What the heck does "squirrely in the front end" mean?

We just talked to a guy with a really beautiful 73 Mav. Everything LOOKS good and he says that everything is good except that it is "squirrely in the front end". When we asked him to expand on that, he said it doesn't "hold" or as well as he "would like for it to". :16suspect He says that it was a 351 Windsor in it and he thinks that it is just "too heavy" or "too much" and maybe that is why it is "squirrely". Any input? I wish I could easily just go drive it, but it is in MISSOURI!

 

Sounds like whenever he's driving it, it tends to want to sway from one side of the road to another. when he swapped to the 351, if he has weak suspension and steering parts and/or did not install an engine brace (belly bar) then this is probably why it's doing it. A car with a good suspension/steering and proper V8 bracing won't do this, more than likely. Just my thoughts...

 

The biggest thing I would worry about would be did they cut the shock towers to give clearance for the 351 engine. The engine will go in but there is no clearance for changing spark plugs. I have seen a guy cut out the towers for a 351 before and it wasn't properly reinforced. The shock towers were moving around when he drove it causing it to be very squirrely! If the towers have been modified I would be very leary of that car. If they have not been shaved, I would also be concerned for future clearance problems. Just be very careful on this one.

 

It sounds like the toe-out in the suspension is letting the wheels move in and out instead of up and down when ever the car hits a bump in the road. In other words, when you hit a bump or a dip in the road, the wheels should move up and down. Instead, the wheels are moving from side to side. The weight of the engine could be the reason. A small spacer inserted the coil springs might help. I would check the car very carefully to be certain there have been no modifications made that would cause the car to be unstable in the front end.

 

Thanks. What would be best.....replace the suspension/steering parts and leave the 351, replace the 351 with a 302, or BOTH replace with a 302 AND replace the suspension and steering stuff??

To install a belly bar, do you have to pull the whole engine?

This is a beautiful car and fairly reasonable priced (from what I can see, anyway)--Should this whole "squirrelly front end / 351 Windsor" thing worry me??

Thank God for this forum! You guys are GREAT! :bananaman

 

What Ray said. He explained it better than I did.

 

A 351 in stock form weighs 40 more pounds than a 302 (stock also) IF the shock towers are not improperly "hacked" and weakened,and IF the front suspension is in good condition the car probably just needs re aligning.












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CRAP!!!!!

Every time I find a car I like, there's SOMETHING!!! I know, I know......be patient, right? Unfortunately, I was absent the day they handed out patience!

 

Just be aware that just about everything mentioned that could be wrong with the car's front end, can be fairly easily fixed.
If you find a car that is perfect for you in every way, but the steering is squirrely (unstable at speed), then get the car and fix the steering.

If the car has been severely wrecked, or the towers have been turned to minced meat, are the only reasons I could see to let this issue bother me.
Even tower mods can be fixed, and shaving the towers is not a bad thing unless you don't replace the metal shaved out.

Buyer beware, but don't let every little problem scare you.
These cars are pushing 40, you will NOT find one to buy if you let a problem scare you away. They will all have some issue, no matter how perfect.

 

ratio411---thanks. You made me feel better. Now I just have to get my husband to come around. He is TOO cautious and I am TOO impulsive--so I'm always going "yeah, yeah, THIS one!!" and he's always going "Well, I don't know about this one"......

 

it's exactly the opposite with me and my wife. i rush out and she is cautious. the 351w is basically the same as a 302 with just a little higher block. that shouldn't be the problem in my opinion. but it may need the front end overhauled. shocks, ball joints, etc. might not be too bad if the price is right. but then again, there's lots of cars out there.

 

I wonder if the "squirrely" he is talking about isn't just the sloppy power steering that our cars have I never liked how the car swam around in the lane, and finally pulled all the power steering stuff and went to manual. It is now pretty tight on the road.

IF it is a shock tower issue...try a set of these to reinforce and stiffen the tower geometry up....





This black bar pushes the towers apart, and also pushes them away from the firewall keeping them where they need to be. Stiffens the front end up a bit.

 

Sabrina,
...could be a worn steering box...



if you could post a pic. of a motor shot that would help...

...

 

Could be anything...

 

going to be something...