Drop Solid
Improve your lowered S197’s braking and handling with J&M LCA brackets
By Steve Turner
Photos courtesy of J&M Products
The first thing anyone wants do to with a new Mustang is lower the ride height. Most often this is for aesthetic reasons, but some of us actually want improved handling too. However, if you do lower your Mustang, it will alter the suspension geometry enough to alter its driving characteristics. However, thanks to clever folks in the aftermarket, there is an easy solution to reset that geometry and improve the car’s handling, braking and traction.
One company offering a robust, bolt-on way to give your lowered Mustang a geometry lesson is J&M Products. The company’s Mustang Lower Control Arm Relocation Brackets (PN 23885R; $164.71) are strong enough not to deflect and they are compatible with the stock and stock-style aftermarket sway bar and lower control arms. They also maintain the stock Panhard bar location.
“Mustang Lower Control Arm Relocation Brackets Bolt In LCA relocation brackets are a must for lowered vehicles, they are available with 2-, 2-3/4- or 3-1/2-inch mounting hole locations for stock or lowered vehicles,” says the company. “Several available adjustments are incorporated in the design of the brackets that are utilized to properly locate upper and lower control arms for optimized suspension geometry to re-establish the instant center after lowering the body over the rear differential housing.”
Not only does adding these brackets allow you restore your lowered S197’s geometry, but also by using those three different lower control arm mounting locations you can tune the anti-squat for better launches. Moreover, getting the geometry restored reduces understeer and even improves ride quality.
With all that goodness available in a bolt-on package, we wanted to see just how easy it is to install the J&M Products’ brackets and the company shared some pictures that highlight the basics of the install. If you order the kit, you’ll get a comprehensive instruction sheet to guide you through the full process.
J&M Products’ Lower Control Arm Relocation Brackets for the 2005-2014 Mustang (PN 23885R; $164.71) are CNC laser cut from 3/16-inch billet plate, cold-rolled steel. Thanks to a rugged design and a pulse-welded construction they are set be rigid enough to resist stress cracking resulting from aggressive braking, cornering and acceleration. They are available with a red or black finish.
Begin the installation process by securing the front wheels, raising the rearend, and supporting the rear of the car with jackstands. Then you can remove the rear wheels and remove the parking brake cables by sliding off the retain clip and pull the cable free of the caliper.
Then you can loosen the fastener retaining the lower control arm to the rear axle. If your car is equipped with stock or aftermarket arms that feature bonded bushings, you can just loosen the chassis to LCA bolt. If your car has non-bonded arms, you can loosen the rear axle fastener.
Next you can remove the rear axle damper weight if your car has one. Then you can support the differential with a floor jack before removing the LCA to rear axle fasteners.
After removing the Panhard bar fastener, you can slide the J&M bracket into place and install the included spacer and washers. On the passenger side you don’t have to worry about the Panhard bar, but you follow the same process. Just hand-tighten the fasteners.
With everything bolted up, you can torque both the drivers-side Panhard rod and the passenger side rear upper support bolt to 129 lb-ft of torque.
Next you can select one of the three mounting holes and reinstall the lower control arms using the supplied M14 x 110mm bolt and its companion support sleeve. Just hand-tighten the nut and washer once you slide the bolt through. Torque the two M12 x 30mm bracket fasteners to 47 lb-ft of torque and the remaining bracket fasteners to 129 lb-ft, then you can torque the lower control arm bolt to that same spec. If you have stock or bonded aftermarket lower control arms you will want to lower the car to the ground so the chassis is fully loaded.
Here’s a look at the completed installation on the driver side. As you can see, these brackets appear quite strong and no welding is required to ensure you S197 has a durable rear suspension.
Here’s the passenger-side bracket, which appears equally sturdy. For this car, J&M chose the middle LCA mounting hole, which you choose will depend on your car’s ride height.
