Lowered Ball Joints & Shocks for ’67 Bug

Ask Andy › Category: Suspension › Lowered Ball Joints & Shocks for ’67 Bug
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Admin Access Staff asked 5 years ago

I am looking to purchase an AC Industries lowered spindle disc brake kit and all of the front end components this weekend. I am planning on narrowing my beam 4 inches and dropping it a tiny amount. I am not slamming it.  Since the spindles lower it 2 1/2” . Will this require lowered ball joints and lowered shocks? If possible I would prefer to use standard size equipment.

The rear end will be lowered 2 1/2″ as well, will I need lowered shocks for that?

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Michael Glass answered 5 years ago

Hi Tom,

Thanks for your questions.

To start with, to do a 4” narrowed beam on a ball joint car, you will need to make custom shock towers. If you limit narrowing the beam to 3” you can work the inner fender well and get the beam to fit with the stock shock towers.

When people use lowered spindles they usually install the adjusters in a 50/50 position, meaning that the adjuster will allow about 50% lowing and 50% raising of the suspension. In this case a factory style ball joint will travel plenty. There is no need for a long travel ball joints or front shocks.

The parts that I would use if I were to build this beam would be:
• Upper Ball Joint (2x) part #131405361F
• Lower Ball Joint (2x) part #131405371G
• AC Industries Front Oil Shock (2x) part #113413031E

For the rear end, there is no need to run a short shock. Even with lowering it 2.5” the stock length shock will be okay. To manage the weight of the motor and transmission in the back of the car, I would recommend a soft gas shock. If you prefer a stiffer ride, you can install the heavy duty nitrogen gas shocks.
• AC Industries soft gas shock (2x) part #113513144
• AC Industries HD nitrogen shock (2x) part #113513529

I hope all this will help you will your project!

Andy

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