Slick 60's

will the crown vic swap work on a twin i beam truck.

Yes, you have to cut off more axle mtg brackets and hardware though.
Doug

I don't know why you'd bother taking out the Twin I beam though. The best handling Lightnings were the first generation ones with Twin I Beam up front (according to Car and driver that is).

If you want a lower truck though, I can see one valid reason for making the switch.

MrEvil wrote best handling lightnings were 1st generation with twin-Ibeams? What gives? I read something in a reply to a twin Ibeam sway-bar question about a lightning set-up. '79 last twin? When was 1st gen. lightning? Did they bring back twin for it? Somebody please help clear this up for me.

My '83 is a twin I beam truck, and they used at same basic frame thru '96. Its the '97's that started with the ball joint setup they use now.
first Lightnings were 1993
check this out
http://www.swaqvalley.com/Blueprints/19 ... ng_low.jpg
you can actually zoom in to the "running gear" part of that brochure and see where it refers to twin I beams.

hope that helps.
JC

Johnny, it's not the same as 65-79 though right? Surely newer technology than in '65. It's not a swap like the 79 would be right? Because I've been considering the crn vic route myself. I've been trying to get this damn twin to handle at foctory ride height for a while. It's improved with the sway bars, shocks and springs but not like a lightning.

I know they don't interchange with the 65-79's Twin I's. But they are still twin I's. Crown vic looks like cats a$$ to me. Only welding is for the radius arms. Good for a guy like me who is dangerous at best with a welder.

early i beams are forged heavy duty pieces
later ones are stamped
ones from the 80s look wimpy in comparison to the 65s.

are the later model stamped steel beams in any way hardened, or are they just mild steel? I'm still trying to decide how ok mild steel suspension brackets are. OK or NO-OK? I know LOTS of people use mild steel for 4link tabs and such, but lots of people do lots of dumb stuff. Just HOW critical is the hardening?

moonpie wrote:MrEvil wrote best handling lightnings were 1st generation with twin-Ibeams? What gives? I read something in a reply to a twin Ibeam sway-bar question about a lightning set-up. '79 last twin? When was 1st gen. lightning? Did they bring back twin for it? Somebody please help clear this up for me.

'93 '94 and '95 were first gen Lightnings. And Ford used Twin-I-Beam on the F150 up to 1996. You can STILL get twin I beam on 2WD Superduty F250 and F350's. So Ford's been making Twin I beam trucks since they came out.

Moonpie have you replaced the kingpins in those axles. Even though its independent it still has in it kingpins and bushings simular to a pre 65 straight axle. Basicly its two straight axles.
Finding a shop that can correctly align and repair TIBs can be a chore. When I bought my first set of tires for my 1994 F-150 "RIP" the tire shop mechanic told me "DUH we cant align dose old Ford axles we'cant bend um" I said " What are you talking about this truck is 2years old and this is the first set of tires Ive bought for it." The manager came over and said it would be no problem.
Its hard to find someone who can do the work. But once you do that truck should handle well. Look for shops that have been in business a long time and I would even try a heavy truck garage as they have the equipment to properly sevice those axles.

moonpie wrote:Johnny, it's not the same as 65-79 though right? Surely newer technology than in '65. It's not a swap like the 79 would be right? Because I've been considering the crn vic route myself. I've been trying to get this damn twin to handle at foctory ride height for a while. It's improved with the sway bars, shocks and springs but not like a lightning.

one of the reasons for the lightning handling better was the fact that it used a thicker frame and more cross bracing as well as special radius arms. they had a lot less flex than standard f150's. they were also lowered and had better shocks. oh the 275/60/17's didn't hurt either.