Replacing K member.

[jmir018]

so.. i'm been looking into improving the handling of my car while reducing a bit of weight up front. is replacing the k member the way to go? has anyone here done this before?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/FORD...42609QQitemZ7994184669QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/D-D-...42609QQitemZ7993145051QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/UPR-...33586QQitemZ7994159428QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW
Those are some of the kits i've found online. what do u guys think? any ideas, suggestions?

 

[StangFireman]

Give Jason a call or email at PA Racing. http://paracing.net/ Best customer service out there. Can't go wrong with their K-members.

 

[ka0tyk]

improving handling and removing weight? maximim motorsports tubular kmember, tubular control arms, and coilovers. new swaybar endlinks, and steering rack bushings. then you'll be good to go.

 

[Daggar]

I would find out and steer clear (no pun intended) of ANY tubular K-memeber that has an engine setback. Some of them even use it as a sales pitch "1 inch enginge setback!" not for this kid. I like my wheels right where they are.

 

[QDRHRSE]

A K-Member makes a big difference. Part of it is weight, part of it is because it pushes the spring and shock closer to the wheel. They are also a lot stronger eventhough it does not look like it.

Just like everything else "which is the best? " is a loaded question. The Griggs is by leaps and bounds the absolute gold standard for high end road racing. The GR40 kit costs $4000. For drag racing the AJE is the best but its spendy too. The Maximum unit is pretty good but they push the envelope with their pricing. For 99% of people, the D&D is the way to go. $635 shipped to your door with A-Arms and coilovers. Brandt Racing Enterprises is the best place to get them. Gary is a windbag but he will hook you up. WWW.Stangparts.org .

I have bought and installed 3 of them. Its a pain but fairly straight forward.

 

[90mustangGT]

The engine setback refers to the actuall engine mounting, not the wheels. However most K-members do move the wheels forward, making larger wheels sometimes difficult to run.

I have a Granatelli K-member. I bought the GP unit with just the K-member and A-arms from MuscleMotors for $380 because I already have the Coil-overs. They sent me the GMS unit which is regular on Summit $400 for the K-member and $291 for the A-arms, talk about "luck". They were having quality issues with the GP units. The only thing is it's a Roadracing K-member and my setup is drag, so I only saved about 23lbs total. At first I was PO'd because I am/was so concerned with front end weight, but looking at the quality and such with this K-member, I have no regrets here. It came with a lot more support, a G-load brace, two A-arm mounting point options (one high, one low) and two engine mounting points, and yes it moves the wheels forward.

Don't skimp out with something like a K-member, remember, it holds your engine, suspension, and chassis togeather. Imagine getting a cheapo and it broke. That is the argument that made me keep the GMS unit. (edit - this is comming from a guy who has deleted bumpers front and rear, airbags, power brakes, skinnies on front, no swaybar....)

 

[Daggar]

You'd have to show me one of those. I've not seen a Tubular K-member for a Fox and a 302 yet, that actuallly changes the sitting position of the motor (granted, I haven't gone looking for one either). It's always been the wheels that were moved forward instead. Think about it for a sec. If you move the engine rearward .75 to 1 inch then something else has be shortened. Not to mention the alignment ofthe shifter and tranny mounts. Am I missing something?

 

[90mustangGT]

You'd have to show me one of those. I've not seen a Tubular K-member for a Fox and a 302 yet, that actuallly changes the sitting position of the motor. It's always been the wheels that were moved forward instead. Think about it for a sec. If you move the engine rearward .75 to 1 inch then something else has be shortened. Not to mention the alignment ofthe shifter and tranny mounts. Am I missing something?

Here is a pic of my K-member. It's from the underside but you can see in the motor mount pic area where there are two slots.

I also have a TKO500 which is longer and requires exaust hangers to be moved back as well as the stock crossmember for the tranny modified to make it fit, and the driveshaft was really two long after the TKO500 install but I made it work (which I shouldn't have). Now I am going to have to get the driveshaft shortened at least 1.5" and a different center crossmember.

 

[Daggar]

With the TKO being longer from nose to tail, is it manufactured so that the gear shift still fits (lines up) in the hole correctly? Are all the TKO's the same way? I'd always been under the impression that the TKO needed to be installed with a different bell housing so that it fit correctly front to back.

 

[Numbles]

Tko's require a fox style bellhousing because of the length of the imput shaft. So even if you have a sn95 you need the fox bellhousing.

And the only think I enxerienced with my tko and the shifter is that is was moved 1 inch to the right in the transmission tunnel. Compared to the t-5. Although the output shaft was centered it seemed.