Need handling help..

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mopower440

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I have a 1972 dart with 440/727..The car handles horribly..got to slow down more than should around corners because it feels like a boat..the body roll feels like its going to tip over..will make you tense up pretty good! I rebuilt the entire front end, new bushings, ball joints, tie rod ends, everything but still doesnt handle very well. The car does NOT have sway bars on the front or back..Dont know if that would help much or? The thing is, i do want it to hook up, which it doesnt do well, so not sure if adding a front sway bar will hurt it worse in that department..Advice would be greatly appreciated! I know its not going to handle like a corvette and i dont expect it to, but its kinda scary and i know it can be made to do better.
Thanks!
 
Nice thick sway will help big time. I heard some guys remove end links when dragging. They just tie up the sway bar. I only race once in a blue moon and leave my bar alone.
 
Yes Def, sway bar will help on rolling. The stock A body BB sway bar is much thicker in diameter than others.
Also, wondering if your front end height is within specs. Too high could also cause a roll.
 
A front sway bar is almost a must in an A body RB combo. Almost anything you can do to reduce weight off the front end is good. Aluminum top end on that 440 would make a significant difference. 65'
 
Sway bars to start, Larger torsion bars 1" min, good shocks all around (i.e. Bilstein, Hotchkis, Viking, etc.) wide & short wall tires so plan for 17" and up wheels, modern tire alignment so QA1 or equivalent upper A Arms or offset bushings, adjustable strut rods if you really want to dial in the front articulation, and at least 11.75" OEM brakes if not Dr Diff 13" fronts because stopping is part of handling.
 
dano said:
Sway bars to start, Larger torsion bars 1" min, good shocks all around (i.e. Bilstein, Hotchkis, Viking, etc.) wide & short wall tires so plan for 17" and up wheels, modern tire alignment so QA1 or equivalent upper A Arms or offset bushings, adjustable strut rods if you really want to dial in the front articulation, and at least 11.75" OEM brakes if not Dr Diff 13" fronts because stopping is part of handling.
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This right here. Do not overlook a modern alignment.
 
dano said:
Sway bars to start, Larger torsion bars 1" min, good shocks all around (i.e. Bilstein, Hotchkis, Viking, etc.) wide & short wall tires so plan for 17" and up wheels, modern tire alignment so QA1 or equivalent upper A Arms or offset bushings, adjustable strut rods if you really want to dial in the front articulation, and at least 11.75" OEM brakes if not Dr Diff 13" fronts because stopping is part of handling.
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Agreed. OP didn't mention what he's got for T-bars. If they're /6 bars, they're good for diddly with a big block (or even a small block) unless you've got a dedicated quarter miler. Get some fat T-bars and sway bar on there before you kill yourself or tear the sump off your oil pan.
 
yep, what these guys said. BIGGER T bars, sway bar wont be great with all the weight on the front end but it will be Much better. I drove my 72 with the big block and drag bars for a summer. felt like you had to come to a stop to make a turn it was so soft up front. 1.04 bars helped some, a sway bar and better shocks would have helped even more. mine was a drag car I drove on the street. swapping bars was as far as I was willing to go.
 
What suspension do you have now? Factory big block cars had large T bars, large front sway bar, HD rear springs and HD shocks. My original 383 Barracuda handles fine.
 
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mopower440 said:
I have a 1972 dart with 440/727..The car handles horribly..got to slow down more than should around corners because it feels like a boat..the body roll feels like its going to tip over..will make you tense up pretty good! I rebuilt the entire front end, new bushings, ball joints, tie rod ends, everything but still doesnt handle very well. The car does NOT have sway bars on the front or back..Dont know if that would help much or? The thing is, i do want it to hook up, which it doesnt do well, so not sure if adding a front sway bar will hurt it worse in that department..Advice would be greatly appreciated! I know its not going to handle like a corvette and i dont expect it to, but its kinda scary and i know it can be made to do better.
Thanks!
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I don't have any of those problems with my Duster. I installed big brakes, big torsion bars, big anti-sway bar and Koni shocks when I installed the big block. It drives just fine and stops great.
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Some good advice here. Granted I have a small block B body but I also boxed my lower control arms and added frame connectors. Nothing fancy. You
can easily do them yourself if you have access to a welder. Along with those I added F&R Helwig sway bars, Good shocks, Big block torsion bars. Tubular upper control arms, Poly bushings, 11.75" Factory brakes, Jeep GC rear disks on 8.25 rear and low profile 18's. Handles like a modern car and stops really well.
 
It has the small block torsion bars as the car was an original 318 car. Last year i rebuilt the entire front end and installed a set of the kelsey hays disc setup. New upper and lower balljoints, inner and outer tie rod ends, Control arm bushings, strut rod bushings, idler and pitman arms, new shocks, everything..When pushing up and down on the front bumper trying to 'bounce' the car on the suspension, its pretty darn stiff..about like any other car. My car doesnt have the sway bar mounts from the factory, does anyone make a complete bolt on kit for a dart that does not have the mounts originally from the factory?
 
69 B'cuda with a 470" aluminum headed BB. Iron bell with 833 4 spd. Manual steering,990 t-bars, sway bars frt/rear,poly bushings in the frt susp, KYB shocks,SS springs,225/60/15 front,245/60/15 rear.Car handles great....goes straight while leaning on it, corners great, stops straight. Not a corner carver but never scares you at all in a corner. Hellwig makes nice sway bar kits with an adjustable rear to fine tune it. Good luck!

P.S Frame connectors!! One of the best/cheapest mods I have done to my car!!
 
Like others have said, bigger torsion bars, a front sway bar, better shocks and tires. BUT, don't overlook the rear suspension. Heavier springs will help greatly with handling and hook...
 
Looking at the Hellwig 5906, its 1 1/8. sway bar setup. Good feedback on it..what do you all think?
 
Been a few years but I'm pretty sure that's the one i used...works great. I did an adjustable rear from them as well. Had a few questions during install so I called. A human answered the phone in a couple rings then transferred me to another human who knew EXACTLY what I was referring to. Very refreshing customer service!!
 
mopower440 said:
It has the small block torsion bars as the car was an original 318 car. Last year i rebuilt the entire front end and installed a set of the kelsey hays disc setup. New upper and lower balljoints, inner and outer tie rod ends, Control arm bushings, strut rod bushings, idler and pitman arms, new shocks, everything..When pushing up and down on the front bumper trying to 'bounce' the car on the suspension, its pretty darn stiff..about like any other car. My car doesnt have the sway bar mounts from the factory, does anyone make a complete bolt on kit for a dart that does not have the mounts originally from the factory?
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Sounds like a good start. Make sure to get a good alignment. You would not believe what a difference it can make. There are a few companies that make kits for non sway bar lower control arms. I am lusting after a "Firm Feel" tubular front sway bar for my 67 Firmfeel Mopar Suspension and Steering. The factory only used a front bar, but I have not tried a matching front and rear set. What shocks are you running?
 
I have a 440 in a 74 dart. PST 1.03 bars and factory sway bar with poly bushings and coil over (towing shocks) in the rear, handles great.
 
I'm disagreeing with adding ANYTHING until you get it sorted out AS IS. These old girls handle pretty damned good for what they are without sway bars when they are "RIGHT". Sounds to me like you have something "WRONG". I didn't see where you said you had it aligned. If you didn't have a front end alignment after doing all that work, it would certainly drive terribly. Sort out what you HAVE before you add anything or you may compound the problem and make it very difficult to diagnose. Sway bars do work well, but they compliment an already correct suspension. Adding one as a band aid for steering and suspension systems that are not correct will just complicate the issue.
 
Also, these cars aren't Toyotas or Hondas. They will never handle like a smaller car with a lower center of gravity.....well they CAN, but that's a subject for a different day. Just remember "they are what they are".
 
RustyRatRod said:
I'm disagreeing with adding ANYTHING until you get it sorted out AS IS. These old girls handle pretty damned good for what they are without sway bars when they are "RIGHT". Sounds to me like you have something "WRONG". I didn't see where you said you had it aligned. If you didn't have a front end alignment after doing all that work, it would certainly drive terribly. Sort out what you HAVE before you add anything or you may compound the problem and make it very difficult to diagnose. Sway bars do work well, but they compliment an already correct suspension. Adding one as a band aid for steering and suspension systems that are not correct will just complicate the issue.
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well, you are right, i havnt had it aligned yet since the front end build, but i did align it with a lazer and wheel plates and got it pretty good. It drives straight when letting go of the steering wheel and all but yes, i do need to take it to be aligned on a machine. Does anyone have the 'Better specs' sheet for the alignment that used to be passed around here? I remember seeing this and it said to have them align it to these 'updated' specs rather than what the factory called for back then..I will tell you that when going a little hard into a turn, the front seems to feel like its ok but feels like the back end is what causes it to feel like its going to roll..kinda like when the back end starts following the turn of the front end, it feels floppy..not good at describing stuff..I will tell you i have air shocks on the rear because the rear sags so much.. I need to find new leaf springs badly..any recommendations for the leafs?
 
mopower440 said:
well, you are right, i havnt had it aligned yet since the front end build, but i did align it with a lazer and wheel plates and got it pretty good. It drives straight when letting go of the steering wheel and all but yes, i do need to take it to be aligned on a machine. Does anyone have the 'Better specs' sheet for the alignment that used to be passed around here? I remember seeing this and it said to have them align it to these 'updated' specs rather than what the factory called for back then..I will tell you that when going a little hard into a turn, the front seems to feel like its ok but feels like the back end is what causes it to feel like its going to roll..kinda like when the back end starts following the turn of the front end, it feels floppy..not good at describing stuff..I will tell you i have air shocks on the rear because the rear sags so much.. I need to find new leaf springs badly..any recommendations for the leafs?
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It depends on what you want for height in the rear as to which sprAngs you need. A lot of people are happy with the XHD springs. They were stock under the 340 cars.

I'll tell you this too......depending on "how high" you have those air shocks, that can affect caster. If they are too high for example, that will reduce the caster angle. these cars really need all the caster they can get and taking anything away can have a negative effect on how it handles.
 
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mopower440 said:
well, you are right, i havnt had it aligned yet since the front end build, but i did align it with a lazer and wheel plates and got it pretty good. It drives straight when letting go of the steering wheel and all but yes, i do need to take it to be aligned on a machine. Does anyone have the 'Better specs' sheet for the alignment that used to be passed around here? I remember seeing this and it said to have them align it to these 'updated' specs rather than what the factory called for back then..I will tell you that when going a little hard into a turn, the front seems to feel like its ok but feels like the back end is what causes it to feel like its going to roll..kinda like when the back end starts following the turn of the front end, it feels floppy..not good at describing stuff..I will tell you i have air shocks on the rear because the rear sags so much.. I need to find new leaf springs badly..any recommendations for the leafs?
Click to expand...
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