Pinto Car Club of America

I'm in the process of acquiring items for the infamous 302 swap.  I have a 1958 9" rear that will work nicely and was wondering if I need to change the leaf springs or if the stock ones will handle the increased power.  Also, has anyone used the front 5 lug rotors advertised on ebay with the stock calipers?  Does this provide enough stopping force or should I look at the Granada rotor / brake conversion?  Thanks for any info!

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The stock leaf springs SHOULD be fine, IF they are in good condition. They do tend to rot and snap in the middle under the clamps, but when new, they are too beefy anyway. Look at the shakles and the body too for rot or damage. I have never seen any 5 lug rotors that can be used with the stock calips, but if you don't have pb in the car, I say go with the granada kit with the gm calips. So much more surface area, so easy to do, so cheep. I have the 11" rotors and 10" drums with manual brakes, it does very well, but it still needs some good pedal pressure.

Bill