Continuing the saga...

We're doing the suspension swap now. Fortunately the Granada/Monarch disk swap is well documented all over the web. However, not all is as easy it may seem since I plan to keep the power steering. The spindles and rotors are no problem but the tie rod ends and center link are different than the manual steering stuff.  I bought a rebuilt Falcon V8 power steering setup which included everything. The tie rod ends from the Falcon V8 PS setup did fit the Monarch spindles but the passenger side was a little tight at the taper. The castle nut had to be filed down a tad more for the cotter pin to hit the hole. The drivers side fit perfectly, dunno why there should be a difference but there is. Onward with some pics!

   Drum and spindle out     Monarch rotor and spindle out     and installed on the Ranchero.

I didn't get pics of the brake lines we made up but we followed conventional wisdom and used the Monarchs line clips mounted forward of the spindle.  I bought new Granada soft lines and used the master cylinder from the Monarch but without the power booster. I also used the Monarchs proportioning block and all fit just great. I'm not 100% satisfied with the brake feel. They stop fine but the pedal feel isn't as rock solid hard as I would like. I have a feeling it's due to the master so I plan on going to a manual disk/drum MC soon. The rear end swapped in with no issues except for the drivers side shock mounting plate and the soft brake line.   I ended up torching and rewelding the shock mount to the opposite side of the plate but could just as easily have bought one for a later Mustang or Maverick. Oh well, I like making my own stuff :) The rear soft line was too short to reach the hard line so I used the Rancheros soft line as an extender. It screws right into the new Monarch line and cinches up leak free, no problem. With the rearend and front spindles swapped I now had 5 lugs so I had to use the Monarchs 14" wheels until I could figure out what wheels to get later.  I knew i wanted either Cragar S/S or Torq Thrust II's but needed to get the correct back spacing figured out first. Big thanks to Mike Shnur for his help and suggestions there :)

   Here's the Monarchs rim on the front     before the rearend swap. What a difference in 14's!

   The Rancheros 14's swapped to the Monarch. Looks like a gasser! We pulled the Monarchs antisway bar for possible use later and with as much stuff yanked that we could could think of it was time to haul the poor Monarch's carcass away. We put the wimpy rear axle from the Ranchero in the Monarch so it was a rolling chassis and called the haulers. It's almost sad to see it go away!

            Off she goes!  The entire driveline was a drop in fit!    The rear sits low now due to the 3/4" rubber cushions that were part of the Monarchs rear axle. The positive camber surprised me since I thought the 302 would have brought the front down more, but instead it was higher. We cut 1/2 coil from the front springs but that ended up being too much. The 6 cylinder springs collapsed within a week and now I have maybe 3/8 of an inch between each coil. 480 pound Mustang springs are on the way, however. In the mean time here's some pics with the really low look :)

   Andrew topping the C4             Ready for a test drive! Bumpers out for rechrome.

Well I went with Cragars and I love the look, always have! I'm running 15x6 with standard 3.875 bs on the front and 15x7 with 4.125 bs out back. Tires are Dunlop GT Qualifiers, 205/60R15 front and 215/60R15 on back. Dunlop doesn't make 225's or I would have run those and 235 wouldn't fit.

                   And then, hey! The bumpers showed up!  

                Well there you have it! Lots of work still to do, obviously, but it's getting close to where I want it. I still have to tackle the upholstery, body and paint, glass, front coils and some rust on the floor behind the seat. I'll pull the engine again for a cleanup of the engine compartment. I'll have to bolt in an Edelbrock manifold and carb too as the 2 barrel stuff just ain't cuttin' it. I'll get more pics too so I can show the Hedman 88400 headers and beauty Dynamax dual exhaust (sounds fantastic!) I'll try to show the custom made bracket I had to make for the PS pump (what a nightmare) and show how I was able to respud the 3 row 6 cylinder radiator to work with the newer water pump and hoses. That reminds me, I still have to get a better fan for this thing :) Stay tuned, folks!

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