Question for the brain trust. I recently received a new front suspension kit with upper and lower control arms. The kit contained two lower control arms for the 1968 with four bolt hole to fasten the strut rod. Do any of the four holes match the bolt pattern of the two bolt hole 1967 strut rods?
No, none of the four holes exactly match the bolt pattern of the 67 Strut Rods.
There are 1 of 2 ways to fix your predicament:
- Purchase a set of 68 Strut Rods and your good to go
- Modify the holes in the lower control arms to āfitā your 67 strut rod mounts
On my 67, I opted for #2 above but in hindsight I should have done #1.
Coach Jack
Thank you.. I was hoping! The car is in Soldotna Alaska not exactly near any metropolises. I searched last night for replacement strut rods. The Chinese parts storeā¦NAPA and OāRileyās, neither stock any soā¦.Looks like Iāll need to cannibalize the new lower control arms and use the new ball joints. Or remove the rivets from the old and new lower control arms and use the reinforcement plate from the old lower control arms as a drill guide. Weld shut the four holes with ER70 and grind everything flat. Wish I knew how old these lower control arms are? They are definitely replacement parts. The ball joint rubber seals have disintegrated, but the inner bushings at the cam adjustment end look good, but the rubber may disintegrate with usage due to their age? Okayā¦I just talked myself out of using the old lower control arms. Sure miss my shop. Doing the work in my daughterās garage 432 mile from my shop in Platinumā¦where I have absolutely every tool to do anything. Flew out here with tools which maxed my gross weightā¦ more than a few timesā¦ I wished I had loaded this tool or thatā¦.
Wellā¦.my plan just failed. Iād need to weld up the holes in the ball joint assembly. No clue if these ball joints contain meltable stuff? Will order 1968 strut rods.
Summit Racing sells 1968 style strut rods. I just got through modifying a 1967 Cougar to have 1968 style lower control arms. It went easily.
Are the 1968 strut rods the same as 1969? If so, I have a nice Powdercoated set ready to go. In Charlotte NC but can ship.
The 1969 strut rods are a little different but they will work on a 1968, The nuts will be needed too.
The strut rods interchange 1968-1973. Starting in 1970, Ford eliminated the āsteppedā down threads at the end of the rods.
Thank you. I ordered a set from Jegās yesterday evening.
The strut rods from Jegās arrived today. Part number 94230. Says theyāll fit the 1968 Mercury Cougar. They donāt fit! They are identical to the 1967 strut rods Iāve removed. I laid the right side on a new left side back to back. The holes and rods line up perfectly. Jegās site doesnāt even list the stock replacement strut rods for the 1967.
What is the trick to posting pictures?
Tap the left hand curveā¦ The straight arrow at the bottom right hand of the screenā¦ Tap thatā¦ The next thing comes upā¦ Should be your picsā¦ Tap on thoseā¦ Tap replyā¦ Bobās your uncle!!!
Learned something new today. When you order parts from classic Cougar you get exactly what you ask for. What I learned is the lower control arms in their front suspension kit is original reproduction parts. My lower control arms have the original 1967 strut bolt pattern. The worn out lower control arms I pulled are the reproduction 1968 lower control arms. Soā¦ Jegās didnāt mess up. I did!
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