I have a 71 Dart with SBP Disc brakes. It is a factory 318 car with powersteering. I have removed the powersteering and installed a manual box several years ago. This car was my daily driver back in high school, and hasn't been drove much in the last 5 years. I have a little more money than I did back in High School, and I want to start fixing some things on the car. The paint isn't in too bad of shape, so I am going to start out with some larger wheels and upgrade the suspension. Is there anything wrong with keeping the 4 piston SBP Disc brakes and installing Motechs 17X7 wheels? Would you convert to the BBP and larger rotors? The suspension components are in descent shape, but I would upgrade the torsion bars, and possibly a rear sway arm. Any suggestions? This will mainly be a weekend cruiser. I might make a few passes at the strip, but those days are over for me. I might try going through the cones once or twice, but don't plan on road racing. I just want something to handle closer to the new cars on the road today.
Upgrading my 71 Dart Suspension and Wheels
- Thread starter AR_Tech
- Start date
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Welcome!
No reason you can't keep the KH disks if you can find the wheels you want in SBP. If the KH's aren't leaking and are functioning properly, they do a decent job of getting things stopped. Obviously, larger disks (like upgrading to the later 11.75" rotors) will stop the car better, but for a weekend cruiser I wouldn't put them at the top of my upgrade list since you've already got disks.
Better tires will be easier to find in the 17" diameter, more modern rubber will do wonder for handling.
Larger torsion bars would also definitely help you in the handling department. I have 1" bars in my Duster, the handling is light years ahead of where it was and its still not a harsh ride.
Sway bars, front and rear, are a good thing. Stock bars are ok, but again, bigger is better in this case. There are quite a few aftermarket sway bars out there. I personally think Hotchkis is the top of the market, but pretty much all of the bars out there will outperform the stockers.
Shocks are often overlooked, but they're important to upgrade too, especially with larger front bars.
And don't forget the alignment. Stock alignment specs on these cars are for bias ply's, they're horrible. Something in the range of -.5* camber, +3 for caster, and around 1/16" to 1/8" of toe in works a ton better. You may need to upgrade to offset UCA bushings (Moog 7103) to make all of those numbers happen depending on your ride height.
If you're not shy with a welder, I also strongly recommend sub-frame connectors. They can be made pretty easily if you have any fabrication skills, or purchased and welded in by a shop if fabrication and welding isn't your thing.
There's more than a few threads about upgrading the suspensions on these cars, a quick search should keep you busy reading for days. :thumbup:
No reason you can't keep the KH disks if you can find the wheels you want in SBP. If the KH's aren't leaking and are functioning properly, they do a decent job of getting things stopped. Obviously, larger disks (like upgrading to the later 11.75" rotors) will stop the car better, but for a weekend cruiser I wouldn't put them at the top of my upgrade list since you've already got disks.
Better tires will be easier to find in the 17" diameter, more modern rubber will do wonder for handling.
Larger torsion bars would also definitely help you in the handling department. I have 1" bars in my Duster, the handling is light years ahead of where it was and its still not a harsh ride.
Sway bars, front and rear, are a good thing. Stock bars are ok, but again, bigger is better in this case. There are quite a few aftermarket sway bars out there. I personally think Hotchkis is the top of the market, but pretty much all of the bars out there will outperform the stockers.
Shocks are often overlooked, but they're important to upgrade too, especially with larger front bars.
And don't forget the alignment. Stock alignment specs on these cars are for bias ply's, they're horrible. Something in the range of -.5* camber, +3 for caster, and around 1/16" to 1/8" of toe in works a ton better. You may need to upgrade to offset UCA bushings (Moog 7103) to make all of those numbers happen depending on your ride height.
If you're not shy with a welder, I also strongly recommend sub-frame connectors. They can be made pretty easily if you have any fabrication skills, or purchased and welded in by a shop if fabrication and welding isn't your thing.
There's more than a few threads about upgrading the suspensions on these cars, a quick search should keep you busy reading for days. :thumbup:
I asked a very similar question and got some good info a week or so ago...
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=212211
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=212211
Thanks, I plan on adding the subframe connectors and 1.03 torsion bars. I still need to do some reading on selecting shocks. I have a brown "autumn bronze poly" dart with a black vinyl top and dual scoops, so I think some black wheels from motech would look great with something like a 245/45/17. I know that with my old 14 inch wheels that I could lock up my tires, so I didn't really see the reason to upgrade to gain a little larger rotor for my application. It is crazy what the cost is for some of the brake kits. Thanks for the link and back to the search engine.
i agree with 72 blu other than with the brakes. upgrade a little bigger ,no use in going overboard,but rear disk will make a huge difference. i have some black bullit wheels on here for sale if you are interested.
That sounds good! The black with the silver lip wheels should look pretty good on your color and 245/45/17 should fit like a charm. I've heard some people fitting 275/40/17's all the way around on A-Bodies with little modifications. It should be a considerable difference between that and the 14" wheels. For shocks, most people say, "KYB if you're on a budget or Bilsteins if you can afford it." I've got a set of Bilstein's sitting off to the side waiting to be installed, but from what I heard, it makes your car handle so much better. KYB's will really firm up your suspension so you may want to get a smaller T-bar if you go with those.
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