rear shocks info wanted

[winstoninwisc]

HEY FABO FAMILY, hope all has been good , ive been mia for a bit.
Spring is here soon I think lol some beg to diff. My car is ready to ROCK 10k in new motor and trans ,and other goodies . Now 1 more thing to address .I need to get the rear end up higher for bigger tires . I dont like air shocks .
So my car is a 1965 Barracuda with a 400+hp built L A 360 with a tsi 3 speed auto and 8 3/4 sure grip my old tire size was ok at best , but now I would like to go 28x9.5 or 26 at least ,so I need to get the cheapest , but most efficient and strongest way to pick the body of the car about 3-4 "s to fit the tires under the car and still plant the tires in the road. new leafs and cal-trac set up is out of budget at this point ,and the car value is way past what some 1 might pay for just 3/4s what I have in it though selling is not an option .
Ive owned the car 37 years ,and plan on keeping it 37 more .
So I need traction and stance , there are some awesome cars we all own in FABO but this is an early A body so it needs shocks O to O ,or mabee a really strong shackle lift + shocks. a stock 65 Barracuda shock is 21 1/2 fully opend and mine settle around 18" with a firm , not too stiff ride and a fair plant.
Please feel free for options with a $300.00 budget but strong lift , with good ride yet great weight transfer and traction ,I have $900.00 and need new M/T tires and 15" rims . please share your thoughts and those awesome pictures of your cars . Show us your stance .
Lets have fun BUT stay SAFE

 

[OUTLAW]

To get 4" of lift without shackles or air shox or new leaf springs is going to be damn near impossible. Shox don't raise a car they control bounce (might get a little lift with new gas shox but not much). Short of adding a helper leaf spring and coil over loads on your shox or both you can't get there from here basically.

here is my stance

 

[winstoninwisc]

who carries a pro stock leaf

 

[chryslerfat]

If you get that up as high as you are asking you will have a real hard time street driving it on the street as you are throwing all the weight on the nose.

 

[halifaxhops]

coil over rear shocks? I have them for towing and it lifted the car.

 

[ssba]

I think I would be looking at adding some leafs to your existing spring packs and longer
shocks. Well used C body or truck shocks should have enough extended length to allow the body to rise as needed when hooking up.
It shouldn't be to rough on your tire and wheel budget using worn shocks and used leafs.
I always liked to add a trimmed down main leaf as a second leaf to start.
Cut the front segment of the donor main leaf so that the forward end lands directly
below the front spring eye bolt. This will help with hooking up if the front of axle leaf clamps are reinstalled.
Prevents bending of the original main leaf next to the forward eye.
The rear of the spring is not so important where it is cut and can be just slightly longer
than the existing second leaf.
Depending on how much arch is in the donor leafs is what will determine how much lift
you will gain for tire clearance. Being you are looking to gain a lot look for donors with
more arch than what is on the car now.
It may not hurt to re arch your main leaf but probably not necessary. I know it sounds
kind of sleazy but I have re arched leafs cold in my 20 ton press. Took a while but didn't
cost any coin.
If I had known where I could have taken them to get them done proper with heat I would have gone that route and saved myself a lot of wear on my arm and shoulder.
You will be needing longer u bolts and spring center bolts for the added stack thickness.
I don't know of any pro stock springs being available.
Let us know how you end up getting your car riding where you want it
how ever you get it done.
Great looking car and I like where your going with it. I'll be watching from Indiana.

 

[ssba]

I forgot to mention stacking more leafs can make a car ride very stiff or harsh.
You have some control over this with the rear segment of spring.
Shortening the leafs behind the axle will lighten the stiffness. Of course you don't want to shorten the main leaf. But you also don't want the ride stiffened up like a off road vehicle.
You want the front half of the spring very stiff. It is best if it acts as a solid traction bar.
The rear half only needs to hold the fenders off your tires during your usual style of driving so can be much softer.
So in the end you have a modified spring pack that has a very unflexable forward half
and a normal rate rear half but with extra arch built into it.
If you make sure all your spring mount pivot points are free and rotate easily when the bolts are tight your rear suspension will work properly. Pay attention to the rear shackle angle.
Depending on how much arch you added (shorter distance between spring eyes) may dictate moving the mount forward.
When you have the rear all set up at the new height recheck your caster on the front
wheels as you will have likely lost your positive setting and the car will be all over the
place and hard to control at higher speeds.

 

[GEO]

who carries a pro stock leaf

Jegs or summit has super stock springs in stock , I like mine and I added an adjustable pinion snubber too

I've had my dart 34 years and plan on having it until I die

 

[roccodart440]

I need to get the cheapest , but most efficient and strongest way to pick the body of the car about 3-4 "s to fit the tires under the car and still plant the tires in the road.

Please feel free for options with a $300.00 budget but strong lift , with good ride yet great weight transfer and traction

Super Stock Springs, P4120863 & P4120864. 226$.

These should have your car looking like a jacked up 4x4 in no time flat and within your budget.


Now another option.

https://www.reillymotorsports.com/store/product.php?productid=16205, 89.00 + 2 pieces of tin.

 

[ddartdude]

Winston,
I looked in my 70-71 parts book and found the shocks that I mentioned in the other post (p/n 2948077) are from a 1970 Road Runner, GTX, and Coronet R/T to mention a few. They are 1 3/8" dia. It was the shock of choice back in the day. I did a google search on the p/n and this article came up. Pretty good info. They said it had to be modified to fit.

Again, this is the shock that Ted Spehar or Al Adam put on my D/Dart. I'll have to wiggle my fat body under the car to get the length. As stated earlier in this post, shocks don't hold up the car body.
Alan

[ame]http://wildaboutcarsonline.com/members/AardvarkPublisherAttachments/9990352760545/1970-06_HR_Project_Duster_1-3.pdf[/ame]