53-54 Ford Installation

PLEASE READ AND UNDERSTAND ALL INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE YOU BEGIN INTALLATION

All that is required are a few careful measurements to locate the crossmember correctly on your chassis before welding them into place into position. Minor trimmings may be necessary for some variations in the frame. We recommend that the initial and subsequent wheel alignment should be done by a qualified alignment shop. If you have any questions please call 1-800-979-4278.

1. PREPARING THE FRAME

Remove all of the old suspension and steering components and mark the axle centerline on frame.
Do not remove any crossmember except a slight trimming on rear side of front crossmember on the ’55 - 59 Chevy pickup is necessary to clear the rack & pinion.
Clean the frame of any dirt/rust and weld on the supplied boxing plates.
Finish grind all welds

2. INSTALLING THE CROSSMEMBER

Fit the crossmember squarely on the top of the coils with the rack & pinion mount facing to the front of vehicle. The centerline of the crossmember should be inline with the axle centerline (figure #2)
The mounting bolt an boss for lower A-arms should be parallel to the ground with the frame sitting at ride height. (front and rear).
Inside measurement between frame rails should be 29” if there is any gap this can be filled with by adding shim plates equally on both sides.
Basic location of axle centerline is given in figure #3 check your wheel base to determine your particular application.
On the ’53 Ford pickup, the axle centerline may need to move forward 1/14” to center the wheel inside the fenders. Please check your own application.
Tack weld lower crossmember to frame rails.
Double check all measurements including wheel base dimension and diagonally for squareness.
Final weld the crossmember to frame all sides.

3. SUSPENSION ASSEMBLY

Install lower A-arms onto the crossmember. Position the left and right arms so that the ball joint should be centered on the axle centerline.
Install the Upper Control Arms with the Eccentric onto the crossmember.
Install the spindle and brake rotor assembly (assembly comes w/ bearings packed and seals installed) to the ball joints with the caliper brackets and steering arms facing front.
Install the rack and pinion steering gear.
Install the coil-over shocks.
Install Anti-Sway bars as shown in illustration #4.

4. SETTING THE RIDE HEIGHT

With full car weight on suspension, the lower A-arms should be horizontal and the distance between centers on the Coil-over top and bottom mounting bolts should be around 12 ¼”.
With full car weight on suspension, lower control arm pivot should be parallel to the ground.
To adjust, jack up the car to remove the weight and then turn the lower rings on the coil-overs.

5. SETTING CAMBER

Loosen set screw locks on Eccentric housing.
Rotate Eccentric by inserting the provided tool or an equivalent ¼” diameter object (Phillips Screwdriver) into the hole on the side of the Eccentric. Rotating Eccentric in easier with car jacked up, but the Camber must be checked at ride height.
Camber should be at 0 degrees.

6. SETTING CASTER

With set screw locks still loose, aster is set by sliding Eccentric slightly fore or aft within its housing. Gentle tapping with soft hammer may be required.
Set caster between 1 degree and 1 ½ degrees positive, making sure that both left and right sides are set the same.
Tighten set screws to lock in caster and camber settings.

7. SETTING TOE-IN

Set Toe-in by adjusting the tie rod ends on the rack & pinion steering gear.
Toe-in should be set at 1/16”