[carseland]

Hi. Have a 52 Pontiac Chieftan 2 door post and would like to change the front suspension.Nothing fancy. Would I be better off to use a Mustang II system or try using a S-10 frame? Plan on putting a chev 350 with a 700R4 into it, along with a rear end from a S-10. Would appreciate any comments.

[streetrod27T]

The reason the Mustang II pinto front suspension is used is manily cause those cars had the motor sitting directly over the suspension meaning that in your average rod with the motor set back and not directly over the suspension the weight exerted on the suspesion will actauly be less than that of the stock 4 banger it used to hold up. that and rack and pinion set up was great and did not need power assist.

The S-10 is not the same way. Its actaully weaker (this is stock to stock comparsion) than the pinto mustang set up however it was in a truck so its heavier duty than a car and works well.

Now for your car im not sure why you would want to go to all that trouble the Short arm long arm system you have is very good especially with some mods and its already there. There is really no reson to convert the setup you have.

My biggest question is why do you feel you need it. Alot pepole really cant answer that they just kind of say cause i heard it was good. Over a straight axle this true but when you already have IFS a disk upgrade, maybe some better springs and shocks or a air ride system is the best way to go IMO.

[BillyShope]

I tend to agree with "streetrod," but I realize parts availability might be a problem. Also, there are probably no dropped spindles available and, finally, the ball joints allow you to gain some braking anti-dive. It seems, however, that you're considering a full frame swap, which seems to be more than you need. I'd consider just a Camaro front clip. This would give you the opportunity to lower the car a bit and, with plates and gusseting, is a fairly simple task.

At the rear, I'd suggest something like Art Morrison's 4bar package or a fabricated equivalent with a Panhard. This is an easy conversion and, if you angle the right side up more than the left, you can even have some dynamic canceling of the driveshaft torque.

I probably wouldn't have looked at this thread, but it caught my eye because my first car was a '52 Pontiac Super Deluxe Catalina. Two tone green with a leather interior. Pontiac (and Chevy) introduced some fancy colors and interiors that year.

[Centerline]

I don't think I would go with a Mustang II IFS in a '50s car which is surprising for me cause I like the Mustang IFS on most street rods. The problem with the '50s cars is their weight. Although the Mustang IFS can handle the weight of most street rods with no problems when you get into the '50s cars got bigger and a great deal heavier.

I believe the easiest solution in this case would be a Camaro clip. They're plentiful, have disk brakes and SBC mounts and are fairly easy to install as clips go.