69-74 Brave suspension part source

Started by Garys 68, December 16, 2015, 11:54 AM

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Garys 68

I'm looking at buying a 69- 74 Brave, Indian, etc to restore and upgrade.
I've restored 60-70s cars so the plan is to go through the entire suspension, brakes, and steering first. My main question is availability of suspension, steering and brake parts for the Dodge chassis. It seems all the 69-74s use the Dodge drivetrain.
Are the suspension and brake parts shared with Dodge trucks/vans of that age? Places like Rock Auto has a lot of these, but want to know if some are specialty, NLA, etc.
I'm thinking of items like:
-bushings
-ball joints
-tie rod ends
-bearings
-brake parts
-steering gear
I'm planning on an engine trans swap, so not concerned about those parts. Still have not decided between a GM6.0/4L80 or 6L90, 454/4L80, or 8.1/6L90.

joev

well so far I have been able to get whatever parts I have needed without any problems

LJ-TJ

I'd say everything is still pretty much available. I have a 1975 21 footer and have never had a problem getting parts. Regularly get them from N.A.P.A. in the U.S. Hm?

DaveVA78Chieftain

4 wheel drum brake parts can be a hassle in that early year range.  73 up front disk / rear drum are much easier to find parts for.
[move][/move]


Rickf1985

And no ball joints, solid axle with king pins.

Garys 68

Thanks for the input. I've been going through posts on here and it does look like everything for the M300 is not an issue. But it does look like changes were made in 73-74, like disk brakes up front. Is there a summary of the good and bad for M300 chassis over the 68-74 years?

Garys 68

I was curious about that since Rock Auto lists ball joints and upper control arms bushings for 74. I wasn't sure if there were year specific changes.
King pins are pretty easy.

Quote from: Rickf1985 on December 16, 2015, 06:54 PM
And no ball joints, solid axle with king pins.

Rickf1985

I am not an expert on the class A Dodges but I am pretty sure all of the class A's were solid axle and king pin and the class C would have been A frame a ball joint since they are van based.

Garys 68

Rock Auto is pretty good on parts, but with 40 year old M300s, who knows.

Quote from: Rickf1985 on December 16, 2015, 07:09 PM
I am not an expert on the class A Dodges but I am pretty sure all of the class A's were solid axle and king pin and the class C would have been A frame a ball joint since they are van based.

Rickf1985

I like Rock Auto but their parts selection can be very confusing and also not very accurate at times. Also lately their shipping has been dismal! I have gone to buying from my local store since I can get the parts right now and not in a week and a half. They used to have really fast shipping, two days and it was here. Not anymore. And they are not the only ones, Summit has gone the same route. You have to pay for a premium service for the year to get the good shipping back.

Garys 68

I have not seen much available for suspension rubber bushings/isolators. I'm assuming they're in the spring ends and mounts, sway bar mounts, etc but don't find much. Are these things bolted together without those rubber parts?

Rickf1985

To find that kind of stuff you need to look at companies like Energy Suspension. The spring rubbers are not usually replaced as a wear item. Sway bar bushings can sometimes be found for stock applications and sway bar links should be no problem. Like I said, Rock Auto is hit ir miss with a lot of stuff. Energy suspension will have everything in urethane but you may have to get the inside dimensions of the spring eyes. Call them and tell them what you are working on.

http://energysuspension.com/

Garys 68

Thanks, I know those guys well, lots of their stuff in my old cars.
I've also made rubber isolators, trans mounts, etc myself but thinking buying is much easier if it's available.