Mach 1 springs on FOX 93 Stang....

The Stang2Birds guy, or whatever his name is, has Mach springs on his car. There is a link to a write up in his sig; so its been done. I was about to get some Mach springs, but I found some Bullitts at the last moment.

LiquidGT said:

The Stang2Birds guy, or whatever his name is, has Mach springs on his car. There is a link to a write up in his sig; so its been done. I was about to get some Mach springs, but I found some Bullitts at the last moment.

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Are you going to use the bullitt shocks and struts with the springs are some other combo?

I'm leaning toward Tokico HP (blue) shocks and struts.

I can't tell you about the amount of drop, but I believe it dropped a bit. I bought my Notch with mach 1 springs on it so they do work and fit fine. I like the springs and think the car handles nice.

The Mach1/Bullitt springs are 2 of the very few, IMHO, non ricer springs. That's because they were spec'd by real design Mechanical Engineers. Oh yea, they also happen to work for Ford and are suspension engineers.

Unlike the BS cr*p that you buy from aftermarket companies. Just about all of that cr*p is done/designed by a "Manufacturing Engineer". And, most of those "Manufacturing Engineers" don't even have a 2 year associates degree. Much less any "real life design experience". And, a good deal of the cr*p you buy at most aftermarket companies is targeted to appeal to the idiot teenager, or car driver. IMHO, the B springs and most of the aftermarket springs are the perfect example. If a Stang is lowered by more than ~1", it screws up the handling in many ways. Yea, do about $20+K of mods to the suspension, and you can then lower a Stang more than 1" and have better handling.

One very important factor for springs that will be used on a car that is ever driving on the street is that the force to make the front suspension to go to full jounce (compression) is the same/similar to stock. Other than a few very stiff handling springs (H&R & MM), the Mach1 and Bullitt springs are the only springs that fit that very important real life criteria for a car that's driven on real-life streets.


With the above said, I do realize that people lower their car for looks only. IMHO, if they want to do that, and as long as they know the implications (crappy handling, horrible bumpsteer, horrible tramming, very real possibility of bottoming out the suspension and/or body, etc), then I don't see any problem with it. It's their car, their choice. *I* get very PO'd when people lie to others and say that by lowering a Stang by more that 1", the car handles better, it's okay for all street driving, and so on.



So, *IN GENERAL*,

• The Mach1 springs will drop a Fox body hatch, 5 speed, with AC, with stock heads and radiator, with tires/rims that are the 100% stock circumference, approx 1/2".
• The Bullitt springs will drop the same car approx 3/4".

But, wait, there's more! Any original spring isolator has compressed over the years. Both the top and bottom. So, a car with orig springs and the orig isolators has dropped over the years approx ~1/4"-1/2" from where it was when it was brand new from the factory!

So, if you put in new isolators, especially new poly isolators, you'll likely not see much of a drop from the current fender height.

NOTE: It takes a few weeks for any new isolator to compress a little. That's the "spring sag" that people that don't have a clue about springs, suspensions, or mechanical engineering talk about.

Also, if you have wider that stock tires (such as going to a 17" rim), then depending on the year Fox, you can have fender clearance issues (front and back). The 92 and 93s have the most room. The 4-eyes (like mine) have very little room. Someone did a nice comparison of the Fox fenders over the years and showed how Ford gave more room over the years. Also, the inner liner changed to allow more room.

That's all important if you lower the car.

Also, it's a good idea for any lowered car to get a bumpsteer kit. I suggest the MM kit. Just get the link about parallel to the ground, that's "close enough" and better than it was before you have the bumpsteer kit. Also, depending on the year, you may need a CC plate to get enough adjustment. Again, I suggest MM only! Ford moved suspension mounting points and the strut tower over the years.

So... with all of the above said, *I* wanted to keep my 100% stock, never touched fenders on my 1986 car - no fender lip trimming, no pushing out the fenders, no cutting, no mods at all! However, I also needed 17" rims/tires to clear my M2300K brakes, and I wanted a better handling car.

Therefore, I wanted/needed a setup that kept very close to the stock fender height of ~27" (again, with the correct circumference rim/tire combo!).

Oh yea, I also have the heavier auto tranny and a 3-core radiator (hold more water, which equals more nose weight). So, in a case like that, Mach1 springs would result in more than an 1/2" drop. It would be an 1/2"->~3/4" drop.

One thing to remember, Ford used different springs on cars with different trannys, body styles, and engines because each car weighed different.

So, when you read "drops a Stang by X-amount", take that BS statement with a grain of salt. There are a number of factors involved.

Here's my setup:
Mustang 86 - Mach1 Springs

tim281 said:

I can't tell you about the amount of drop, but I believe it dropped a bit. I bought my Notch with mach 1 springs on it so they do work and fit fine. I like the springs and think the car handles nice.

Click to expand...

Mach1 springs will drop a 5sp notch less than a 5sp hatchback. That's because the notch weighs less. From the factory, the notch didn't have the same springs as a hatchback.

For a vert, the vert will see more of a drop with the Mach1 springs because the verts are heavier. But, if a vert has alum heads, then it weighs less than a stock vert, and has less weight on the nose. So, compared to a 100% stock vert with those springs, the drop would be less, especially in the nose.

Got all of that?
Isn't this fun? It's not really that hard once you understand the factors involved.


Also, don't forget that most people do not have the 100% stock circumference tire with their tire/rim combo. Even the same exact size tire can vary by 2%+ between brands and models. Just check the tire specs on tire rack. It shouldn't be too hard to find exactly the same size tires that vary by more than 2% in their circumference (rpms/mile).

Don't cut your springs ever please, I suck at suspension knowledge, but I know that springs are made to have a certain tollerance and pressure and as soon as you cut your springs it goofs that stuff up so they're not efficiently doing their job, just buy springs that are made to lower the car more if that's what you want to do

I'm going with bullitt springs myself. I have done some reading on here and corral and the mach/bullitt springs are the best bang for the buck springs to drop the ride height for pure handling/ride vs looks. I'm getting my set from PPI if your looking for a source.