rolled the lips in to clear larger tires. I have pried the lips back out, but they are pretty rough.

OK. Now I have to get this bent K frame sorted, but that is a different thread.....

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Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

HAHAHAHAHA, good one....

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-MattMan
LEANED & MEAN