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Setting up my rear axle on my '31 Ford Coupe. It's a '73 SJ7 . I have the center mount and ride height set. I have the diagonal control arms roughed in and am working on the trailing arms. To run them paralel to the ground I will have to fab 9" brackets that wold drop down from the center crossmember and connect up to the forward ends of the trailing arms. I'm OK with the but I noticed that on the bottom of the S10 T5 there is a large case mounting lug which hangs down to the exact level I need for the arms. Instead of mounting to the frame would there be any reason I could not run the forward ends of the trailing arms to the mounting lug on the transmission?
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Attached is a
photo of the mounting lug on the T5
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btt
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I wouldn't think it would be good simply because of the movement of the transmission/engine. I know it's minimal, but still. Plus I'm pretty sure the trans is cast so I can't imagine it holding up. My guess it that tab would snap off.
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jmbo wrote:
Instead of mounting to the frame would there be any reason I could not run the forward ends of the trailing arms to the mounting lug on the transmission?
You're talking about the lug on the bottom of the tailshaft housing?
The main function of the trailing arms - assuming either (a) you're using the Jag cage and something approximating original rubber cage mounts or (b) your diff is rubber-mounted - is to pass engine and brake torque loads into the car body. If you run the arms to the transmission you'll be passing these loads into the tailshaft housing and the transmission (and engine) mounts.
Might work fine, but I can't really judge in your application.
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I wouldn't do it. Unless you have your engine and trans solidly mounted to the chassis, the rubber from the engine mounts and trans mounts will flex when the torque is applied to them, lessoning the trailing arms effectiveness and shortening the life of said mounts. also a T5 has a cast aluminum case so I do not think it would hold up to the stress.
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The only reason to maybe contemplate mounting trailing arms to the tab would be because the tabs fall perfectly inline where the lower control arms pivot up and down. However, everyone is right about the cast metal snapping easily.
The trailing arms should prevent wear and tear on the bushings/bearing on the LCA during hard accelerations. I can't imagine you're running an engine with less than 350hp but if you are, you may not need trailing arms, especially if you're building the car for mostly cruising.
Can you post a pic of your frame? Someone may have an idea where/how else to mount your trailing arms.
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Thanks guys. Decided to frame mount trailing arms. Especially important now since I plan to rubber mount the center differential bracket.
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