I know I don't have a say in this [although if I stand too close, I might end up aligning it eventually], but...

...does Craig have frugal and workable alternatives, other than putting Pinto hardware under all that weight?

Keep your ideas coming they are all very helpful!

Craig

AMC Pacer IFS...If the frame rails are 32 or a little less it would work perfectly. You can go slightly wider but if you are around 34 you will have to cut into the spring pockets and use narrower springs.

I'm trying to see if I can get one in my 68 Scout but I'm at roughly 34 inches for my frame.

the pacer clip is notable because it uses chevy balljoints and tie rod ends and the downside is it uses a one year only rack and pinion that cannot be bought anywhere----so if you need a rebuild done you have to hope the builder sends it back to you----a good hodrod clip to consider is the jaguar XJ6--the only downside here is a rear steer rack that may make you set the motor back an inch or 2 more---the upside is it is more narrow than the dakota or crown vic and the independent rear is made of dana 44 components too....bob

Great thread! Thanks to everyone here for all the helpful input.

You are welcome!
I would assume you want to slam it if Air Bags are in the plans. So how much handling are you planning on?
Sure something that has a roof at around 6 feet isn't going to kick butt on the Hotchkis Challenger, but some guys trade looks for corner G's, look at the gassers being built.
However if you want a good cornering van, another source is circle track stuff. It's often cheaper than rod stuff, because they have to meet a lower price point and the typical user buys more than one part per car, due to race damage.
Grab a Circle Track mag and send for catalogs.

We are looking at the aftermarket application so we are going to purchase a custom mustang II crossmember like the one below.

http://www.fulltiltstreetrods.com/cross_members.htm

This crossmember will be a custom width for our application. With the A100 the rack is behind the steering wheel so everything is reversed which takes out your typical standard passenger application. I have done alot of reading and still a noob when it comes to this work and all that is entails.

Ron (Mopar Ron) is the street rod expert so I am gleaning from his 40 years of experience to get this job done right.

We want to use the truck for a variety of purposes from daily driver to making some longer trip around SoCal for a business we are starting.

Currently we are not planning to autocross the truck but it will make some passes at Barona when it is all done. But I am certainly open to all suggestions when it comes to making this vehicle handle better.

We are hoping the A100 and a 5.7 Hemi drive train will do pretty good on the 1/8 mile.

It will take some time to read though all the link you have posted the resources are amazing.

I love your suggestions as we are investigating each one for the best direction for this build.

We actually put the A100 up for sale for a few months since we have a few project already in the yard. We had people offer to take it off our hands at junkyard prices so I decided to keep it and build it to drive around town.

Your knowledge is helping to influence our direction!

Craig

As far as how low to go (air bags) I am not sure yet. All depends how much work it is going to take to get there.

We want to make it look cool but also keep it practical.

Craig