Jamco Suspension is well known for suspension parts, be it dropped spindles and uprights, leaf springs, lowering blocks, or its modified '49-53 Ford Shoebox suspension that does away with the kingpins, replacing them with ball joints. The only problem with this arrangement was the downtime involved as you had to send your suspension arms to Jamco for them to be modified. The guys were aware of this and have addressed the situation with new tubular A-arms, developed exclusively for them by Classic Performance Products, so you know they're going to be first rate. We took the opportunity to drop by the CPP shop and watch as the first of the new Jamco suspension kits was installed on the company's R&D car.
What's great about the kit is it removes all that downtime; order the kit and change out your old suspension in a weekend and still have time to cut the lawn, as it's a bolt-in deal with no cutting or welding required, and the original steering can be retained, including the tie rods. The lower arms use original cross-shafts, while the uppers mount to a bracket that bolts to the stock cross-shaft holes and allows for more precise alignment. By switching to ball joints from the antiquated kingpin design, you'll benefit from better handling and improved steering, as well as better ride quality. The kit uses '75-80 Ford Granada spindles which lower the car 2 1/2 inches on their own, and coupled with lowered coil springs you can fine-tune the ride height up to 5 1/2 inches lower than stock.
While you can use the Granada disc brakes, Jamco also offers a big brake kit: 13-inch cross-drilled rotors on an anodized billet aluminum hub, with twin-piston PBR C15 calipers. The big brake kit requires 17-inch or larger wheels. However, it's the suspension installation we're interested in here, so let's get out into the shop.
Here's the kit, which includes...
Here's the kit, which includes powdercoated upper and lower A-arms with ball joints installed, new coil springs in your choice of 1-, 2-, or 3-inch drop, new shocks matched to the coil length, and brackets to install the upper arms in the stock location. The new lower A-arms are also equipped to accept Shockwave airsprings. Also shown is the optional sway bar and mounts, a beefier 1 1/8-inch diameter compared to the stock 5/8-inch version.
The '75-80 Granada spindles...
The '75-80 Granada spindles will lower the car 2 1/2 inches on their own, so coupled with dropped springs you can achieve a maximum 5 1/2-inch lowering over stock. The disc brakes are available in 5-on-4 1/2-inch bolt pattern only.
The first step was to remove...
The first step was to remove the stock A-arms, kingpins, and drum brakes. These can be removed as a single unit after disconnecting the tie rod, brake hose, sway bar, and removing the upper and lower A-arm mounting hardware. The use of the Granada spindles means you can retain the stock steering and tie rods, so they left those in place. The guys at CPP elected to install the new sway bar first, but this can be left to the end of the job also. The Jamco bracketry mounts the sway bar to the front crossmember/core support.
The upper A-arm attached to...
The upper A-arm attached to the stock mounting holes using this substantial L-shaped bracket, allowing for easy alignment adjustment.
With the A-arm in place, the...
With the A-arm in place, the mounting hardware was cinched up. Remember the alignment will need adjusting when you've finished so there's no need to tighten the bolts all the way down yet.
As it uses a stock cross-shaft,...
As it uses a stock cross-shaft, bolting the lower A-arm in place was straightforward.
The coil spring was next to...
The coil spring was next to be installed, and to ensure it was seated correctly, an adjustable jack stand was placed under the lower A-arm, enabling the spring to be compressed so the spindle could be fitted. You should use coil spring clamps or even a floor jack in place of the jack stand if you're tackling this job on the garage floor, without the luxury of a rack!
Once the spring was compressed...
Once the spring was compressed sufficiently, the spindle was installed on the ball joints. With the castle nuts in place on the ball joints, don't forget to install the cotter pins. These nuts can be tightened down as they don't affect the alignment.
The new brake hoses were connected...
The new brake hoses were connected to the existing brake lines, making sure to install the clip that holds the flexi-hose in place at the chassis bracket.
The stock tie rod could then...
The stock tie rod could then be bolted up to the new spindle. Again, remember the cotter pin once the nut is tightened. We're sure you'd clean your tie rod while the opportunity presented itself, but this is Jamco's R&D vehicle, and they were interested in assessing and installing the suspension rather than aesthetics!
The last component to be installed...
The last component to be installed was the new shock absorber, which mounted in exactly the same way as the stock item, from underneath and bolting through the chassis section. Actually the last component to be installed will be the sway bar link, which we haven't shown here! Viewed from underneath you can see what a tidy installation the new tubular arms make, with a huge improvement in handling, braking, and steering, as well as ride height. And best of all there's no cutting, drilling, or welding involved, and the whole frontend can be modified in a matter of hours. Now to tackle the other side.