[DeTomaso] '70 Muscle Car Mustangs

Sun Apr 20 11:22:45 EDT 2008

I had a 71 429 car with 560hp.
I had custom magnum 500's made for it with 10 inch on the rear and 8 inch on 
the front with BFG comp TA.  I had custom springs wound in front and custom 
rears made at a spring factory.   The engr that designed the springs said he 
did the steve mcqueen bullet car.   I changed the rear sway bar to a 
stronger one.  Sure it melted tires but it did not body roll and drove more 
like a dirt track car sliding around corners with so much power.  On the 
straights it would lift the front and kind of sway dance on the rear while 
fighting for traction.  It was way fun to drive.
I can't say it hooked up like you would want on the 1/4 mile track but it 
was about fun not ET.
Rich
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Asa Jay Laughton" <asajay at asajay.com>
To: <detomaso at realbig.com>
Sent: Saturday, April 19, 2008 8:45 AM
Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] '70 Muscle Car Mustangs


> Mike is correct.  Aside from (in my opinion) the bad-ass wicked fast
> appearance, they don't handle real well  in autocross type competition
> or high end street use.  They are much better suited to straight line.
> However, with that said, the true Mach I and Boss cars did have more
> handling do-dad add-ons, the primary of which was staggered rear shocks
> and an anti-sway bar on across the rear axle, which in my opinion much
> improves the handling of the car.  Again however, as Mike points out,
> it's big, it's heavy, is prone to body roll, etc.  And with that said,
> I've never had a problem on dry pavement, even in high speed cornering,
> but not as high speed as the Pantera, which you definitely need if
> following Maj, Drew through the small mountain roads near his home.  :)
>
> Asa Jay
>
>
> Asa Jay Laughton, MSgt, USAFR, Retired
>
> & Shelley Marie
> Spokane, WA
>
> 1973 Pantera L 5533
> [ASASCAT]
>
> ******************************
> http://www.asajay.com
> http://www.351c.info
>
>
>
>
> MikeLDrew at aol.com wrote:
>> In a message dated 4/18/08 19 20 48, rimov at charter.net writes:
>>
>>
>>
>>> I may be wrong
>>>
>>>
>>>>> You are. :>)
>>>>>
>>
>>
>>
>>> but I have heard many say the 71-73 fox body mustangs
>>>
>>>
>>>>> There is no such thing.   The Fox platform was originally invented for 
>>>>> the
>>>>>
>> 1978 Ford Fairmont.   When Ford wisely decided to ditch the Mustang II 
>> (which
>> was built on the Pinto chassis, hardly a paragon of fine automotive
>> engineering), they shortened the Fox platform to support an all-new body. 
>> The new car
>> was significantly bigger inside as a result, but smaller externally than 
>> the
>> original Mustang.   It also used a completely different suspension 
>> layout,
>> with MacPherson struts in the front.
>>
>>
>>
>>>  rode
>>> and handled much better than the earlier fox body style mustangs,
>>>
>>>
>>>>> So patently false as to be utterly laughable.   The '71-73 Mustangs 
>>>>> have
>>>>>
>> their own virtues which can not be ignored, but handling definitely is 
>> not one
>> of them.   Compared to any other Mustang, even the Mustang II, the '71-73
>> series cars are absolute pigs, exacerbated in the 429-powered cars. 
>> Even the
>> 351C cars understeer something wicked, and boast prodigious body roll, 
>> chassis
>> flex, and all sorts of other undesirable traits.   They are big, soft, 
>> heavy,
>> flabby, flaccid boats, some of which are fast in a straight line, and 
>> admittedly
>> very good-looking (particularly the fastbacks).
>>
>> I was nearly killed (twice!) in a '72 Mach I while I was in college, both
>> times due to a driver who thought he was better than he really was, and 
>> the fact
>> that the car simply wasn't up to the challenges he was putting before it. 
>> In
>> both instances, had we been in an early Mustang, or any one of the
>> Fox-platform cars, it would have been no problem.
>>
>>
>>
>>> looks with
>>> standing of course... Did all the 71-73 come with Cleveland's ?
>>>
>>>
>>>>> No, you could get a 250-inch six, a wimpy 302, 2v or 4v 351C (rated at 
>>>>> 240
>>>>>
>> and 285 hp), Cobra Jet and Super Cobra Jet 429s, and a Boss 351C with 
>> solid
>> lifters, 11:1 compression and 330 hp (1971 only).
>>
>> By 1973, the cars were truly emasculated, with the top offerings being 
>> either
>> a 351W or 351C rated at just over 150 hp each!
>>
>> Mike
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> **************
>> Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S. used car
>> listings at AOL Autos.
>>
>> (http://autos.aol.com/used?NCID=aolcmp00300000002851)
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