Okay so this may be a shot in the dark but has anyone ever heard of using the 9inch from a 66-75 bronco under our cars? The axle width on the ultrastang site says its 52 1/4 length. That is the same as a lincoln versailles.. If this is true then i have a site for you guys. http://broncograveyard.com/bronco/c-31They have used cases for 100 bucks.. And you can get every single part you need right off the site.. Let me know if this is something maybe worth while, i am gonna look into it at least.. THanks.. Josh
This is cool for the case alone I suppose. However, this rear uses large bearings, a much larger lug pattern, and the spring pads are different as well as being in the wrong place. If you intend to build a 9" from scratch, getting this housing would save you the expense of getting another narrowed. However you still must get axles made, get mounts and such installed, and hybrid or mod the thing to take the kind of brakes you want. If you were to just get the whole rear and put it under a Mav, then you would just need the mounts cut off and the right type welded on. After the install, you would have to run rims with the Bronco bolt pattern. I know the brakes are quite different, but you could surely hook them up as-is if you went this route. Good luck Dave
The one under my uncles '66 Bronco looks centered to me. It's a 4x4, automatic with a 302. The front axel is the one that's off center.
57-59 Ford 65-66 Stang 75-81 Granada/Versillies/Monarch These are direct bolt-ins. They are all slightly wider, but not enough to matter. The Versillies is the widest and could be wide enough to disrupt your wheel fitment if you have aftermarket rims and are already close to areas of the car. Some others that will bolt right in, but will require thought about wheel size: 67-70 Stang/Cougar 71-73 Stang These bolt in fine, but the width will require careful consideration to backspacing on your rims to get the tires in the wheel wells. You will not be able to use what you have now.
rear end swap A 65 /66 mustang 9" is a direct swap but it is hard to find because it only came under the K Code HI-PO Cars. It has the same Spring spacing and is 1.25" longer overall than a Maverick 8" housing. An easier find is a 69 or 70 Mustang 9" housing. It has the correct Mav spring spacing, but it is 3.25" wider overall. This extra width is not necessarily a bad thing if you are running a wider wheel with a deeper backspace. Another possibility is the 57-59 Ford 9" housing - It is the same length as the 65/66 HP above - correct spring spacing and same bearing size as Maverick The other option - my favorite unless you are going serious drag racing - is the original 8" Maverick Housing with an 8" Tru-trac carrier and gears of your choice . If you want to make it a little more bullet proof - go with 31 spline axles. This setup will save a lot of weight over a 9" and will get it done in most street strip and road race applications.
They made these rears as an afterthought. They didn't have the part engineered yet. They used 8" tubes welded to 9" housing centers and then filled them with 8" 28 spline axles and small bearings to match the 8" tubes. You can do this today yourself. Just get a 9" housing from almost anything. Cut the tubes off, weld your 8" tubes in and reuse your Maverick 28 spline axles. Dirt cheap 9"... Just like ol' Shelby did it back then. A 9" rear is all of 8 to 12 lbs heavier depending on exact parts you use. That is not a big enough difference IMO to spend the same amount of dough on an 8" that will still be much weaker. Okay if you are racing and need to lose every ounce possible and can afford to service parts more frequently, but not worth it on the street. After you have a core, the parts for an 8" are as much or more than 9" parts because of the huge popularity of the 9".
The widths I list are for bare housing only --no brake assemblies, no axles. The Versailles, Granada 8- & 9-inch, '65/'66 Mustang 8- & 9-inch, 57-'59 Ford big car (small axle bearings), '57-'59 station wagon & Ranchero (large axle bearing housings), '66-'77 bronco housings all have the same 52ΒΌ" wide bare housing width. From the face of the Versailles' rotor to the face of the other (where the back of the wheels mount up) is right at 58" wide overall with brakes and axles installed. www.ultrastang.com
is the pinion in a 8" mav centered in the car? i believe the early bronco 9" is 3/4" off center. if there is a small offset, will it matter? isnt that what universals take care of within reason?
Wow, are there places that can do this for you using rears that you provide? I have a couple of spare 5 lug 8 inchers laying around, and four complete 9 inch rear ends laying around out of trucks and vans...
Jamie I am sure there is a race car builder in your area that can do it. This one on ebay will set you up with a housing any width for $340 shipped http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/9-Ford-Mustang-Rear-End-Housing-65-66-Rearend-Axle_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33731QQihZ012QQitemZ220016586923
An old timer here that narrows rear ends says he's done many 8 to 9s and charges 150 bux. Any welder can do it... Any shop that narrows rears can do it right. Dave
