[Pontiac Ed]

I am still looking for the elusive '67-'70 Cougar of my dreams, but one of the things I want to do with it is to enhance the handling substantially dropping the car down a inch or two in the process. I want to retain the basic Cougar style of suspension, no coil over or Mustang II conversions. Any suggestions for components or vendors? Thanks in advance.

 

[ceedoubleyou]

my '68 had the front springs replaced , so the front now sits level, instead of having the nose being slightly nose high at the front, don't really know if it effects handling, because it was done by the last owner.

 

[Cougrrcj]

'Shelby drop' - relocating the upper control arm attach point is a tried-and-true handling technique. Do a search here on MC.net

Larger front - and add a rear sway bar. Addco is probably the easiest to find.

While doing the above, make sure to use poly sway bar bushings and end link bushings (part of Addco kit)

Stiffer and lowering springs, front and rear (Espo will make these however you want)

Shock tower and 'monte carlo' bar bracing - do NOT use the bars with a u-bend in the middle! I like a combo of these shock tower braces with this add-on montecarlo bar kit. Very neat installation that doesn't get in the way of changing spark plugs! Available with quick-disconnect pins, too!

heavy-duty shocks of your choice. Some people prefer KYB Gas-a-justs, others like Billsteins.

 

[occougarboy]

Shelby drop and 1 inch drop springs worked out great for ride height and handling, as well as a 1 inch or more sway bar. Shocks, I'm partial to Koni if you can find them. I ran these on my 67 with a 302 that made 400 horsies, and it handled pretty nicely. Also, aside from suspension mods, the single best handling improvement I saw came from subframe connectors.

 

[occougarboy]

And food for thought, the TCP coil over conversion for the front uses stock style components, the only major functional difference being the coil over attaching to the lower control arm, instead of having a perch on the upper. I picked one up, and installed it in an afternoon. Don't know how it handles yet though. It also incorporates the 1" control arm drop pivot, which is really cool.