Home About Us Current Projects Past Projects Parts The installation of an Indepentent Front Suspension in your favorite steet rod is a relatively simple procedure but requires a couple of critical measurements and calculations to be made prior to beginning the process. The one that is the most  important is the establishment of the Center Line of the original spindles. This line is 90° off the front to rear centerline of the frame. The exact centerline of the existing spindles will become the exact centerline of the new cross-member as well as the spring caps. This will assure you that the new Mustang II spindles will locate your front wheels in the exact location of the originals. The easiest installation will always be on a bare chassis but can be accomplished on a vehicle with engine and sheet metal in place. However if you can just have a bare chassis to work with we highly recommend it. Before removal of the existing crossmember the frame should be temporarily braced to prevent the posiibility of any frame twist or rail spreading. We use angle iron to brace the  frame, rail to rail with bolts through the rails. Once the rail position is stablized we can proceed with locating, marking and center punching the center line of the spindles. With the hubs pointing forward, locate the Lathe tool center on the inside of the old spindles then transfer that point to the top of the frame rail. Use masking tape on the top of the frame rails for the initial marking. At this point the pencil marking is temporary but when you are satisfied that the centerline is correct, centerpunch the line for a permanent location mark. Now you are ready to remove the old cross member and if your frame rails are not boxed you should do that at this time. (a cardboard template is useful in fabricating the inside boxing plate) Pre fit the new cross member before welding in the inside plates as you may have to make small adjustments to the inside of the rails for a perfect fit. We also centerpunch the center of the new cross member and the spring hats. Tack in the new cross member and recheck all measurments before the final welding. For this instructional page we are using a frame from a '36 Chevy project. The steps you see depicted here are going to be similar to each aplication but on some frames the cross member will tie into the frame rails at different points and on some frames the spring top hats will mount differently. But these are small detail differences. The overall process will be the same as what's shown here. When you purchase an Indepentent Front Suspension kit from '9' Lives, we will be there to answer any questions you have and help you solve any problems that may crop up with your particular installation. Here is what the frame looked like when we started. Now the work begins!  First we get rid of unwanted parts and initial cleaning is done.   Frame has been sandblastd and 2 coats of Epoxy sprayed on the frame.   Pencil line on the masking tape to mark the centerline.   Install the angle iron brace to keep the frame rails stabilized.   Drive out the bolts that hold the old cross member in place.   Cross member tacked in place and ready to be welded in.   Reference the spring hat centerlines with the punch marks on the frame.   Lower control arm holes are enlarged to 5/8" for tubular control arms.   Upper control arms attached to the spring hats.   Attach the new spindle/rotor/caliper to the lower control arm ball joint.   Install the spring, connect the spindle to the upper ball joint.   Rack  mounting bracket welded to the X member.   Another view of the attachment to the spindle. Cleaned and ready to locate the centerline from the existing spindle.   1st measurement...the lathe center from the existing spindle marked on tape.   Check the measurments twice. Center punch the pencil line.    Remove old frame brackets and grind off bolt heads.   Boxing plate in place where the new cross member will attach.   X member welded in, angle iron frame brace removed.   Make sure the spring hats are at the same height using a level.   T-bolts in the top control arm for castor and camber adjustments.   Next bolt the lower control arms to the cross member.   Internal spring compressor used to compress the coil spring.   Now you are ready to mount the new rack and pinion setup.   Rack and pinion attachment to the spindle.   And from the front with the new suspension setup complete. Top of page