coils
01-29-2012, 12:00 AM
#3
Senior Member
It's not terribly difficult if you're somewhat mechanically inclined. The worst part is if any fasteners are rusty and/or seized. You need a big wrench or crescent wrench (forget the nut size) and an air wrench for the spring retaining bolts/nuts. I did mine twice in a week when I swapped a '75 F100 disc front end into my '69. The donor truck must have had a straight 6 in it because the springs were too soft and I had to order new V8 springs.
Basically, you jack up the front, place your jack stands under the frame RAILS (be safe!), and pull the front wheels. Keep a jack under the i-beam you'll be working with so you can hold the beam up while loosening the hardware. Remove the calipers and hang them out of the way with some mechanics wire so the hoses aren't strained. Pull the nut, washers/bushings from the top of the shocks too. There is a clamp of sorts with two 9/16" bolts which holds the coil in its upper 'cup' and the big bolt and nut that run through the i-beam, radius arm, and retaining washer and cup at the bottom of the spring...this is the major pain part of it as this will most likely be pretty tight and at least a little rusty. I placed a big wrench through the coil onto the nut and used my impact wrench to turn the bolt. It isn't necessary to pull the bolt completely out as it will help keep the beam and radius arm in position. Once the big nut is free of the bolt and the upper clamp is off, you can carefully lower the jack and let the coil extend. You might need to put your foot on top of the spindle/rotor and push down to create enough clearance for the spring to fall out. The install obviously will be in reverse order. It's hard to tell but you can kind of see the cup and nut that hold the spring to the beam and radius arm in the picture below showing the dropped beams that I installed to lower the front end.
It's not too bad really. Like I said, the worst part is any stubborn and/or rusty hardware. The second side will most likely go faster than the first. When I swapped those I6 springs out for the new V8 springs, I got it done in about 45 minutes! Good luck with it!
Basically, you jack up the front, place your jack stands under the frame RAILS (be safe!), and pull the front wheels. Keep a jack under the i-beam you'll be working with so you can hold the beam up while loosening the hardware. Remove the calipers and hang them out of the way with some mechanics wire so the hoses aren't strained. Pull the nut, washers/bushings from the top of the shocks too. There is a clamp of sorts with two 9/16" bolts which holds the coil in its upper 'cup' and the big bolt and nut that run through the i-beam, radius arm, and retaining washer and cup at the bottom of the spring...this is the major pain part of it as this will most likely be pretty tight and at least a little rusty. I placed a big wrench through the coil onto the nut and used my impact wrench to turn the bolt. It isn't necessary to pull the bolt completely out as it will help keep the beam and radius arm in position. Once the big nut is free of the bolt and the upper clamp is off, you can carefully lower the jack and let the coil extend. You might need to put your foot on top of the spindle/rotor and push down to create enough clearance for the spring to fall out. The install obviously will be in reverse order. It's hard to tell but you can kind of see the cup and nut that hold the spring to the beam and radius arm in the picture below showing the dropped beams that I installed to lower the front end.
It's not too bad really. Like I said, the worst part is any stubborn and/or rusty hardware. The second side will most likely go faster than the first. When I swapped those I6 springs out for the new V8 springs, I got it done in about 45 minutes! Good luck with it!