I'm looking for parts to do a full suspension rebuild and I've seen a lot of posts praising Bilsteins for having very good quality, however they only advertise them for 1987-1993 mustangs. Do these not fit on an 1986? Did the suspension change from 1986 to 1987?
Bilsteins for an 86 GT?
- Thread starter opihinalu
- Start date
-
Sponsors (?)
I’m pretty sure the front strut mount is of different thickness on the ‘86. Don’t remember if it’s thicker or thinner. I don’t think there is a difference in the rears.
It's thinner. You have to install spacers/bushings (big washers) where the bolts go through the bottom of the shocks.
Bilsteins are nice if that's the kind of response you want from the car. They are not designed to give you a comfortable ride and may cause excessive boob jiggling for significant others.
Bilsteins are nice if that's the kind of response you want from the car. They are not designed to give you a comfortable ride and may cause excessive boob jiggling for significant others.
Haha. Ah okay so any recommendations for better handling and a smoother ride?It's thinner. You have to install spacers/bushings (big washers) where the bolts go through the bottom of the shocks.
Bilsteins are nice if that's the kind of response you want from the car. They are not designed to give you a comfortable ride and may cause excessive boob jiggling for significant others.
Yes sir... OEM struts and shocks. With the stock 4-link, it's about the best compromise between ride and performance you can get without spending a ton of money.
I like the Monroe replacements PN 33059 and PN 20767 for HD. If you plan to spend any track time then perhaps a set of Koni adjustable for the rear.
They give me the closest to the original ride that I'm aware of. They're not stiff like Bilsteins.
I think those part numbers are obsolete that I gave.
Here are the new:
www.monroe.com
www.monroe.com
Here are the new:
Monroe | Performance Shocks & Struts
An industry leader in ride control components, Monroe shocks and struts are backed by premium materials and engineering for quality products you can count on.
Monroe | Performance Shocks & Struts
An industry leader in ride control components, Monroe shocks and struts are backed by premium materials and engineering for quality products you can count on.
I think my bilstiens ride pretty good
it could be the coil-overs though
Mixed with some progressive rate springs?
I'm sure it doesn't hurt.
1. I remember the shims coming with some Monroes along the line for at least earlier 5.0 spindles.They are not designed to give you a comfortable ride and may cause excessive boob jiggling for significant others.
2. Sooooo many CT worthy responses, most not fit for public posting.
OldManRiver
Active Member
The 86' spindles are THICKER at 1" compared to the later spindles at .750".
That's why you need to swap to the later spindles in order to run any type of performance dampers.
I had to make the swap in order to install some Bilstein HD's,which I have no complaints about the ride.Would I install them on a 67' Cadillac,probably not.lol
Parts store replacements come with the wider spacing and shims so your able to install them on all years.
Edit: If you think you'll ever make the move to a coilover setup then you'll need something like a Koni or Bilstein that can handle the higher spring rate,parts store replacements are not up to the task.
That's why you need to swap to the later spindles in order to run any type of performance dampers.
I had to make the swap in order to install some Bilstein HD's,which I have no complaints about the ride.Would I install them on a 67' Cadillac,probably not.lol
Parts store replacements come with the wider spacing and shims so your able to install them on all years.
Edit: If you think you'll ever make the move to a coilover setup then you'll need something like a Koni or Bilstein that can handle the higher spring rate,parts store replacements are not up to the task.
Last edited:
Similar threads
