advise for suspension setup for 67 dart

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ss67gtsdart

ss67gtsdart

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washington state
this is going to be a street rod with a smallblock and i am having trouble deciding what i should go with for front suspension stock disk with K frame from a 73-76 dart or one of these tubular K with coils or just upper tube control arms with coils,i have read alot of negative stuff about several different setups.figure i would get some opinions from people that have put them to the test.since i have not used any of them besides stock.and ideas for the rear setup would be nice also.its a 67 dart will be used for daily driving.thank you
 
Can't beat the full rms front and rear setup! But it is quite expensive (about $8000, abodyjoe has this system). If you want it to handle better then stock, you can use the hotchkis TVS (about $2000, autoxcuda has this system and really likes it).
 
Do you want your 67 model daily driver to handle the curves like an Italian sports car ?
Just sway bars, modern shocks, and tires can make a huge difference compared to how it drove in 67.
 
Don't forget stiffer torsion bars and poly bushings.
 
are you building this for looks or performance. how much are looking to spend on this .there are a ton of build threads using every suspension set up you can think of.
 
Street Rod

Front End:
Slant Six torsion bars,no sway bar,drag shocks,skinnies.

Rear End:
Super Stock springs,spring clamps,pinion snubber,drag shocks,cheater slicks.

Old school baby.....Proven.

Let her rip !!!
 
I think the stock suspension front and rear supplemented with sway bars will be plenty for what you want.
 
I just changed my 67 barracuda over with 340 springs and torsion bars added a sway bar and new shocks all around and I cant believe the difference Im very happy with this, also just a driver car.
 
1970Duster said:
Can't beat the full rms front and rear setup! But it is quite expensive (about $8000, abodyjoe has this system). If you want it to handle better then stock, you can use the hotchkis TVS (about $2000, autoxcuda has this system and really likes it).
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hi. just asking. where do you get 8000 bucks from?

$6,480 is what i came up with for a front and rear setup. of course, this doesn't include shipping.

but boy, am i sure glad i bought my front and rear setup 4 years ago when i Had the money, it was a few hundred cheaper, but i whole heartedly understand the price increase.
 
mopardude318 said:
hi. just asking. where do you get 8000 bucks from?

$6,480 is what i came up with for a front and rear setup. of course, this doesn't include shipping.

but boy, am i sure glad i bought my front and rear setup 4 years ago when i Had the money, it was a few hundred cheaper, but i whole heartedly understand the price increase.
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Is that including tires and rims?
 
There's been quite a few fast, street, and ralley Mopars based on stock suspension

heavier torsion bars, SWAY BARS and good shocks and tires, and pay attention to alignment. The concensous is you do NOT want to use factory alignment specs

In the rear, same thing. Heavier springs, good shocks, tires and SWAY BARS

Cars with offset rear leafs can NOT corner with stockers because of the leverage caused against the roll center of the suspension
 
mopardude318 said:
hi. just asking. where do you get 8000 bucks from?

$6,480 is what i came up with for a front and rear setup. of course, this doesn't include shipping.

but boy, am i sure glad i bought my front and rear setup 4 years ago when i Had the money, it was a few hundred cheaper, but i whole heartedly understand the price increase.
Click to expand...
Add Wheels, Tires, Paint/powder coating, and of course Brakes
 
Nothing wrong with the stock suspension, other than the geometry which can be corrected fairly easy with a couple bolt on items. Coilovers arnt meant to be on these cars unless you have a full cage in the car(flame on if you wish).
 
im trying to make it a nice riding driving car daily driving,cornering handling.the stuff i have read on some of these coil setups say make your old ride handle like a viper.if i can get it to ride and handle like my friends 2011 challenger rt i would be really happy.and 6-8,000 to make my classic ride like a new car thats pretty reasonable.all i have had in the past is stock mopar front ends wich does not impress me unless i am going straight i want more then that.thanks for the replys
 
ss67gtsdart said:
im trying to make it a nice riding driving car daily driving,cornering handling.the stuff i have read on some of these coil setups say make your old ride handle like a viper.if i can get it to ride and handle like my friends 2011 challenger rt i would be really happy.and 6-8,000 to make my classic ride like a new car thats pretty reasonable.all i have had in the past is stock mopar front ends wich does not impress me unless i am going straight i want more then that.thanks for the replys
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If you weren't all the way across the country I would let you take my car for a ride. Rides and handles awesome. It's really hard to explain what it feels like.

There is no doubt that you can get a stock suspension to handle damn good. But there is no way anyone can tell me that a stock suspension can feel as tight and precise as a rack and pinion. Just too many parts in a stock suspension that have some kind of slop even with all new parts. And the added bonus is all the room you gain under the car with just a rack.


Has anyone here duplicated the green bricks suspension? If so How does it ride?

In the end its all personal preference. If you go wit a tube R&P set up call RMS and be done with it.
 
inkjunkie said:
Clone the Green Bricks suspension???
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x2

with coilovers the weight is transfered higher and forward in the chassis... the stock setup is centered on the car....

I copied the green brick but have yet to drive it due to personal issues and progress is basically on idle with my dart
 
67Dart273 said:
...The concensous is you do NOT want to use factory alignment specs
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What are the stock specs and what do people suggest setting them to instead? I realize that this a fair deal of personal preference, but is there a typical range that a large percentage of people tend to fall in? I have stock suspension on my front end and don't plan to replace it, but if I can get a little more stable handling with just different alignment I'd be happy with that. I know that BadDart makes a tubular upper control arm that uses stock bushings and ball joints with some caster correction which might help things out as well since the adjustment is somewhat limited, especially when you lower the front end any.
 
abodyjoe said:
Alter-k comes powder coated now. And damn whoever is doing the coating for him is doing an awesome job. The finish is great.
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I know the guy that does the powder coating for Bill @ RMS. He does do fantastic work. He has done some work for me in the past. I will be sending some steel rims shortly for my Dart. He has a very small shop but cranks out quality work!
 
Map63Vette said:
What are the stock specs and what do people suggest setting them to instead? I realize that this a fair deal of personal preference, but is there a typical range that a large percentage of people tend to fall in? I have stock suspension on my front end and don't plan to replace it, but if I can get a little more stable handling with just different alignment I'd be happy with that. I know that BadDart makes a tubular upper control arm that uses stock bushings and ball joints with some caster correction which might help things out as well since the adjustment is somewhat limited, especially when you lower the front end any.
Click to expand...

Stock specs were for stock '70's tires. Not a good idea with modern rubber.

Ideally, you want around +4 degrees caster, 0 to -.5 degrees camber, and around 1/16" toe in.

You probably won't be able to get that much positive caster without offset bushings at the least, but you can still increase it over stock specs.

I run -.7 degrees camber, +4 degrees caster, and 1/16" toe in.

As far as the suspension is concerned, the Hotchkis TVS system would be awesome. You can replicate most of that set up with other parts, but its really hard to beat it as a kit.

I'd buy another Mopar before I spent $8k on a coilover set up. You can get a pretty nice A-body for $8k. Heck, you can get a pretty nice A-body for $6k and still put a Hotchkis TVS in it.

Coilover systems have plenty of drawbacks too, especially if you're talking about a car that wasn't designed to have them. The rack and pinion is nice, but a fully rebuilt stock box is comparable in feel, just talk to Firm Feel. And then there's the fact that you could buy a decent car, outfit it with a full hotchkis set up and rebuilt parts, and still turn similar times on the track as a car that spent the same amount just on suspension. Sorry, I don't get it.
 
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