tower to cowl braces

Discussion in 'General Maverick/Comet' started by whitey68, Jun 24, 2011.

Page 1 of 2
  1. whitey68

    whitey68 Member

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2011
    Messages:
    99
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    Location:
    springfield illinois
    Vehicle:
    71 comet gt 65xxx orig miles .. 69 mercury marquis 2dr hard top land yaught, 62xxx orig 2 owner 429 4bbl 2000 heritage softail
    how important are the shock tower to cowl braces? i know theres a reason for them but new from the factory these cars wern't exactly pavement killers.
     
    whitey68, Jun 24, 2011
    #1
  2. 71gold

    71gold Frank Cooper Supporting Member

    Joined:
    Apr 9, 2002
    Messages:
    26,582
    Likes Received:
    2,933
    Trophy Points:
    978
    Garage:
    1
    Location:
    MACON,GA.
    Vehicle:
    '73 Grabber
    depends on who you ask...:yup:
    me...i don't think they are that important. I've ran with and without them with no difference either way...:tiphat:
     
    71gold, Jun 24, 2011
    #2
  3. simple man

    simple man Member

    Joined:
    Jan 30, 2009
    Messages:
    1,507
    Likes Received:
    4
    Trophy Points:
    0
    Location:
    Bunnell,Florida
    Vehicle:
    74 Maverick - 82 Ford Ranger,one of the first ones made!
    " Depends on who you ask "- - - I personally would use them. They help to keep your front end geometry stiffer. Sure you can run without them, but if I just paid for a front end alignment, it would be with them installed!:)
     
    simple man, Jun 24, 2011
    #3
  4. Earl Branham

    Earl Branham Certified Old Fart

    Joined:
    Mar 9, 2002
    Messages:
    6,367
    Likes Received:
    201
    Trophy Points:
    218
    Garage:
    1
    Location:
    Lugoff, SC
    Vehicle:
    '69.5 Maverick 302, T-5, Grabber Green
    I personally think that anything you do to strengthen the front end on these cars is very important. They move around a lot, and you can see a lot more cowl shake without the supports.
     
    Earl Branham, Jun 24, 2011
    #4
  5. injectedmav

    injectedmav Member

    Joined:
    Sep 15, 2006
    Messages:
    2,114
    Likes Received:
    26
    Trophy Points:
    142
    Location:
    Georgia
    Vehicle:
    1972 Maverick 2dr 5.0l EFI, 2003 Expedition(wife's), 2002 F150 Supercab King Ranch
    I say use them. I have cracked both shock towers myself, Mustang owners have all manner of issues cracking the front end in multiple locations as well(same suspension/unibody design). Without them, the weight of the nose is soley supported on the lower frame rail and torque box. The weight is designed to be triangulated into the upper firewall seam from the frame rail to spring tower to firewall. The torque boxes were never intended to carry the entire weight of the front end. These cars can handle ok with the right combo of parts and geometry correction and additional bracing in the tower area as well as tying the lower frame rails together.

    I can't take credit for that info. I spoke with the guy who designs the FMF front ends for street rods at a F100 meet back in 04 who, at the time was working on a front end upgrade that would be supported by the originally designed structure and didn't require cutting the car to install it. He already had the Mustang kit available and has since released a front "Module" that welds in at the firewall, eliminating the factory front suspension and framework altogether.
     
    injectedmav, Jun 24, 2011
    #5
  6. darren

    darren Member

    Joined:
    Jan 5, 2009
    Messages:
    4,852
    Likes Received:
    45
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    East of Dave
    Vehicle:
    72 302 Maverick
    i figure if they werent needed ford wouldnt have wasted moiney on them. especially on the frugal mavs and comets.
     
    darren, Jun 24, 2011
    #6
  7. mojo

    mojo "Everett"- Senior Citizen Supporting Member

    Joined:
    Jul 20, 2009
    Messages:
    5,272
    Likes Received:
    833
    Trophy Points:
    513
    Garage:
    1
    Location:
    Chicago
    Vehicle:
    73 Comet GT-302 4bl
    I agree. I believe the Ford folks/engineers spent a lot of research time and tests, and decided they were necessary. I believe they even use some kind of supports on the current model Stangs. Im keeping mine. The only problem I have w/ them is they are in the way "sometimes" when ur workin under the hood.
     
    mojo, Jun 24, 2011
    #7
  8. Jsarnold

    Jsarnold Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 29, 2008
    Messages:
    2,842
    Likes Received:
    4
    Trophy Points:
    102
    Location:
    Raleigh, North Carolina
    Vehicle:
    '72 Sprint
    But, they make great parts trays!!:D
     
    Jsarnold, Jun 24, 2011
    #8
  9. zorares

    zorares Member

    Joined:
    Nov 11, 2010
    Messages:
    329
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    50
    Location:
    Midlothian, Texas
    Vehicle:
    1973 Ford Maverick
    you can also slow cook steaks on them on long trips. :thumbs2: :rofl2:
     
    zorares, Jun 24, 2011
    #9
  10. 71gold

    71gold Frank Cooper Supporting Member

    Joined:
    Apr 9, 2002
    Messages:
    26,582
    Likes Received:
    2,933
    Trophy Points:
    978
    Garage:
    1
    Location:
    MACON,GA.
    Vehicle:
    '73 Grabber
    :hmmm:...no one can think of anything Ford wasted money on...:huh:

    ...:rofl2:...
     
    Last edited: Jun 24, 2011
    71gold, Jun 24, 2011
    #10
  11. b_ryce70Mav

    b_ryce70Mav Member

    Joined:
    Jan 7, 2005
    Messages:
    453
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    58
    Location:
    Shaw AFB, SC
    Vehicle:
    1970 Maverick
    That's their primary purpose!
     
    b_ryce70Mav, Jun 24, 2011
    #11
  12. whitey68

    whitey68 Member

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2011
    Messages:
    99
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    Location:
    springfield illinois
    Vehicle:
    71 comet gt 65xxx orig miles .. 69 mercury marquis 2dr hard top land yaught, 62xxx orig 2 owner 429 4bbl 2000 heritage softail
    my driver side was gone when i bought it, the po put power disc brakes on it and left the brace off. i found one on flea bay for 25 bucks for a pdb car it was a pain to put on, had to customize it lol
     
    whitey68, Jun 24, 2011
    #12
  13. Mavman72

    Mavman72 Gone backwards but lookin' forward

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2007
    Messages:
    6,759
    Likes Received:
    272
    Trophy Points:
    273
    Location:
    Buffalo N.Y.
    Vehicle:
    1972 Maverick 2 door.Original V-8 3 spd std shift.Also a 72 one owner Sprint sporting a 351 Windsor
    Ford wasted tons on the Contour and Mistique...Talk about bad news cars...:burnout:
     
    Mavman72, Jun 24, 2011
    #13
  14. bmcdaniel

    bmcdaniel Senile Member

    Joined:
    Jul 2, 2002
    Messages:
    6,823
    Likes Received:
    681
    Trophy Points:
    318
    Location:
    York. PA
    Vehicle:
    '70 Maverick Grabber
    I drove mine one time without the braces, felt like the front end was gonna fall off. But this is a car with a V8 that originally had a 6 cylinder and there was no belly bar either.
     
    bmcdaniel, Jun 24, 2011
    #14
  15. injectedmav

    injectedmav Member

    Joined:
    Sep 15, 2006
    Messages:
    2,114
    Likes Received:
    26
    Trophy Points:
    142
    Location:
    Georgia
    Vehicle:
    1972 Maverick 2dr 5.0l EFI, 2003 Expedition(wife's), 2002 F150 Supercab King Ranch
    an Aspire

    a Contour

    a Lincoln Mark 7 diesel

    Jack Nasser's paycheck!:biglaugh:
     
    injectedmav, Jun 24, 2011
    #15
Page 1 of 2

Share This Page