Anyone have any experience on installing aftermarket coil overs? Seems you can buy complete front and rear kits for around 5K give or take.
I personally don’t plan on any racing, but improvements are always nice.
Is the cost worth it for general driving or weekend fun?
If your suspension is in need of a re-build and you have extra cash, go for it, but a stock re-build would be a lot cheaper and IMO all needed for standard duty.
For a cruiser, I might not want to spend that kind of cash for a major suspension update. Some minor upgrades in good quality shocks & urethane suspension bushings might get most of what you need and should be way under $1k. You can always add some added bracing to stiffen the front towers (especially if you have a big block or convertible) and sway bars/traction bars if you want to go a little further for the rear leaf springs, but even that wouldn’t add much more than a few hundred more. These would also keep it looking more stock or at least “period correct”…
Now if you really want a racer, you can probably make it as sound as any new sports car…
Borgeson box is a good upgrade along with a full rebuild
Very few people have driven a Cougar that has a fully functional front suspension and steering system. When you drive a car with just one thing wrong: bad rag joint or a loose idler arm, you get the wrong impression about the stock system. It seems that every Cougar I take apart has an issue or two that was impossible to see before taking it a part. I just pulled the front springs out of a '68 to replace the control arms and found one bolt hole for the spring perch was badly blown out. The upper control arm was also very loose. None of that was visually observable.
I think the stock suspension is just fine at 65 mph. I am not into pushing my classic hard in the corners so a stock set up in tip top shape with a few items upgraded is fine for me.
Agree, There are many areas that can become a concern rather quickly on these especially something that has yet to be rebuilt. Even the alignment can have a big role in how these drive.
I plan to run coilovers at some point but since my car has all new suspension from the previous owner I did a couple small upgrades along with rebuilding the gear box and replacing a rag joint so I can drive it the way it is until I decide to go with coilovers. Who knows I may not get to that point for a long while. If everything was original and not rebuilt I may have went straight to coilovers simply to do it once and be done with it but that was not the case for me.
Really you need to decide how you want to drive your car. Weekend pleasure drives coilovers are kinda a waste of money but if you want to drive it harder its a solid upgrade.
Absolutely yes. You don’t need to go with crazy link suspension and coil overs like I did, although it does make it ride and handle amazing. The best part is the adjustability, its pretty fantastic. That said, for the majority of casual Cat owners out there they will be plenty happy just putting in fresh, stock components. Ball joints, A arms, rag joints etc. can all be had for pretty cheap, then get it aligned and you will be plenty happy.
What set up did you go with? I went with Ridetech coil overs and Borgeson steering on the front. What a difference! Still contemplating getting their 4 link for the rear.
I went with the complete total cost involved coil overs link suspension. It has so much adjustability its amazing. Not cheap by any means, but I dig it. Heidts makes a good one as well, I know. I almost went that route myself. I saw some REALLY high end shops (as in money was no objective) use the TCI so that’s what tipped my decision over in their direction.
From what you described, a factory rebuild w/ shelby/arning upper a-arm drop, good shocks, 620lb springs, 1" front sway bar, open tracker strut rod bushings, and new leaf springs would be all that you need.
Some of us here have changed to coil over and tubular control arms and other suspension changes. I used a system from Street or Track with Bilstein labeled shocks made by Race Car Dynamics along with Flexform composite mono-leaf springs, Wilwood brakes, and Unisteer rack and pinion steering. All the stock components on my car were in rough shape-4 wheel drum brakes, worn out suspension, sloppy (at best) PS that leaked everywhere, sagging springs and cheap shocks. Every thing needed to be replaced or re-built and I don’t have a high-value car (base convertible) so I made the decision to change the components. I hated driving the car and when the PS pump the PO installed to convert the manual steering to PS failed at a C&C that was the moment it was pulled in to the garage and swapped over. I’m extremely happy with the changes I made on my car but I realize it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. That’s alright as it’s not their car and I built it for me. I love the steering, the suspension, and the brakes. I was too young to have driven a 1969 Cougar when it was new so I have no memories I’m trying to recreate for myself. To each his own is what makes the car hobby so enjoyable to me.
Honestly with a completely new OEM-style suspension front and rear the car feels pretty tight and responsive to me. The only thing I regret is not doing the Borgeson conversion. I had the OEM power assist system rebuilt, but it feels a bit overboosted at speed for my taste.
The power disc brakes are a worthy upgrade if you don’t already have them, not strictly suspension but important.