1937 Replica/Kit Makes 1937 Ford Sedan

See  YOUTUBE   movie   regarding  this  build  . nbsp;

 https://youtu. be/N8Y7cj_JeT8

1937 Ford Sedan Kit Car . Coast to Coast body /  Rolling chassis

Includes  . Wheels . Tires . Brakes . 4L85E GM  crate trans . Converter . flywheel . gm shift computer. front / rear working air ride suspension . air compressor . air tank . air manifold-valve block . full  stainless 3”exhaust system from headers to rear tips . front and rear working sway bar . ford  steering rack . Wilwood brakes  . SSBC Alum master cyl . hydraboost brake booster . Griffin  alum radiator . power window kit . wiper motor kit . wiper intermittent switch .  and  trailer hitch.   Built with all new parts  . nothing  used .    Does not include engine  . Set up for Big Chevy 454-502.    Bought this  37 Ford kit  car new in 2004 .   It came with a full body  package  . span >  frame . Mustang 2 IFS . and all window glass  .  All tubular Coast to Coast cross members . transmission support . motor mounts . brake mounting brackets . span >  were removed . although .  did leave the front IFS Mustang 2 cross member .    Needed   frame to handle plenty of  horsepower  . span >  and  capable of pulling trailer  .   air ridden .  no low exhaust parts . span >   street able .  bolt in  roll cage .  and  mini tubbed  .   Spent about  a month  moving  and measuring  all the components   to achieve the  very best ride height . span >  access for hands . ground clearance without air . correct engine angle . and many other things.  Dozens of moving parts .  situations . measurements .  were considered  before any fabrication began  .   

Build was done using a SPI Tronic digital level . which is capable of  1/10 degree.

which is   . 005 for  6 inches .    Other measuring tools used were   . span >  two  verified bubble levels .  Starret dial indicators .  2 verified tape measures  . Starrett dial calipers . playdough  . and  string.   Don't mean to preach on the precision  . but a  a  potential buyer must know  what they are paying for  .    This rolling chassis build has over 2500 hours  and  $ 38 K  for kit & parts .

Body ………………. It is 2004  Coast to Coast 37 Ford  sedan # 87 . fiberglass . two door suicide  with  hinges  .  trunk door  and  hinges . and dash board  .   Some fiberglass modifications are not complete . they are . span >   fiberglassing a set back firewall / tunnel . 3 suspension cut outs in floor . 2 wheel tub  side walls .  Nose  area  by radiator will need a bracket . or a cross piece fiberglassed back in .   Was  cut to  clear  accessories .  The body has some scrapes  . chips . small gel cracks here and there .  Has all the  windows except  windshield . it's cracked . actually that way when car arrived .        Kept it for comparison when replacing.         

Frame ………………Coast to Coast outer frame rails 3/16 thick . and  IFS front cross beam  mustang 2 .    All  else was custom built . All frame work . and welding has been finished .     Welding / fabrication was done  jigged  at  ride height which is 2-1/2 “ above air bottom .  Then re - jigged upside down  for underside welds .     Large forward driveshaft loop interconnected with upper  . and lower X cross lacing  .    Rear driveshaft loop is stainless . bolted and swingable.  for easy removal of driveshaft  . Transmission mount blended into the lower X .       Rear frame  was tubbed inward 2 inches .  using matching 3/16 plate  .  Emergency brake cable pipes  straight through the rear frame rails .   Motor mounts built using 3/16 plate welded inside and out  . with  ends  lathed from stainless . so no paint chipping .    IFS front strut  gussets  enlarged  .  coming back 45 degrees .   12  Roll bar mounting pads are sunk into the top of the frame rail's . each has deep V welds  attaching  both side walls & top . then sanded flush  .  Pads are threaded  5/8 deep  and tapped to ½-13 TPI .   Wire channels preplanned for left and right rail .  tubing stub outs are   welded to the frame rails .   They also  align the body to the frame  . span >   and come up inside the body . behind  firewall left .  and right .      

  Main frame rail edge's  had  thin welds front to back . When they build these frames . they weld it . then sand welds flat to look like a store bought beam .   Yes it looks great .  but  they sanded most of the weld off .   I noticed this when  tubbing the rear end . and could see inside . The  welds were paper thin . span >  anywhere  from . 010 -. 060 .    I  know unacceptable when I see it .   Cut the rail edges at 45 degrees from front to  rear rail tip . span >  all 4 corners on both rails . totaling around 100 feet.   This would make room for thick weld .   Fuse tigged  on  first pass . and tigged the second pass .  Welds now have  confirmed deep   penetration on all rail edge's . span >   . 187 (3/16)   plus  .      Trueness verified with dial indicators and digital level after welding complete .         

Engine –  NOT INCLUDED  .    The project was built using a 2005  HO 454   GM crate engine with Aluminum D shaped exhaust port heads . which will match the header flanges.

Transmission – It's a new GM 4L85E crate transmission from a GM dealer . Not a reman  on a crate .   It also includes the  GM shift computer and harness . not aftermarket .  

Exhaust  -- The entire exhaust system built with  304 stainless steel . except mufflers are 409 stainless . all tig welded .    Built it from the headers to tips . span >  except for the mufflers .  Made the headers to fit  HO454/502-  D port heads  .  3/8 head flanges  .  ending into a 3” collector .  designed in place on this car . dead centered . no close clearances . and not hugging the block and starter like the one size fit alls  .   Flanges at head were welded inside and out . Port tubes are 1-7/8 . span >  collectors are  3”  round tube . . 060  wall . and  super thick  3/8 stainless 3 bolt flanges made by Burns Stainless .       From the collectors back . the system was built  with only 2 welds left for final assembly .    The reason is so JET HOT coating  can fit the parts in the ceramic ball tumbler . they  can handle up to 6 ft max .   Otherwise the rear pipes would be welded to the mufflers  . Mufflers are Flowmaster 3” in/out .  3 chamber . 409 stainless . customized to clear the bolt area on the 4 link . and have a welded exhaust hanger bracket above rear walls.   The exhaust hanging fiber rubber  is a strong 3 bolt unit from a Kenworth Semi Truck .   This design cuts down the swinging  .  The exhaust is designed to go straight under the rear end . and  remove  out the back of the car all in one piece . Its geometry lines also flow with the X bracing angles . height . and clearances exact too . After the muffler . the rear exhaust becomes oval pipe  . which was needed to clear banjo housing / air ride  travel . and look good blending into the exit tips .     This is also why the panhard bar was designed above the pumpkin  .     Air full up / full down . exhaust not near it .    The rear exhaust tips  built from polished stainless plate . and blend with  the trailer hitch .    

Driveshaft –   All 4 Yokes  are  1350 series .     No funky size ujoints . just  square  spicer 1350s front and rear  .

Rear End – Strange banjo housing custom built to measurements  . span >  Strange carrier housing Nodular steel  with bigger bearings .  Strange aluminum nose with bigger bearings  . span >  3. 25 Real OEM Ford gears  .  ARB 35 spline air locker which is a spool capable of freewheeling .   Strange 35 spline axles with oiled outboard bearings .  using ½ - 20 studs  

Chunk built  triple checking . backlashes . pinion depths . and bearing preloads  to Ford and Strange spec .  Banjo housing rear cross support built for added strength . helping the axle tubes from folding forward  with big horse power .   All banjo housing welding was done with its own jig . span >  tested   welds with air pressure  using  bubble check .   then verified  axle flange toe in . toe out . and  no camber  when finished .  The rear end end was basically blueprinted right down to the carrier gasket thickness .   Yes . span >  even . 020 can toe one way or another 1/16 plus of an  inch .   This one is zero toe using a . 032 gasket .       In 2016 . the banjo housing was white metal blasted and primed using Dupont Nason epoxy primer .   See video.

Rear Suspension  -  Air Ride Technologies  Shockwave 9000s bags with internal shocks and bumpstops .  secondary bumpstops on rear  frame with stainless pads . no paint marring .      1/4   thick  4  link bar  brackets welded to  the axle tubes . and frame  .  The upper and lower bar spread is as much as I could fit . without turning it into a full drag car .   The forward upper bar ends come into floorboard about an inch  .   The 4 link bar angles were designed at 5 degrees high in rear . at ride height . This gives  squat during acceleration . and the 5 degrees  increases  as it squats . allowing even more  front lift and traction .     Another reason  this project was built at ride height .  This can make the difference between a tire frier . or controllable hot rod .      The air bag  upper  mounting is a   designated cross  beam 2 x 2 x 1/4 wall  . which also holds the sway bar .    The sway bar is a 3/4 nascar style . 3/8 stainless rod ends . and lathed some  brass bushings .

The 4 link bars are  1-1/4  polished stainless steel  Air Ride Technologies Par 1000 SS . . the  panhard bar matches  and  built as long as possible to minimize deflection . span >   27. 5 hole to hole .   Tested deflection at  . 090  side to side . full down or full up . That's a low number . shorter bar cars will deflect double that . The  bar  is mounted forward . span >  above the pumpkin  . so exhaust is nowhere near .

 This panhard bar is also designed exactly parallel to the axles .     No cross angled  forward  situation  causing  rear bump steer .

Front Suspension  -  Mustang 2 cross member . Ford power steering rack . span >  Heidts stainless  upper and lower A's . Air Ride Technologies air bags with internal shock  and bump stops .  Lower A's have bag mounting spacers lathed from stainless  aquamet 22 .  centering  the air bag  . blending  into the Heidts A arm tubes.      Curved aluminum hats  with surrounding skirt   hide the upper bag tops  &  a-arm adjusting bolts .     The upper bag mounting bolts built from   5/8 stainless . span >   they  countersink flush into the  mounting bracket .   The sway bar is a Heidts 35-40 ford with stainless rod ends attaching to lower As.  Tie rod ends  are Heidts polished stainless .   Spindles are new mustang 2 .

Brakes  .  4 wheel disc …….    Front  -  Wilwood Superlite 4 piston calipers 1. 75 bores .  held by custom polished stainless brackets  . and  Wilwood 12” bolt on rotors attaching to custom hubs ………. Rear - Wilwood 12” hat style rotors with internal drum parking brake . Wilwood Superlite  4 piston calipers 1-3/8 bores . held by custom polished stainless  brackets .   Caliper Logos were  machined  off  . then  polished to  match wheels .   Caliper mounting brackets machined true square to the rotors . making correct pad contact .   All rotor runouts  dial indicated / verified  true . see video .  Master cylinder is SSBC billet aluminum 1. 25 bore . under floorboard . assisted with a Hydraboost steering assisted hydraulic  unit .     Both the master cyl / booster have bracketry using 4 bolts . designed  to remove all in one  .  straight forward . then down .     The remote reservoir is polished aluminum and included.    Brake pedal was built for smooth operation .    It's pivot hub was lathed from solid bar which  holds 2 needle roller  bearings   . span >  not a  plastic bushing  .     Also uses 2  needle roller thrust bearings for side load .  The pedal has no friction and will give the driver way  better brake feel  .   Brake pedal push rod has  a ½ stainless adjustable rod end  . span >  attached to stainless shaft .

 Wheels / Tires

Rear tire decision  was  made first for this build  . strictly because the car is built around them .   Wanted an  OEM tire application for availability in the future . Wide 20s in the  rear .  17s front .   Researched all the high horse cars at the time . how many built . and would a tire manufacturer  make the  size for many years to come .     Chose the OEM Lamborghini rear tire size of  335/30/20  . the measurements  worked  in these fenders  .         Wheels  . chose  Budnik M 5   20” x 12”  using 5 on 4. 75” .   ½ studs .         Nice  deep dish look  . without  giving up centered hub strength . so the back space is  5. 25 .   slightly   inward .    

Front wheels Budnik M5 . 17” x 8”  . 5 on 4. 75” . 5” backspace . ½ studs .   Tires are 225/45/17 . Michelinin Pilot Sports on all 4  . although all tires  will need replacing due to age .  

Wheel spokes  have been  painted to planned car color  . all else remains polished aluminum . Color is  2005 Lincoln Navigator OEM pearl named . span >    “Cashmere”.     Spokes blasted to rough etch . based coated with chroma base tri color . and topped with 2 coats of Imron 500s clear  .

Wheels were ordered with valve stems centered between spokes . on the inside hoop . They are easily reachable from the outside .  

Wheels / Tires front and rear were planned for a . true 90 degree sidewall .   All OEMs are this way .    The treadwidth matches the rim width .

 Roll Bar –  The roll bar has not  been built .    The frame was built with roll bar mounting locations finished and welded in .   There are 6 locations . 3 on each side . they are tapped to ½-13  thread . and will use  12 bolts total .    6  roll bar pads are already built and included .     When the roll bar is mounted . span >  it's designed to squeeze the body to the frame .

*****  This kit has the  original Bill of sale from Coast to Coast  in November 2003  .     Florida will not  issue title until car is appraised and finished .    ******  

Also published at eBay.com

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