OK, Here is the idea.

Could the stock stamped frame rails be reinforced. Then mount a shortend LCA from the top of the axle tube to the reinforced frame rail.

Then use adjustable LCA's on the bottom to set pinion angle.

Here are some pics of BMR's drag bar. It shows some mounting points on the stock frame rails. This is the location I was thinking about.


I have not took measurements or checked for clearance. Just had a brain fart.

Would this work? Could we do away with the torque arm with this setup?

 

That is the stock swaybar mounting point. You would be better off making brackets in a downward manner to make a liftbar type suspension. Drop 4" from rear lca mount and 2" at front mount. Use non-adjustable upper arms and adjustable lower to set pinion angle. This will give an I.C. of roughly 34 inches from axel center at framerail height. Basicly it would act like a 34 inch ladderbar. Any aftermarket bars should be more than adequate as they are all built overkill anyway.

 

I will have to get some measurements and check things out in more detail. Im just looking for maybe another option for thirdgens.

 

I hear ya. That setup would be what lakewood was goin for with the traction action bars and failed. This will be great for straight line(thats me!) but there are those that will have a conniption over the idea. Saying that ladder bars wont work on the street. If I had a dollar for every mile ive been on the street with ladder bars i would be done with my car by now!!!!!!!!

 

the stock style suspension works very well, unless doing a complete back half and using a real 4 link in a drag only car, i dont see any benefit

what rear sway bar is that?

 

I was thinking of the same idea of doing a 4 link or a traction bar suspension without having to modify every thing. The reason I would like to do it because I would like to put a 12 bolt in with out spending the money for a 3 Link set up rear.

 

Yes, the stock style suspension does work well. I was just trying to figure out another rear swap idea. I know the biggest pain is the torque arm mount. Welding the spring purchs and LCA mounts are straight forward. Just get the measurements right.


That is a BMR rear drag bar. Its on there site. I think there are several guys on the board running it.

 

Sometime ago a third-gen appeared in either Chevy High Performance or Hot Rod Mag, that had a similar setup. It was built to run open road racing events in Nevada. If memory serves me right he had built a modified truck arm type rear, with 4 bars. Thinking he used a 12 bolt, not 100% sure about the rear. I had thought about the Winters GN rear, but thought it be easier finding a 12 bolt.

 

I will have to do some research and see if I can find any info on that article.

The Winters GN units are nice. Especially if you plan on playing with gear combinations. I know they are great for round track, but I dont know how the strenght is with drag racing.

With the Winters, you could swap out gears for a weekend of racing. Then swap back for the work week and a daily driver.

 

I am trying to locate the article myself, to give out some more info. My first choice was the Winters GN type, with a Currie TA bolt on TA bracket. Was wanting to get it legal for ECTA at Maxton N.C., it would more than cover any specs. The brake mounting would have to be fabricate and welded on. Moser Engineering can make one for the F-Body but not in the GN hub. The Gn hub is 5x5, you can get the DBP huds in 5x4 3/4. The only problem with the stock 7.5 is that the axle use c-clip to retain the axle. Not legal for drag racing over a certain ET. I think when the time comes I am going with the Strange 12 bolt housing and axle kits. Right now I just got it running, and now working on the paint. I do know on the car mentioned earlier. He had moved his lower mounting point forward, closer to the CG. It did resemble the NASCAR truck arm type suspension.

For drag racing a good bolt in 12 bolt or 9 in Ford would work good


http://www.moserengineering.com/Page...singpacks.html

 

http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/showth...ension+force+g

 

hard to beat the torque arm setup.. what i would shoot for personally, is a junkyard housing and custom torque arm like the moser fab9.

 

Sometimes I just don’t get people… why the heck would you want to do that? You’d end up doing a tone of fabrication to have a suspension that wouldn’t work as well as the stock one in a straight line or on the road course. That and you’d have to be under the car doing all this cutting and welding, where you could fab up brackets on whatever rear you insist on using on your bench.

Maybe I could see it if it was a full on, tubbed and backhalfed or fully done race car with a proper frame rails… but doing that you’re not going to save money or time on either the chassis or the rear. I get the whole traction bar/ladder bar on a straight line only car if you’re just too lazy to do it right, it ends up being simple and it works (and sure you can drive it on the street… in a straight line. When you make turns it always acts as a too stiffly sprung rear suspension so it oversteers dramatically… it can be driven, but it won’t handle well and won’t be safe at any real speed doing anything but going in a straight line).

As far as Maxton/high speed stuff, the trick is to make the suspension linkages absolutely as long as possible, so a bump has as little steering effect/change in suspension geometry as possible. Replacing a nice long torque arm with something like a short upper link accomplishes nothing useful in this application. I can sort of see truck arms, but I don’t know that there is an advantage to be had that is even worth considering for the amount of work to be done, and to be done properly the truck arm mount would literally have to be where the seat mount is, and I don’t see how any normal sized driver will still be able to sit in the car properly.

 

Well with 5inch sportsman front runners and 28"x12.5" sportsman pros out back, 90/10 struts, and an anti roll bar out back..........no it wont carve a corner.......and I dont WANT it too.................

 

and after all the fab work, the 7.5 will last about 30 feet at the strip with those tires

 

That's why I'm using the sportsmans they hook but not dead hook like an E.T street..........trying to give it a fighting chance.
Mind you I'm not running this setup................yet..............most likely will be applied to a Comp. Eng. Fab9 with stock location coil-overs.
I have put a lot of idle thought into it.........I can build the whole thing for less than the cost of a middle of the road adjustable torque arm. And the brackets won't be any more than modified weld in LCARBs.....lower link will connect to the upper so it can move as a unit not 4 bars all changing angle at the same time............don't care to even try that math......and it will by rule still be a "stock style" suspension because lakewood bars are legal and these are basically the same only built properly...........As far as street driving goes........All one would have to do is remove the bolt from the drivers side lower link and they would no longer bind like ladder bars around corners , but, will still act like a T.A. to control hopp.
Anyway like Darwin said on his death bed.......It's only a theory.....

 

at this point, why not just grab the axle from a 5.0 Mustang? Cheap, stronger, etc.

 

too much work for a mus@#ng rear and not the greatest strength. I have known alot of freinds that rip those 8.8 s they don't take that much of a beating not like the 9. prob just go with an aftermarket moser unit and call it done.

 

That blue mustang has an 8.8 rear.

That pass was a 1.80 60 ft on the rear tires, 131 mph in the 1/8th

 

Um, you're going to go to all this work for a straight line only suspension but you don't want it to dead hook... uhuh...