Not road racing:Is Global West overkill?

[ravv 67]

I finally found a shop to do my suspension, now I have to decide what I want?
I don't want to buy expensive parts if they're not intended for the street. But I do want to put in quality parts.
So are Global West's tubular upper and lower control arms appropriate for street use or am I just wasting my money.

 

[rbohm]

this is a tough question to answer, one the one hand the revised suspension geometry makes for much better handling, but the cost makes it tough to recommend the parts, unless you are the kind of guy who likes to carve canyon roads. if you plan any track time, even at the drag strip, then pony up the cash for the parts. other wise get opentrackers upper and lower arms, as well as the roller spring perches. do pop for the adjustable strut rods though.

 

[RogerC62]

It depends on what you want. If you're just wanting to tighten up your steering and suspension, rebuilding the factory setup with urethane bushings will be sufficient. If you want better performance there are several options from better OEM type parts to replacing everything with mustang II style suspension. I myself have the GW uppers and am thinking about the lowers for now but eventually want to get a MII setup. I'm setting mine up for much more performance and it will be my DD when done.

 

[ravv 67]

More suggestion welcomed. Please!

Well, perhaps I should do what rboh suggested. Going with opentracker parts. With the money I save I could then use it to buy sway bars a subframe connector and put posi in the rear.

How does that sound?

 

[SoCalCruising]

GW used to just box the lowers, which you can do or have done, too. The uppers would be a good purchase, along with the adjustable strut rods.

 

[CarFreakGT]

Have you ever spoken w/ opentracker? If not, give him a call. John is a great resource, and will answer any questions that you have. He will talk to you to get an idea of exactly what you want out of the car, and give you some suggestions. The best part is that he won't try to sell you more than you need.

 

[Jester67]

IMHO the GW stuff is the way to go. It will improve the handling of the car for DD and will allow you to do what ever you want to in the future. They have a life time warranty where the stock replacement stuff would need to be replaced every 10 years to maintain the performance as they ware out. The only thing that held me back was the cost so I am doing it in stages UCA first with then strut rods I am planning on doing the LCA in the near future. If you decide to go stock I have some NIB MOOG LCA for the 67 for sale I was going to box and use these but I changed my mind.

 

[HistoricMustang]

I finally found a shop to do my suspension, now I have to decide what I want?
I don't want to buy expensive parts if they're not intended for the street. But I do want to put in quality parts.
So are Global West's tubular upper and lower control arms appropriate for street use or am I just wasting my money.

Simply overkill, plain and simple. I will stop at that!

HistoricMustang

 

[65 fastback]

If you're looking to build a nice street driver, you don't really need the Global West or TCP stuff. It's nice and does make a noticable difference, but for a pure street driver you can probably spend your money on different areas. Some polyurethane bushings in the stock components, will help though, if you go that route.

Tim

 

[CraigMBA]

I think the GW upper arms are awesome.

OT wasn't around when I bought mine in 1996, else I'd of bought his.

I boxed my own lowers FWIW.

 

[Max Power]

While GW is great stuff, I think it is overkill for the street.

 

[Jameshar1]

Go with John's (opentrackers) parts. You won't be disappointed. You could also use the extra money to buy a pair of his roller spring perches. =)

 

[BobV]

These questions / answers are SO predictable....

Everybody who does NOT have Global West will tell you they're overkill...

Everybody who DOES have them will tell you they're worth it...

My last car had them. My next one will too....

 

[Blu-Steel]

As most have mentioned, it really comes down to how you plan to use your car. I built mine for cruise-ins, car shows, weekend pleasure drives and to drive it to work and the store once or twice a week. That being said I found the factory setup a bit too loose for my tastes. I wanted a little better handeling but did not need a road race car or daily drive so I went with 620 lpd one inch lower springs up front, thicker sway bar, eurethane bushing, gas shocks, one inch lower blocks for the rear and a rear sway bar. I already had new ball joints and lower Arms so I didn't need those. Man what a difference that made, the car handles a lot tighter and doesn't feel as loose in the turns. If you will make it your DD, these changes might be enough. You'd be amazed how much better than stock those changes will make, but they will be nowhere near like the GW pieces or an IRS setup. For me that is just too much money for how I am using my car. I'd rather spend that money like I did and use what I saved for disk brakes and other mods.

 

[ravv 67]

Thanks for all the opinions. The car will be used 1 or 2x's a week so I'm leaning towards stock parts with othe modifications.
But I still haven't ruled out GW parts.

Is there anyone who has GW parts and only uses their car on the street and does no road racing? If so what is your opinion?

 

[66HertzClone]

Thanks for all the opinions. The car will be used 1 or 2x's a week so I'm leaning towards stock parts with othe modifications.
But I still haven't ruled out GW parts.

Is there anyone who has GW parts and only uses their car on the street and does no road racing? If so what is your opinion?

I have the G/W parts and do not run the car on the track. I am in the process of replacing my original choice in front springs with something a little stiffer, going from variable rate springs to a set of 520# springs. I am also installing a set of Koni shocks that will replace the KYB gas a just units I started with. I am not looking for a track car, just want the Mustang to handle as well as possible. For what its worth, money was not a consideration when I bought the parts. I needed to replace all the suspension parts anyway, why not spend the extra up front rather than regret not making that choice at a later date, and finding myself upgrading them later.

A friend whom I met with a Mustang similar to mine graciously offered to have my new Koni shocks re-valved and adjusted on a dyno by a licensed Koni shop. He had his done and told me the changes made a huge difference in the handling of the car. They were returned to me a week or so ago and included a printout from the dyno showing the settings and preformance. I will take my first drive with them this weekend, I'm looking forward to feeling the difference.

 

[mo'factor]

suspension

I rebuilt my suspension last summer. I went stock replacement most places, but did some upgrade parts. I went with 620 one inch drop coils, TCP adjustable strut rods, Global West tie rod adjusting sleeves, TCP eccentric eliminator kit, and Edelbrock IAS shocks. I would suggest the strut rods because stock is a really bad design. The tie rod sleeves weren't expensive and are a lot stronger. The eccentric eliminator kit wasn't expensive either. The combination helps to keep alignment better for less trips to the shop and better tire wear. The alignment shop tech used to race Cougars on Nascar tracks in the sixties and he complimented my setup.

 

[fvike]

These questions / answers are SO predictable....

Everybody who does NOT have Global West will tell you they're overkill...

Everybody who DOES have them will tell you they're worth it...

My last car had them. My next one will too....

+1
If you buy GW, you will not regret it. But are you gonna regret not buying? Got the TCP stuff myself, loves it!

Even if you're not going racing, there are those times when a good tune comes on the radio, and you get into a little more "spirited driving".

 

[Jimmys66]

Thanks for all the opinions. The car will be used 1 or 2x's a week so I'm leaning towards stock parts with othe modifications.
But I still haven't ruled out GW parts.

Is there anyone who has GW parts and only uses their car on the street and does no road racing? If so what is your opinion?

I run OT's UCA and GW's LCA with S&T strut rods. I drive on the street and haven't seen the track...........yet.

Here's my opinion to add to the list. Everything I have in the car is WAY overkill, but I do plan on hitting the track and an autocross and love to put it into the curves.

If you're just a cruiser, stick to polyurethaned UCA and LCA. A shelby drop, set of roller perches and aftermarket strut rods are a must, no matter what you do with the car. They just make the front end work so much better, weither it's crusing or performance.

If you like spirited driving and still want to save some money, go with the boxed stock style UCA's an LCA's. Best of both worlds.

You really need to talk to John (opentracker). Tell him exactly what you want to do with the car and he will set you up with exactly what you need.

Here's the website even if you only want to look. www.opentrackerracingproducts.com

 

[CarFreakGT]

You really need to talk to John (opentracker). Tell him exactly what you want to do with the car and he will set you up with exactly what you need.

Here's the website even if you only want to look. www.opentrackerracingproducts.com

The other good thing is that John can also help in getting brands of products other than his own. I'm repeating myself, but giving him a call is a HUGE step in the right direction. Great guy.