Ouch! Coilovers w/o new wheels=pain

[70vert]

Hey all,
Looks like the new tire and wheel budget will have to be tapped sooner than I thought. Check out the nice grooves I made in my tire with my upper A arm:

A few more photos

I'm just glad I actually looked at this before it got worse. I already have an appointment next week to start getting the floor pans replaced, so I think I have to see if it's going to hold me 'till I get there, about 20 miles away.
Would I gain any more clearance up there if I lowered the coilovers? (imagine the tire going up relative to the upper A arm)
Also, anybody got a sense of how a 17x8 Edelbrock 454 would fit up here? 4.25 backspace, so that should help me out a bit to get it out. Apparently 4.5 is ideal according to a Mustangs Unlimited chart. I'm looking for a 235/245 tire. 255 on a 9.5 would be nice and one guy on the dodgestang chart did it but is anybody else running a 9.5 wheel on a '69-70 front?

At least I didn't find out at 70mph,
Joe

 

[iskwezm]

couldnt you just run a 1/4 inch-3/8 sapcer??? for now

 

[65ShelbyClone]

Those are some deep grooves. I seriously dont think it would be safe to drive that another 20 miles. Just get a pair of thin spacers for the time being...they're cheap.

 

[70vert]

Tire issues

Those are some deep grooves. I seriously dont think it would be safe to drive that another 20 miles. Just get a pair of thin spacers for the time being...they're cheap.

Yeah, the driver's side isn't so bad, the deeper one is the passenger's side. It actually has a couple hundred miles on it by now for the groove to be that big, and I don't see any plies showing through. Here's the thing though:

-I hear you on the spacers, but garage was broken into a few months ago and floor jack was stolen - they even cut the steel cable tying it down.

-Kind of saving up money and not buying a floor jack until I have room to store it inside the house. Basically no way to lift it right now.

-Would you continue to drive on that tire even if it was spaced out, though? And if I buy a new tire I'll just do my wheel upgrade at the same time rather than waste the money.

-I could just drive on city streets to the place - the rubbing might be happening more when it gets on the freeway and the heat expands it.

thanks,
Joe

 

[C0V3R]

I wouldnt want to be driving on those tyres. Consder how much more it will cost you if you go through a pole/car with a blowout.

Lowering the coil overs looks like it should give you some extra tyre clearance.

 

[65fastback2+2]

couldnt you just run a 1/4 inch-3/8 sapcer??? for now

thats what i first thought....floor jacks are like $40 at sears, if you have money for new wheels/tires you have money for a jack, if not, borrow one from your next door neighbor or a friend.

 

[1320stang]

So what happens if you have a flat? I'd go with the spacers myself, cheapest fix until you get your wheel/tire combo. And you could always sell them to a forum member for about half what you have in them later, so it wouldn't be a total loss.

Use a jack from another vehicle if need be.

 

[cardude]

yikes!!!

I bet that did not smell very well either! spacers would be the way to go in the short term. just make sure there is enough room for tire wall flex like when cornering & or pot holes.

 

[grego37]

17" or 18" wheels should cure the problem.
I have 17x8 with 4.5 BS and 245/45/17 on a 68 with global arms .

Can you do a mild grind job and re-paint the high point on the arm???

 

[70vert]

Lower, maybe spacers by tomorrow night

17" or 18" wheels should cure the problem.
I have 17x8 with 4.5 BS and 245/45/17 on a 68 with global arms .

Can you do a mild grind job and re-paint the high point on the arm???

Grego,
Thanks, that helps. Global seems pretty beefy up there too, so that pretty much answers my wheel question.
I would grind, but since the problem is going to be solved when the new wheels get put on I would like to leave well enough alone there, pretty much just for looks. I'm going to run out and see if Kragen or Autozone have a coilover adjustment tool and see if just lowering, which I was going to do anyway, gives me enough clearance for safety. Maybe I'll see if they have wheel spacers on my trip and get a new jack.
It's just that I have to work today and will probably be taking it to the floor pan guy tomorrow night, so my timeframe is a little limited for solving the problem!

This is one of those days where I feel like this:

View attachment 512178

 

[grego37]

re-check your alignment specs if you change your ride height, they may change.

 

[TT670]

I cant imagine living where you need to secure your floor jack with a cable, inside a garage. If youre only going 20 miles why not spread a bit of grease on the inside of the tires and carefully drive it there. If you drive slowly and carefully even if you did get a flat it wouldnt be a big deal.. its not like youd be caught off guard.

 

[CochinoFilipino]

PM me if you want to borrow a jack for a while.

 

[70vert]

Grease

I cant imagine living where you need to secure your floor jack with a cable, inside a garage. If youre only going 20 miles why not spread a bit of grease on the inside of the tires and carefully drive it there. If you drive slowly and carefully even if you did get a flat it wouldnt be a big deal.. its not like youd be caught off guard.

That's not a bad idea for now, thanks. I looked for non-flammable grease on google and found silicone grease, mostly in the food service industry. I could smell the burning rubber at various times, mostly on the freeway but I couldn't be sure it was me.

Kragen had no coilover adjustment tools; have to shop around a little more.

Yeah, if I had money to replace the falling-apart garage doors they probably would not have gotten in. They must have cut the combo lock with bolt cutters and cut the cable for the jack the same way. It's not a bad part of Oakland, but it's still Oakland. I've been warned by neighbors to keep my stuff secure.

 

[70vert]

thanks for all the help, guys

I got it to the shop OK, just took it slow and thanks TT670 - I did lube up the inside of the tires where it was rubbing and I didn't get any more wear on the way over that I could tell. I got the full floor pan from mustangs unlimited and it looks great. Now I can rebuild my tools and get some wheels while they're working on it.
thanks everybody for your help, esp. cochino offering the floor jack. Let's hope we don't have another server crash so the next guy who has this problem gets some ideas right away.

Thanks,
Joe