Crown Vic IFS - Installation Complete (For Real)

Suspension, steering, brakes, wheels & tires

Moderator: FORDification

Post Reply
fordman
100% FORDified!
100% FORDified!
Posts: 22329
Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2005 8:17 pm
Location: Kansas, Ottawa
Contact:

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fordman »

ok that is what i thought abotu the frame. i knew others had put there bodies on the car frames.
fuzzier1
Preferred User
Preferred User
Posts: 266
Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2004 10:48 pm
Location: New Mexico

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fuzzier1 »

fordman wrote:so what is this about the 97's i saw one today and it didnt look doable to me. the 2003 will never be around here to get the front off of. i think i read that you have to cut the frame off to use the 97 -02 is that right?

Why do you say there will never be a 2003 around there to get the frontend off of? The 03 and ups are everywhere. I don't know why they wouldn't show up there.

Fuzz
User avatar
flyboy71
Blue Oval Guru
Blue Oval Guru
Posts: 1012
Joined: Sat Mar 21, 2009 9:30 pm
Location: Boiling Springs, PA

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by flyboy71 »

Yeah there are tons of late model crown vics around here. Most of them are police cars that they buy and sell and they dont keep many of them very long.

Right now Im trying to locate where the sway bar should go on the frame. Where it seems to go seems to be too far forward or at least from the way the pic shows it in the car. When I try to shove it closer to the crossmember I cant actually get it to that location. Anyone know where it belongs?

Image
-Jeff

1971 F-100 240 straight six, 3 on the tree (parted out)
1972 F-100 302 auto trans, pwr steering, pwr brakes (under construction)
"Things are more like they are now than they ever were before" Dwight Eisenhower
fordman
100% FORDified!
100% FORDified!
Posts: 22329
Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2005 8:17 pm
Location: Kansas, Ottawa
Contact:

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fordman »

fuzzier1 wrote:
fordman wrote:so what is this about the 97's i saw one today and it didnt look doable to me. the 2003 will never be around here to get the front off of. i think i read that you have to cut the frame off to use the 97 -02 is that right?

Why do you say there will never be a 2003 around there to get the frontend off of? The 03 and ups are everywhere. I don't know why they wouldn't show up there.

Fuzz
because they are to new to be junked around here. it iwll take years before one shows up out here in this junkyard.
fordman
100% FORDified!
100% FORDified!
Posts: 22329
Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2005 8:17 pm
Location: Kansas, Ottawa
Contact:

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fordman »

john i was looking at the pictures of the steering box and the stub sticking out of it. what does the stub look like? what kind of steerign connector is it going to take to get a column hooked up to it? and what do you plane to do about the angle of the steerign box? how are you going to route your column down to it at that angle?
User avatar
flyboy71
Blue Oval Guru
Blue Oval Guru
Posts: 1012
Joined: Sat Mar 21, 2009 9:30 pm
Location: Boiling Springs, PA

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by flyboy71 »

fordman wrote:john i was looking at the pictures of the steering box and the stub sticking out of it. what does the stub look like? what kind of steerign connector is it going to take to get a column hooked up to it? and what do you plane to do about the angle of the steerign box? how are you going to route your column down to it at that angle?
Here are some pictures of the shaft and various joints that attach it to the CV column. Its plenty long enough to reach. I havent even gotten close to mating it up yet but based on some other threads on here its do-able. http://www.fordification.com/forum/view ... a&start=45

I was surprised how easy I could turn this with my hand to move the front end around. Im sure with wheels on the ground and some weight the power steering is needed but it probably wouldnt take two men and a boy like my 71 manual box does.

Image
Image
Image
-Jeff

1971 F-100 240 straight six, 3 on the tree (parted out)
1972 F-100 302 auto trans, pwr steering, pwr brakes (under construction)
"Things are more like they are now than they ever were before" Dwight Eisenhower
fordman
100% FORDified!
100% FORDified!
Posts: 22329
Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2005 8:17 pm
Location: Kansas, Ottawa
Contact:

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fordman »

thank you.
fuzzier1
Preferred User
Preferred User
Posts: 266
Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2004 10:48 pm
Location: New Mexico

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fuzzier1 »

fordman wrote:
fuzzier1 wrote:
fordman wrote:so what is this about the 97's i saw one today and it didnt look doable to me. the 2003 will never be around here to get the front off of. i think i read that you have to cut the frame off to use the 97 -02 is that right?

Why do you say there will never be a 2003 around there to get the frontend off of? The 03 and ups are everywhere. I don't know why they wouldn't show up there.

Fuzz
because they are to new to be junked around here. it iwll take years before one shows up out here in this junkyard.
If you want a 03+ CV frontend don't give up, just keep looking. People wreck every day. Also look out side the box, i.e. Police/public surplus. They sell a TON of these units every day. They are out there if you want to get one.

Fuzz
fuzzier1
Preferred User
Preferred User
Posts: 266
Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2004 10:48 pm
Location: New Mexico

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fuzzier1 »

Flyboy,

Who is the picture of in your avatar? I swear it looks just like a good friend of mines son. He is kind of goofy like that also.

Fuzz
User avatar
flyboy71
Blue Oval Guru
Blue Oval Guru
Posts: 1012
Joined: Sat Mar 21, 2009 9:30 pm
Location: Boiling Springs, PA

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by flyboy71 »

The '03 CV part I got came from a city police car. The guy I got it from buys old public cars at auction. He told me its insane how municipalities will buy and sell cars because its in thier budget to do so. Hes had a few that went to auction with as little as 5000 miles on them. My front end came from a 100k mile car. Ive driven by the auction and there are plenty of them there.

The avatar is my 9 yr old after a day at Kennywood Park near Pittsburgh. I think the heat got to him or something. :lol:
-Jeff

1971 F-100 240 straight six, 3 on the tree (parted out)
1972 F-100 302 auto trans, pwr steering, pwr brakes (under construction)
"Things are more like they are now than they ever were before" Dwight Eisenhower
Don H
New Member
New Member
Posts: 31
Joined: Fri Feb 26, 2010 7:32 pm
Location: Sacramento, CA

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by Don H »

I was looking at the pictures of your install and thought I would throw a couple of things out there that I noticed from when I did mine. I had to use some spacers on top of the frame to get the mounting brackets to sit flat. If I remember correctly they were about 5/8". Also the front sway just pushed up against the frame and mounted. Mine was a camper special so it already had holes for a sway bar and I was able to use one of them for the mount. What size are the bolts that are holding it to the frame? They look smaller than what I used. Mine are 3/4" which fit pretty snugly in the brackets. You are lucky you got the steering shaft mine didn't come with it so I am going to have to buy u joints and new couplers from somewhere like flaming river. I also have to get the power steering lines. The one good thing about mine was that it was new, had less than 500 miles on it so all else is good.

Don
User avatar
flyboy71
Blue Oval Guru
Blue Oval Guru
Posts: 1012
Joined: Sat Mar 21, 2009 9:30 pm
Location: Boiling Springs, PA

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by flyboy71 »

Don H wrote:I was looking at the pictures of your install and thought I would throw a couple of things out there that I noticed from when I did mine. I had to use some spacers on top of the frame to get the mounting brackets to sit flat. If I remember correctly they were about 5/8". Also the front sway just pushed up against the frame and mounted. Mine was a camper special so it already had holes for a sway bar and I was able to use one of them for the mount. What size are the bolts that are holding it to the frame? They look smaller than what I used. Mine are 3/4" which fit pretty snugly in the brackets. You are lucky you got the steering shaft mine didn't come with it so I am going to have to buy u joints and new couplers from somewhere like flaming river. I also have to get the power steering lines. The one good thing about mine was that it was new, had less than 500 miles on it so all else is good.

Don
My brackets seem to be fairly flat on my frame from what I can tell. Right now its just loosely bolted while I locate the sway bar and build brackets for the trailing arms, then I will unbolt it and sleeve the bolts inside the frame and box the frame. I was gonna put the spacers on the bottom side unless theres a reason to use them on top. Ive seen it both ways.

I located the sway bar about where it should be on the car. That puts the link arms nearly vertical. I cant get my sway bar bushings to move at all so I cant rotate them up against the frame. Ill probably just take those off and buy new ones anyway. From what Im told the bar should rotate in the bushings but not these.

The main bolts measure about 5/8" diameter on mine. The holes on the upper brackets and crossmember are 11/16" diameter.

Yes, the steering shaft. Well... I had a choice between an 03 CV with the PS hoses intact and brake lines still attached in a clean car, or an 06 CV which suffered an engine fire. I took the 03 front end and asked for the 06 steering shaft, so if it looks a bit crusty, its because it got pretty hot. The rack and pinion and hoses were charred black. At least I had a few options. Im sending him updates on the install since he's never heard about this before.
-Jeff

1971 F-100 240 straight six, 3 on the tree (parted out)
1972 F-100 302 auto trans, pwr steering, pwr brakes (under construction)
"Things are more like they are now than they ever were before" Dwight Eisenhower
fordman
100% FORDified!
100% FORDified!
Posts: 22329
Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2005 8:17 pm
Location: Kansas, Ottawa
Contact:

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fordman »

one mroe question on the steering shaft. what doe shte end of the column attachment look like? could you use a 80-91 F150 steering column to mate to it? does it have the half oval half flat shape or is it square?
User avatar
flyboy71
Blue Oval Guru
Blue Oval Guru
Posts: 1012
Joined: Sat Mar 21, 2009 9:30 pm
Location: Boiling Springs, PA

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by flyboy71 »

fordman wrote:one mroe question on the steering shaft. what doe shte end of the column attachment look like? could you use a 80-91 F150 steering column to mate to it? does it have the half oval half flat shape or is it square?
Im not sure what the actual CV column looks like that this goes into. The upper portion of what I have has a sliding section but its rusted tight. The very end of it is a D shaped end that fits into a socket on the column somewhere. Im not sure if it would fit the F150 or not. The upper U-joint seperates on this assembly and the end of that is the 3/4" V just like on the rack and pinion end. I may just remove the very upper portion and connect into there.
-Jeff

1971 F-100 240 straight six, 3 on the tree (parted out)
1972 F-100 302 auto trans, pwr steering, pwr brakes (under construction)
"Things are more like they are now than they ever were before" Dwight Eisenhower
fordman
100% FORDified!
100% FORDified!
Posts: 22329
Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2005 8:17 pm
Location: Kansas, Ottawa
Contact:

Re: Crown Vic IFS - The saga continues!

Post by fordman »

D shaped isnt how the F150 column end is. it is flat on two sides and oval on the other two sides. so i guess you would have to make an adapter to make that column work with that steering linkage.
Post Reply