THE ULTIMATE IFS
QA1 1965-79 F-100 Front Suspension Install
QWhen you think QA1, you think high quality, and that makes perfect sense as quality is the top priority in everything the company does. Its products are designed, built and tested to ensure consistent quality, ultimate reliability and unbeatable performance.
Many of QA1’s employees are racers or serious enthusiasts themselves and understand the needs and goals of their customers from firsthand experience. QA1 often works with wellknown industry icons to get feedback during the prototype and testing phase. This ensures that before a new product is launched, the crew makes sure every product is test fit, track tested, and driver or racer approved before it ever enters into production.
QA1 offers the most expansive line of bolt-on suspension components for your performance truck (or car), including control arms, K-members, anti-hop bars, K-member braces, panhard bars, strut tower braces, sub-frame connectors, sway bars, toe links, torque and trailing arms, along with a variety of other products. QA1’s state-of-the-art fabrication facility is located right next door to HQ.
We wanted to test out one of these new kits for ourselves and figured Oscar the Bump would be the perfect guinea pig! When QA1 started to develop the suspension for our beloved Ford F-100 trucks, the company did it the right way, from the ground up— fitting the suspension to the truck instead of fitting the truck to a suspension. Engineers designed the kit around the factory wheel wells and firewall, making certain each and every part fit just right for both form and function. You can now get wheels with some good offset to fill the gaps properly, and a wide variety of brake system upgrades are available.
QA1, THE ALPHANUMERIC CODE FOR ONE OF the industry’s top suspension, rod ends, spherical bearings and shock absorber companies, was founded in 1993 by Jim Jordan in Lakeville, Minnesota. Fast forward 27 years, and the company is still creating 100% American-made products for our American trucks out of Lakeville, although it has certainly grown quite a bit over the last almost three decades.
Ditch that outdated twin I-beam front suspension. Before you head to the junkyard to find a random “front-clip,” you definitely should consider this wellengineered example of a dialed-in IFS offering both performance and comfort that’s properly engineered to make your truck handle like a modern truck while giving you the ride height adjustability so you can dial in the perfect stance. This setup also makes motor swaps a breeze as they have interchangeable engine mounts from FE, Windsor, Mod/Coyote and even LS (we all know one or two of those guys).
Some key points for this QA1 front setup:
• 3.75 inches narrower than a Crown Vic, so fitment of larger wheels and tires is not an issue
• 3- to 7-inch drop (3- to 5-inch with standard height style spindles, 5- to 7-inch with 2-inch drop spindles) • 150+ pounds lighter than stock suspension
• Bolt-in tubular design for ease of installation and strength
• Adjustable coilover shocks to set the ride height and ride quality
• Rack-and-pinion steering
All of that is great, but what about the nitty gritty, the installation process of the suspension? Man, did this setup make it simple for usto install from start to finish. It took the guys over at Evolutionary Rides no time at all to knock out the front suspension on Oscar the Bump. Joey, owner of Evolutionary Rides, said the longest part of the install was definitely removing the old, rusty, factory suspension. The tools needed are pretty basic and most guys have them in the garage.
This article is not a step-by-step installation but rather a highlight of the QA1 front suspension as the guys at QA1 have a great instruction manual. (Go check it out by visiting www.QA1.net/
F100) In the next issue, we will be tackling the QA1 rear suspension and some more goodies.
In between issues, stay up to date on our projects by going on Instagram and checking out @ streettrucks and @thefordera. Last but not least, make sure that you enjoy your classic trucks and get out and drive them!