I'm doing a frame off build of a '58 Ford Custom 300 and did the Granada spindle swap for 11" disc on the front and wanted to do rear disc also.The aftermarket swaps out there cost more than I wanted to spend and I thought there should be another way.I started going online to every Ford related board I could think of and finally found the answer! On a classic cougar board I found out what was refered to as the CrownVic swap.The same 11" rear disc brakes as most cop cars.I donot take credit for this info,I'm just passing it along.If anyone is interested I can give a phone number to the guy who figured it out.There are 2 different set ups 92/94 and 95/ up.This is almost the same as the Explorer brakes on the big bearing 9" swap. I just finished the swap and could not believe how easy it was.I did not take pics and don't know how to post them if I did.Any way,My best friend has a body shop and had a '97 CrownVic that was totaled and told me to get anything I wanted.FREE rear disc setup.I called the guy from the cougar board and bought his kit for $50.00.What it amounted to was 2 different spacer rings and instructions.One set goes on before you press on new axle bearings to suppossedly keep the bearing from moving out from the rear end housing,then the CV brakes bolt up just like the old drum backing plates did.The other spacer goes on the axle hub to to take up the difference between the axle and the rotor. The only negitive that some might not like is the parking brakes.This has the parking brakes internal of the rotor, like the Explorer.Ford used the same caliper for both sides so the RH side has the caliper toward the front with the parking cable coming out the rear then running over to the LH side then connecting to RH cable then it runs down the outside LH frame rail.You will have to make up a mounting bracket and adapt to the front parking brake cable.Also the caliper brake hose has metric bubble flare fittings but go to NAPA and get a #1442 weatherhead adapter to use standard fittings.I now has 11' front and rear disc. I'm sorry about such a long post but this is the best I can explain.I have learned so much from this board and finally thought I could give something back!!
Another fairly low-buck way to go for OEM type rear discs on an 8" or small bearing 9" is an adapter plate to use the SN95 Mustang (1994 - 2004) stuff. Option of 10" or 11.65" rotors: http://www.ultrastang.com/Ultrainfo.asp?Page_ID=20 These use the other style of parking brake, a mechanism built in to the caliper piston. cheers Ed N.
Thanks for the great info, guys. I've been thinking about doing this conversion on my Galaxie this winter, and this will definitely help me. It takes alot to stop that tank! Although this may not be "traditional", I consider braking and safety to be very important when building a car. Thanks, guys! Malcolm
If I did not explain the CV swap well,you can go here to get a better explaination and pics. WWW.mercurycougar.net ,go to members list and look up post by" fastmerc" and look under his 2nd post on Disc brakes conversion parts for sale 8' or 9". He is the one I got the kit from.
Hi there maybe you could use a Ford Explorer 96-2004 I think they have a leaf spring set up it could be the right width for your application. It's worth a look. 28Abone.
I used the early 80's Lincoln Mark 6. I made the spacer ring for the bearing and that's it. Everything else is bolt-on.
One potential drawback to the CV swap is a visual one ... the parts are the same for both sides, so the caliper mounts ahead of the axle on one side, and behind on the other. If you have wheels that expose the brakes, some people might find that irritating. cheers Ed N.
it's an easy swap , ive used f-150 , explorer and crown vic ,depending if i need small or large bearing brake's . on some small houseing ends i've had to grind clearance for the disk backing plate so it would sit flush. i've also made split spacer rings if the axle bearings were good .
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