Newbie: What can I actually do vs go to a tech?

[iSpencerPro]

So I'd like to think I can do most of the upgrades myself, but if I'm having a hard enough time on knowing what I need to purchase... I feel like I will struggle on trying to install everything.

I'm starting to look at lowering the mustang and I see a lot of people on here talk about going with BMR springs, and I absolutely love the way they look on the pics I've seen.

So far with all the threads I've been looking at the list of parts I need are
~Lowering Springs
~Adjustable Panhard Bar
~UCA mounts and UCA
~LCA mounts and LCA
~What are the caster camber plates?
~Do I need an upper strut mount?
Some people say struts but I'm not too sure if I really need to or not.
What will I be able to do myself if I allow for the time, and what should I just leave to others to do?
The reason I want the UCA and LCA is to eliminate the wheel hop for when I'm just doing a spirited run from 1 light to the next haha.
Any recommendations on parts that work well together or parts that shouldn't be used together(buying different brands) please let me know.
P.S. It's a 2014

 

[Badlilstang]

It comes down to the tools you have also.. Floor Jack.. jack stands.. maybe a breaker bar for those tight bolts. You can do it all your self and probably save a ton of money if you really want to. For me the hardest part out of your list would be the front struts and having to compress the spring. I have not done mine yet but will soon.. I have done them in the past with no issues.

 

[bmyles]

Why don't you start off with the Lcas and ph bar and see how that goes because it's pretty straight forward

 

[iSpencerPro]

Do either of you guys have a suggestion about what products should be used?

 

[bmyles]

I use all steeda personally , I just did the Uca and mount, lowers and adj phb last week. Guys here love the bmr parts and they have great support, I buy the steeda stuff because I think it's top notch and I don't get raped on shipping across the border but other than that I would go bmr.

 

[Jabooh1]

I use all BMR. The customer service is 100% top notch.

 

[blkGT500nCA]

Bmr

 

[Tim Comer]

You're gonna need tools. Air tools would be a big plus. And you have to get the car in the air to do these things. By far, the UCA was the roughest. That bolt under the seat is a bitch to get out. And my torque wrench doesn't go to 350 ft/lbs. I used blue loctite and an impact to put it back in. Simple tip. Support the body and lower the rear axle to get the upper mount out. LCAs weren't bad at all. I went with BMR on those parts.

Struts aren't that bad, just gotta have a spring compressor. I highly recommend using the GT 500 strut mounts when you put them back in. Stock strut mounts are pretty wimpy.

My car is not lowered, so I didn't do springs or the panhard bar. Take your time and don''t get too mad when things don't go as easy as they make it look in the videos. And you will get mad at times. Beer helps. Helps with the pain when ya smack your fingers or hands on something. Wear gloves, you'll have more skin in the end. Trust me.

 

[greenscobie86]

You're gonna need tools. Air tools would be a big plus. And you have to get the car in the air to do these things. By far, the UCA was the roughest. That bolt under the seat is a bitch to get out. And my torque wrench doesn't go to 350 ft/lbs. I used blue loctite and an impact to put it back in. Simple tip. Support the body and lower the rear axle to get the upper mount out. LCAs weren't bad at all. I went with BMR on those parts.

Struts aren't that bad, just gotta have a spring compressor. I highly recommend using the GT 500 strut mounts when you put them back in. Stock strut mounts are pretty wimpy.

My car is not lowered, so I didn't do springs or the panhard bar. Take your time and don''t get too mad when things don't go as easy as they make it look in the videos. And you will get mad at times. Beer helps. Helps with the pain when ya smack your fingers or hands on something. Wear gloves, you'll have more skin in the end. Trust me.

What this man said.

Have fun though, working on your own car is a great learning experience, and a great sense of accomplishment when youre all done.

 

[iSpencerPro]

I wanna say thank you everyone for your input as it really helps. I do have a lot of tools to work on it myself and any tools I don't have, I'm sure my dad does haha. As for drinking a few brews, I'll have to hit up a few friends over to buy beer(not 21 yet haha, few more months tho).
Do we have any connections with BMR or Steeda, like we do with AmericanMuscle?

 

[dirtyd88]

Panhard bar, LCAs, and relocation brackets can be done yourself in a driveway in a couple of hours taking your time. But it's better to have a second set of hands to move things around if needed. Springs can be done in a drive way, but it's nice to have a lift so you can work standing up and have more leverage. Having a lift is a HUGE plus for the UCA as well. I would recommend getting new struts and shocks, only because you can install the springs and struts as a whole assembly and not have to worry about taking the factory assembly apart. Get GT500 strut mounts, or caster/camber plates to replace the "one & done" OE strut mounts.

I will recommend BMR parts as well.

 

[dirtyd88]

Contact Jason at Hypermotive Performance. He will get you hooked up with everything. Excellent CS and great prices.

I wanna say thank you everyone for your input as it really helps. I do have a lot of tools to work on it myself and any tools I don't have, I'm sure my dad does haha. As for drinking a few brews, I'll have to hit up a few friends over to buy beer(not 21 yet haha, few more months tho).
Do we have any connections with BMR or Steeda, like we do with AmericanMuscle?

 

[iSpencerPro]

As for doing the shocks and struts, if I went with the Koni STR T, do I need to get gt500 mounts? Are there any brands recommended?
Thank you for the input.
Maybe if I'm lucky I can go to my gfs dad's "shop" cause he has a lift instead of using stands.

 

[dirtyd88]

If the struts are made for 2005-2010 cars, you will need new mounts. GT500s are just a cost effective option before dropping $400 on c/c plates.

 

[PLTechy]

From personal experience, you can install everything on your own in the garage with the right tools, but I would highly suggest having a second set of hands especially for torquing down the rear UCA, pretty hard to generate enough force on your own while crammed in your backseat. If you're planning on doing springs, as others have suggested, you may as well do shocks and struts at the same time.

As for parts, I've bought a lot of BMR stuff after reading feedback from other buyers and speaking with Kelly at BMR, and their stuff is top-notch.

 

[Tim Comer]

Contact http://teambeefcakeracing.com/ He'll have the BMR parts you need. Good prices too. Give him a call with what you want to do. He's a real friendly dude.

 

[Action Bronson]

I went with BMR for uca/lca/phb/brackets and all look like top notch pieces! Very beefy and solid construction. Kelly from BMR is great, I would get in contact with him and he can give you a nice list of parts you'll need/want. Great customer service too, he's helped me and answered questions, even the dumb ones haha.

I went with 2011+ Koni Sport (yellows) struts/shocks, Steeda Sport Springs and Steeda HD Camber plates (gt500 strut mounts only work on 2005-2010 struts but are a good option if you want to go the cheaper route). I also bought new bump stops, dust boots and spring sleeves so I can assemble the front struts without having to take apart the stock stuff. Easy swap.

I haven't installed any of it yet, I'm in the process of getting all the tools and stuff I need to do it. Struts/shocks/springs look pretty simple and straight forward. My only concern is that Kelly advised me to install and torque down the control arms with the suspension loaded and on level ground. Trying to figure out how I'm going to go about lifting all 4 corners of my car and have the suspension loaded. Was thinking of driving the front up on ramps, but not sure the safest way to lift the entire rear of my car while the front is on ramps??

 

[Dsg-shaker]

I went with BMR for uca/lca/phb/brackets and all look like top notch pieces! Very beefy and solid construction. Kelly from BMR is great, I would get in contact with him and he can give you a nice list of parts you'll need/want. Great customer service too, he's helped me and answered questions, even the dumb ones haha.

I went with 2011+ Koni Sport (yellows) struts/shocks, Steeda Sport Springs and Steeda HD Camber plates (gt500 strut mounts only work on 2005-2010 struts but are a good option if you want to go the cheaper route). I also bought new bump stops, dust boots and spring sleeves so I can assemble the front struts without having to take apart the stock stuff. Easy swap.

I haven't installed any of it yet, I'm in the process of getting all the tools and stuff I need to do it. Struts/shocks/springs look pretty simple and straight forward. My only concern is that Kelly advised me to install and torque down the control arms with the suspension loaded and on level ground. Trying to figure out how I'm going to go about lifting all 4 corners of my car and have the suspension loaded. Was thinking of driving the front up on ramps, but not sure the safest way to lift the entire rear of my car while the front is on ramps??

Put the axle on jack stands. You will get the load of the car on the rear suspension that way.

Forgot to add, depending on your mechanical aptitude this can be a few hour job. Did frpp struts and springs in the front and gt500 mounts, frpp shocks and springs in the back and the Shelby bracing for center link on the diff. All said and done about 6-7 hours working from a safe pace.


If you have a decent set of hand tools and a torque wrench that goes above 250ft.lbs you'll be set. :beer:

 

[Action Bronson]

Hmm. I recall Kelly specifically saying the wheels have be loaded on something and not just jack stands under the axle. I'll try and dig up the post where he mentioned it.

As far as tools, I bought a Kobalt (Lowes) torque wrench and the range is 50 ft/lbs up to 250 ft/lbs. BMR's install instruction from their site calls for 129 ft/lbs for the main bolt under the back seat...doesn't ford spec 300 ft/lbs? I figure i'll max my torque wrench out to 250 ft/lbs. and use some blue loctite?

http://www.bmrsuspension.com/siteart/install/UCM001.pdf

I also bought a nice Kobalt cordless electric 1/2" drive impact wrench. It's 20v and rated at 350 ft/lbs. Has great reviews on the Lowes website and comes with 2 batteries and a charger. It's only $280 too. Should hopefully make easy work of the more heavy duty bolts.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_437515-1124...=1&currentURL=?Ntt=cordless+impact&facetInfo=