Mustang II Independent Front Suspension
In the beginning Rick believed a 347 Stroker would be perfect and enable him to keep his Ranchero's shock towers. Once he found out a 351 Windsor would bolt right up to his drive train and that all stroker kits were around the same price, the cascading projects ran wild. Headers on a 302 were tough enough. Add the taller deck height of a Windsor and tough becomes intolerable. Rick first stewed over the idea of using swap headers and putting on just a rack conversion. Eventually, common sense got the best of him, introduce the Mustang II Independent Front Suspension.

After a lot of research on Mustang II Independent Front Suspensions, Rick chose Rod & Custom kit RC-107. The set up included Aldan Eagle coil over shocks.		All factory suspension components were removed and the shock towers were cut out. Eventually they were replaced with flat panels also included in the MII IFS kit.
The steering box was removed in preparation for the rack and pinion.		Here's a shot showing the cross member and upper control arm mounts painted and welded in.
Control arms, coil overs, rotors, rack & pinion, and steering linkage installed.		A complete shot of the MII IFS setup minus the shock tower cover plates.

408 Clevor
The Mustang II IFS was a result of Rick's desire for a unique motor. Rick wanted a 351W-based, 408 Stroker with Cleveland heads. Better known as the "Clevor". A 1972 351W and 1971 351C 4v heads were used. The finished motor is estimated at 600hp and 575ftlbs. We'll be following up with Rick for dyno results and track times.

Before having his engine builder get started on the motor, Rick performed a test fit.		The quench chambered cleveland heads were milled and cc'ed to 61.0cc
The heads were also ported and polished. The ramps on the inside of the ports were taken down, and the guide bosses were narrowed. Here's a before and after.		The Windsor block was decked, honed, and finished out at .030 over.
Wiseco Aluminum Racing Pistons were custom made for the Clevor.		The connecting rods used were 6.2" forged H-Beams from Eagle made from 4340 certified steel.
The crank used was also a 4340 forged unit from from Eagle. The 4.0" stroke made for 408 cubic inches.		Here's a shot of the Comp Cams rockers and rocker girdle.
Scott Gunderman Performance Engines of Indianapolis built Rick's Clevor.		The in-car shot tells the whole story.

(Nicole's Other Features and Q&A )