Upgrade Front Suspension On SWB

[p1967911]

I understand changing a SWB front end to a later model is a good upgrade and a straight forward operation.

Is '87 the latest year for a straight swap?

Is one year preferable over another?

Intended car is a '67 normal.

Mark

[Grady Clay]

Mark,

Welcome to the Forum. You will find lots of help here.

I did this to my new ’68 SWB in early ’70. It is an easy swap and a great improvement. By ’73 it was mostly ’73 RS/RSR components. I still have my complete original suspension/steering assembly with less than 20K miles.

You will find a lot archived about various changes and improvements to suit your driving. With larger front brakes you will want to up-rate the rears.

I would not use the ’69-’71 original strut – ball joint pinch bolt parts.

Best,
Grady

[p1967911]

Thanks Grady,

I am preparing for a complete ground up rebuild of the '67. It will be a street car driven hard in the NorCal foothills.
I'm more concerend with doing things right than what it costs. Not to say the sky is the limit but I want to be happy with the end result. Really happy. Yes I know I'll have more in it than it's worth. That's OK. Four years in the commuter car it's worth diddly, four years after the rebuild chances are it's value will be catching up to the cost. I'm just starting to disassemble before sending off for media blasting and paint. Being inexperianced with this type of thing it makes sense to me to do any type of cutting/drilling/fitting now before sending out the tub, so that my blunders can be fixed before paint. That being said.
Is the latest front end the best?
Is the lateset 'bolt on' a '87 or '89?
I read somewhere after a certain year model 2 holes need to be enlarged for the front end to fit. Is this true and if so what year is it? Steering rack, can I, should I use the original or the later one? I'm guesing the rear brakes and master cylinder (if not more) should be upgraded to match. Suggestions? I've done some searching here and answers seem to be somewhat disjointed, maybe I have not mastered the search functions yet.
I've purchsed Wayne's books and Bruce Andersons book, Is there a good book that talks about suspensions? I have not convinced myself to let go of the money for the factory manuals, is there a less expensive way of obtaining? Yeah that's a loaded question.
Thanks for any advice.

Mark

[p1967911]

Bump

[europorsche914]

free bump

[DaveE]

p1967911, I'm not sure what the latest year is that you can use, but a front end from the SC models would probably be a good choice. As far as rear brakes, there isn't much you can fit to the rear due to the spacing on the rear control arm. There is someone on the Early 911 Registry Forum who makes an adapter bracket to mount I believe the SC rear caliper. You should plan to update your '67 to the later dual master cylinder and circuits.

[Grady Clay]

Guys,

Thanks for bumping this back up. Sorry I was off so long.

Mark,

“Is the latest front end the best? Is the latest 'bolt on' a '87 or '89?”
Not necessarily.
I think the best is a combination of parts. Clearly there some “musts” and “don’ts” that need to be addressed. You don’t want the ’69-’71 strut-ball joint system for safety reasons. You want the ability to continue using the through-the-body sway bar. The aluminum caliper “S” brakes are more than sufficient for your weight and use so the thicker rotors and “A” calipers are unnecessary (and heavy). There is utility with the ’74 on self-centering hubs and the larger spindle diameter. Every installation will benefit from the Turbo tie rods. You want the shocks, sway bars and springs balanced F-R.

Using the ’67-’68 911S vented rear brakes is sufficient improvement. You can even modify your existing calipers to allow for the vented rotors. There are other simple alternatives to gain vented rotors in the rear.

For your use the issue with suspension bushings has to do with the condition of the rubber in the parts you find.

My ’68 has a 20.9 mm master cylinder, which I like. A 19 mm (original) is probably more suitable. You are going to want to convert to a dual-circuit system. The ’68 parts will fit your ’67 with minimal work. Needless to say you should get new rubber brake flex hoses. There are a lot of preservation things to do with your brake system. Much of the latest pipes will fit.

Considering your full-tub “restoration,” have you considered LWB? You can do this where only a very practiced eye can tell. There are significant handling gains to be had. You can then use the aluminum rear trailing arms and the later calipers.

One of the reasons there isn’t a lot of stuff about the SWB is that the ’69 was so much of an improvement. All of the racing improvements centered on that chassis. It wasn’t until vintage racing 2.0s became popular that many SWB issues were addressed (too often not). It takes looking at the progression of improvements over 20-30 years and applying that to your ’67.

There are some critical decisions you want to make while the chassis is bare. They are; wheelbase, ability to possibly use a 915, chassis strengthening, ability to install a bolt-in bar or cage, and rust prevention. I’ll put some emphasis on the latter because Porsche built these 911s prepped to rust internally. With a full tub restoration you have the opportunity to arrest that dim fate.

There is a thread today where Dave@TRE said: “I am sure you may have heard an adage: Quality, Price, Timeliness- pick any two.” DIY and patience you can pick the first two. These kinds of projects probably won’t be the last in the lives of our 911s. We are simply the current caretakers. They may be the “only” as far as most of us are concerned. Like some other things in life, they are worth being done right.

Best,
Grady