We’ve been looking over the shoulders of the installers at Total Control Products (TCP) for several months now as they turned their general manager Patti Rieger’s ’65 Mustang coupe into a rolling TCP catalog of sorts. They started off by upgrading her Mustang with a TCP rack-and-pinion steering kit in our Jan. ’11 issue, followed by a complete coilover front suspension setup in our Feb. ’11 issue. Out back, the Mustang received a TCP g-Link Four-Bar suspension and Fab9 rear axle assembly in our March ’11 issue, and we tied the whole chassis together using the TCP tower brace package in our May ’11 issue. This month, we’re wrapping up the project as we watch TCP give the coupe some much needed stopping assistance. These improvements go hand-in-hand with the coupe’s upgraded handling upgrades, as well as the fresh Ford Racing 351 crate engine that was recently dropped between the front framerails.
TCP carries Wilwood products, and as such, outfitted Patti’s Mustang with a quartet of discs for the best stopping power. Wilwood’s name is well known in racing and performance circles, and is just as at home on a street-going car that sees the occasional track day or a high-performance driving event. Up front, TCP fitted its brand-new front disc kit, PN WW 140-11074-D. This kit features Wilwood’s SRP Series black e-coated rotor in a 12.19-inch diameter, drilled and slotted, with billet hub and rotor hat, all wheel bearings and seals, and Forged Dynalite four- or six-piston calipers (the 11074 kit is six-piston) featuring stainless steel pistons and high-temperature square-cut seals. Red powdercoated calipers are optional.
Note that a brake kit of this size will require a minimum of a 16-inch wheel and this kit does push the track width out 0.090-inch from stock, though that should hardly be an issue for most. If you want to keep a stock-looking 14- or 15-inch wheel, TCP has Wilwood front disc kits featuring 10.75-inch and 11.75-inch rotors respectively. For rear brakes, TCP pulled a WW 140-7140-D kit off the shelf, featuring a 12.19-inch one-piece SRP e-coated drilled and slotted rotor, a and Forged Dynalite four-piston caliper. Parking brake function is via an internal drum-brake mechanism.
To complete the project, TCP also grabbed a set of braided brake hoses and a complete parking brake cable kit to tie the new internal drum parking brake to the original parking brake mechanism under the dash. So check out the install in the following photos and know that TCP has you covered from front to back in suspension, steering, chassis integrity, and even braking for not just your classic Mustang, but Falcon, Torino, Maverick, Fairlane, Cougar, and several other classic Fords.
1 We’ll build up the front...
1 We’ll build up the front disc assembly first by threading the wheel studs into the billet hub. The hub is provisioned for both Ford and GM bolt patterns, so be sure to use the 5x4.50-inch pattern.
2 A great way to torque the...
2 A great way to torque the studs down is to slip a length of 1x2 wood into your vice and then place the hub over the wood so that the wood engages the studs to prevent rotation of the hub. Break out your torque wrench and lock the studs down with 77 ft-lb of torque.
3 The bearing races are pre-installed...
3 The bearing races are pre-installed in the Wilwood billet hub, but you’ll still need to pack the wheel bearings with high-temp grease. Pack the bearings and install the inner bearing into the hub, followed by the grease seal, just like a production rotor or drum hub.