1973 charger suspension and tires Help

[73chargerNoobie]

Hello guys first post I have ever done. I was wondering if any charger experts can help me with my dilemma I am currently struggling with. I am here looking for a street or race upgrade suspension and been having a hard time finding anything.the charger was a 318 and I am about to drop a 440 big block in her and was looking fir some advice. I am also looking for the biggest tires that would be plausible for the car. I was looking fir something around 17" rims so I can upgrade the brakes. Thanks all in advance

[XH29N0G]

Welcome.  There are a number of threads dedicated to these questions, but sometimes the best way to find the information is just to ask.

One thread on tires is pinned in the chassis, suspension.... part at http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,63191.0.html   I think another of the pinned threads in that part http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/board,15.0.html has additional information. 

I am not the one to answer your questions, but there are a lot of knowledgeable folk here and they can help with modifications for turning and going in a straight line.

Have fun with the car. 

[73chargerNoobie]

Thank you for the input tore down the whole entire car today about to go sand blast her do some other repairs . Just trying to make this car lighter

[ODZKing]

Welcome ... 73 owner here as well.
I can't help too much as I am mostly a stock fellow myself.  BUT having said that the one thing I do know is changing from a small block to big block will require some changes.  The first is the K frame, it is different in a small block car than big. The suspension was completely different in 73 from the 71-2 years. They tried to make the car more luxury in ride but clearly that didn't work.
The 400/440 oil pan is different as are many other items because of the suspension.
I know of several fellows who swear by a number of places regarding suspension.
http://www.ridetech.com/store/musclecars/?subcats=Y&features_hash=V298.V328
http://p-s-t.com/
http://www.firmfeel.com/  I have a Firm Feel steering box in my 67 myself and love it!
There is one other that I can not think of at the moment.
As far as tries, there is A LOT of room in those fender so you should be able to go as large as the suspension will allow you.
I hope that was of some help.
And again, welcome.  We look forward to seeing pictures.

[HPP]

Like ODZking says, the 73+ B bodies use a slightly different suspension system than all the B bodies before them, so very little interchanges. You say a street or race suspension, is it street or race and what type of racing? Also budget and expectations of this street or race system? You can make some basic upgrades for a couple of grand or whole hog with a front and rear replacement system for around $10k.

Tires, there is plenty of room in those fender wells front and rear. Fitting in a 10-12" wide tire in any location isn't too hard to do, but requires careful selection of wheels with the correct backspacing and offset to accomplish.

[Mike DC]

They tried to make the car more luxury in ride but clearly that didn't work

It worked for what they were trying to do.  

Today most of us have different priorities (and different standards) from the original buyers.  

[73chargerNoobie]

Hi all thanks fir the replies.
I am gearing towards basic street suspension anything better than original is better in my opinion ha. Does anyone know where I can buy a whole k member then? Because summit racing has control arms and torsion bars to help me but I am having difficulties tracking down a k member any advice would be perfect! And thanks for the reassurance of the tires and wheels I'm glas I can go wide now haha. Would a 4 1/2" back space work for the back? I am trying to put 295/50 or 60s in the back with 17" rims

[73chargerNoobie]

Oh and another question where can I find myself a big block k member? If anyone has any suggestions let me know I am willing to buy!

[ODZKing]

Oh and another question where can I find myself a big block k member? If anyone has any suggestions let me know I am willing to buy!

Well any 400 or 440 B body K member from a 73 or 74 will work Best bet is a parts car.
Bryan had one, but not sure if he still does. VegasCharger is his handle ... drop him a PM and see if he still has one (or two....or...)

[HPP]

My recommendations for suspension upgrades would be this;

1; tires and wheel. You are already talking about wider and 17" diameter. This opens up options to UHP tires, which is a good thing. Be very selective about your wheel sizing so they will all fit in the well. You don't want tires hanging outside the sheetmetal and then lift to car to avoid interference. This destroys the whole handling aspect.

2; subframe connecters and/or torque boxes, and/or in your case, replace rubber subframe isolaters with poly, delrin, or aluminum. If the chassis is flexing, your suspension will never be able to work properly. Included in this could be removal of all the iso-clamp crap around the rear leaf springs.

3; stepped up shocks, with an eye towards their ability to control higher spring rates in the future if you don't buy them together. For a non-adjustable, Bilstein of Fox, or a single adjustable version if you like to tinker. I'd not recommend double adjustables unless you are a meticulous record keeper. It is too easy to totatally mis the adjustment on 2x shock unless you have records of where you were and where you are.

4; modern, radial friendly alignment. By 73 specs were changing and you wont have the same issues as a '69 Charger, but you definetely want to step up the specs. If your shop needs a car to load, then use 2005 Mustang GT, other wise, you want positive caster up to 7*, negative camber, up to -1*, and 125" or .1* toe in.

5; now I would step up to bigger t-bars, leaf springs, and sway bars.  Skip Summit and talk with the guys at Firm Feel. They have the best parts for the 73+ B bodies.

At this point, it should feel like a different car. No need to start changing out control arms or going coil overs or anything like that.

In the K frame, maybe Schumaker offers a conversion mount that would be easier than swapping K frames.

[73chargerNoobie]

Thank you that helps so much!! I am going to order the stuff you have recommended haha. And I just had a question. How would I take off the iso clamp suspension ? Or is it easily replaceable with a new rear leaf spring and shocks ?

[RallyeMike]

How would I take off the iso clamp suspension ? Or is it easily replaceable with a new rear leaf spring and shocks ?

Rear: You can swap in 71-72 springs, plates, and axle. You can re-use the 73-74 axle with the only difference being that the hole for the centering pin for the spring is larger and should be bushed.

Front: They make aluminum biscuits to replace the rubber, or you can make your own out of pipe steel.