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Upgrade Your Ford With TCP's Front Coilover Suspension Kit - On The ReboundSmooth Out Your Ride with A Total Control Products' Bolt-In Coilover Front Suspension Kit From the February, 2011 issue of Modified Mustangs & Fords By Mark Houlahan Photography by Courtesy Total Control Products
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We might be getting a little... We might be getting a little ahead of ourselves here, but Patti's Mustang is sitting just right on its new TCP suspension, Wilwood brakes, and 16-inch polished Torque Thrust IIs. Stay tuned for future articles in the series on TCP's g-Bar four-link rear suspension, shock tower bracing kit, Wilwood brake upgrades, and more. Last month, we embarked on an "over the shoulder" project with Total Control Products (TCP). They're building up Patti Rieger's '65 Mustang coupe with a plethora of TCP, VariShock, and Chassisworks items to give Patti, who is Chassisworks' general manager, one fine handling Mustang when the dust settles. For those of you who didn't see last month's story, we watched as the techs at TCP installed their excellent power rack-and-pinion steering setup on Patti's coupe. This month we're moving forward with the installation of TCP's front coilover suspension kit. The front suspension kit is a complete bolt-in suspension upgrade that features tubular control arms, coilover shocks for adjustable ride height and handling, lower center of gravity, and more. Here's a studio shot of the... Here's a studio shot of the TCP suspension fully assembled off the car. You can easily see the beefy steel tubing used for the control arms and strut rod brace, not to mention the billet cross shaft, billet shock mount, and more. This system has been in use for more than 10 years with hundreds of thousands of real-world miles and constantly evolving development. The system can use stock V-8 spindles or the optional TCP spindle (TCP SPND-01). So why use the TCP coilover kit? Well, you can start with the fact that the whole kit bolts to existing suspension mounting points. What this means is basic handtools will get the job done and not a single hole needs to be drilled in the body anywhere (though a few holes do get enlarged for stronger fasteners). The coilover kit allows for more precise suspension travel via spherical-bearing ends, versus the stock pliable rubber bushings or even aftermarket urethane bushings. A closer look at just the... A closer look at just the lower control arm shows one of the key features of the TCP's better ride and handling. By relocating the spring mount from the middle of the upper arm to the spindle end of the lower arm, a lighter and lower spring rate spring can be used to improve suspension control without transmitting a harsh ride into the chassis like the short, stiff stock spring did on the upper arm. Of course we can't ignore the most important part of the namesake product, and that's the coilover shocks themselves. With a coilover shock, you combine the shock and spring into one component where you can easily adjust ride height, spring rate, shock jounce and rebound to dial the car in for the best handling no matter vehicle weight, engine output, tire width, or traction. While the coilover setup shipped with the kit is a great baseline, if you really want your Mustang to shine, you'll take the time to properly tune the suspension. Take lots of notes and make one change at a time and see what it does for the handling of the car. With a little track time, or even a favorite twisty road, you'll soon be able to dial in your suspension to best use all of that horsepower and tire you've got under your classic Mustang.  To begin the tear-down of...  To begin the tear-down of the stock suspension, the upper shock mounts are removed first. Remove the three retaining nuts from the mount and the two bolts from the shock end (per side) to remove the mount. If your car has an export brace, it will need to be temporarily removed for the work.  Raise and support your vehicle...  Raise and support your vehicle safely and remove the front tires. Next, you'll need to remove the outer shock tower reinforcements (don't throw them away, you'll need to reinstall them later), and then carefully remove the springs with the proper spring compressor.  At this point, the upper and...  At this point, the upper and lower control arms, spindles and brakes, and strut rods can be removed from the vehicle. We'll be upgrading the brakes as well in this project, but know that you can reinstall your spindles/brakes to the TCP control arms. Before you head back up top... Before you head back up top for engine compartment work, grab a chisel or large flat blade screwdriver and remove the soft metal sleeve found in the strut rod mounting holes. Project Cost
In keeping with our first story that we published in our Jan. '11 issue, we're tracking the total cost of this Mustang's suspension and braking upgrades. To date, the investment has been $2,966 for the power rack-and-pinion conversion and associated options/upgrades. This month we add on our front suspension installation:
| Product | Part Number | Cost |
| TCP Coilover Suspension | TCP COLVF-08 | $2,485 |
| Dropped "no-drill" Pivot Shaft | Option | $60 |
| Antisway Bar | Option | $269 |
| Quickset 2 Double Adjustable Shocks | Option | $200 |
| Bumpsteer Inner and Outer Kit | TCP TIER-14 | $269 |
| Subtotal | $3,283 |
| Previous Total | $2,966 |
| Total | $6,249 |
 The upper coilover shock mount...  The upper coilover shock mount sandwiches the shock tower sheetmetal. The upper portion is used as a guide to drill out the factory openings to 3/8-inch for stouter mounting hardware. Unless you ordered the stock pivot shaft upper arms that require drilling new mounting holes, you can put the drill away, as that's it for chassis modifications to mount the TCP front suspension. The upper mounts are side specific, so be sure you're bolting in the proper side.  The underside of the shock...  The underside of the shock tower gets this reinforcement ring. The rings are notched to clear the '64-'66 spring seat, but on '67 and later models, you'll have to break the drill out one last time to cut out the spot welds and remove the spring seats from the tower. Secure the ring to the upper shock mount with the included hardware.  The upper control arms we're...  The upper control arms we're using are the optional billet aluminum dropped pivot shaft design, which allows for a simple bolt-on procedure without having to drill new control arm mounting holes in the shock tower. Using the factory holes is much more accurate than drilling your own. Note, too, the threaded adjustment couplers, which allow easy camber changes without removing the control arm.  The TCP upper control arms...  The TCP upper control arms slip right into place of the original arms in the shock tower opening. TCP does provide these nifty alignment shims to take up any side-to-side differences in camber settings, allowing the arms to have matching camber settings at their adjusters.  The lower control arms are...  The lower control arms are just as trick as the uppers, and utilize tubular steel construction and a trick spherical bearing pivot socket inner mount. Because the lower arm uses a spherical end, the control arm mounting bolt can be tightened to spec without having the vehicle's weight applied to the arm, as is needed with a stock rubber bushing. Your original spindle/brake assemblies or new spindles can be reinstalled at this time.  The TCP strut rod not only...  The TCP strut rod not only allows for true caster adjustments, but the pivot end also utilizes this uber-engineered strut rod pivot called the TrueCenter pivot socket. The small bushing defines the pivot point of the rod, while the larger bushing accurately controls the strut rod's fore/aft movement during braking. Trick huh?  To install the strut rod,...  To install the strut rod, the bell shaped backing nut is threaded onto the main body of the strut rod pivot and is tightened via a standard 1/2-inch drive ratchet or torque wrench and then the small retaining bolt is installed with red thread locker to secure everything.  The other end of the strut...  The other end of the strut rods will bolt to the lower control arm just like the stock hardware, but you'll be adding the TCP billet lower shock mount to the arrangement, as seen here. The billet mount has an arrow engraved in the bottom that denotes the proper direction, so be cognizant of that when bolting everything up.  Caster is adjusted by rotating...  Caster is adjusted by rotating the pivot stud, shortening or lengthening the strut rod, which moves the lower control arm fore and aft. The large jam nut then secures the caster setting.  Adding the optional antisway...  Adding the optional antisway bar to the installation is a no brainer. Why perform all these upgrades and not use a beefy antisway bar to help the car even further? Especially when the bar is a direct bolt-on to the chassis and TCP suspension parts. The '64-'66 Mustang antisway bar is 1 1/8-inch diameter solid steel, has a great textured powdercoat finish, and comes with billet mounting blocks.  The antisway bar's bushings...  The antisway bar's bushings are custom designed, not off-the-shelf pieces. Notice the lubricating grease path inside the bushing diameter, as well as the grease nipple opening. The included packet of silicone-based grease is applied to the bushing before slipping them over the antisway bar.  The billet mounting blocks...  The billet mounting blocks are pressed over the just-installed bushings and centered up with the factory antisway bar mounting bracket on the frame. Secure the mounting blocks using the supplied socket head screws, washers, and lock nuts. Don't forget to install the grease fittings and apply more grease via a grease gun to the bushings too.  The antisway bar end links...  The antisway bar end links attach just like the OE pieces. Ensure the bushings are positioned per the instruction sheet and tighten the hardware until the bushings just start to compress. There's no need to crush them.  After all this hard work,...  After all this hard work, it would be bad to have bumpsteer issues with the rack and tie-rod ends. No worries though, as TCP has this great bumpsteer kit that includes a billet adjusting sleeve, a 4130 steel rod end, a tapered stud, and a selection of shims to adjust the outer pivot point of the steering system and prevent bumpsteer.  If you remember, the rack...  If you remember, the rack installation last month didn't include the inner and outer tie rods, so we're installing them here. The inner tie rods are OE-type pieces and they mate to the rack's centerlink with the use of a small tapered adapter that fits into the hole in the center link and accepts the tie-rod end's tapered stud.  On the opposite end is the...  On the opposite end is the outer tie-rod end's tapered stud kit, which is installed into the spindle's steering arm and then a selection of shims is used to correct the steering geometry. Each setup is different and you'll have to measure your suspension's toe movement while cycling the suspension up and down to determine the amount of shims to correct any bumpsteer issue.  VariShock is a division of...  VariShock is a division of Chris Alston's Chassisworks, just like TCP. As such, each division can quickly work with one another's products to find in-house solutions. In this case, instead of compromising with some off-the-shelf shock, TCP had VariShock design a specific shock for the coilover kit. The billet aluminum shock has custom valving and is available in Quickset 1 and Quickset 2 adjustment systems. Shown here is the optional Quickset 2, which is adjustable for compression and rebound individually for up 256 unique combinations.  The coilover shocks are bolted...  The coilover shocks are bolted in without their springs to allow for full cycling of the suspension to check for interference or binding of the parts. This also allows you to quickly and easily set the suspension to the included specs at the intended ride height. Speaking of ride height, taller or shorter shock mounts and shock ends are available separately to alter ride height even more.  Once the alignment is set...  Once the alignment is set for the ride height being used, and the suspension movement shows no binding or other issues, the shocks can be dismounted and their coilover springs and billet spring hats/hardware installed, and the shocks mounted for good. You're also catching a glimpse of the Wilwood brake kit that was installed on Patti's Mustang too. We'll show everyone that kit install in an upcoming issue.  TCP literally thought of everything...  TCP literally thought of everything in designing and engineering its coilover kit. Take for example these adjustable steering stops. They simply thread into the strut rod's end tab and are quickly adjustable to limit steering travel. Once the tires are back on, the length of the stops will be set to prevent tire rub. Don't forget to reinstall the outer shock tower reinforcements now too, as the upper arm still utilizes the factory bumpstop.  All wrapped up and ready to...  All wrapped up and ready to take on the corners, the TCP coilover conversion is a great setup that can be easily installed without anything more than your basic handtools. Between the power rack, coilover setup, and awesome brakes, it's going to be hard to chisel the smile off of Patti's face. Stay tuned for more of the build in our next issue.
 | Ditch Your Ford's Ancient Steering Setup For The Precision Of TCP's Modern Rack-And-Pinion Steering System |  | Total Control Products' G-Link Four-Bar Goes Hand In Hand With Its Coilover Front Suspension |
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