Well, here's a question I see some have asked but I'm confused. I have a really clean 72 Maverick with the 6 cyl 3 spd on the column etc etc. I am planning on a 347 stroker with Aluminum heads and would like to be around the 400 hp range. It will be a manual T5 trans street car with occasional strip runs for fun. I can buy an 8.8 rear end with disc brakes out of a 89LSC cheap but not sure if I should do it or not, there seems to be a lot of varying opinions on rear end upgrades. I realize I would need to narrow it etc but have read the lsc calipers are large and would create brake issues for me. I have got the manual disc brake set up off of a 77 mav that will be on the front soon. My goal is to get the front end and rear end upgraded so I can get some nice wheels on the car for the first step while I' building the motor. Can I upgrade the 8" that's in the car now? or should I upgrade to the 8.8", or a 9". Thanks -as I said I'm really confused as to what to do and looking for experienced opinions.
A 9" from Maverick Maniac on here would be your cheapest bet. The ones he has are made to bolt right in, all you need is a donor rear for the axles,brakes and center chunk. THe 4-lug 8" is pretty useless and I don't think any 8" would hold up behind a 400hp engine coupled with a stick and "spirited" driving. 8.8s are ok, but you should probably look for one out of a Ranger since they're already leaf spring.
you should be able to put the lsc diff into you car with out narrowing it. you would have to cut the brackets off and put leaf spring pearches on. it would be wider so you would have to use a deeper offset of wheel. sence your 4 lug now that should not be a big issue because your going to need wheels anyways. im pretty sure the lsc disk brakes will fit in a 15" wheel so they should not be to big. your motor will be pushing the limits of a 8" with the shock loads that a manual trans can create. the 8.8 is fords replacement for the 9" so its a good strong replacement.
a ranger diff is not a beter choice just because it has leafspings. a ranger has the springs over the housing tubes. so you still have to cut off the sping pads and weld them on the bottom of the housing. also the ranger has the pinion offset to the passenger side of the truck and can cause some clearance issues with the driveshaft.
ok i have a question, this is the first ive heard of the manual trans putting a load on the the rearend. im building a mild 302 with ported an polished heads and cam etc and im putting a t5 behind it. i still have the stock rearend and the 2.79 ratio. will this be too much for my rear? also how will the gear ratio work out? i plan to put 3.55s in it eventually. any idea how much that bolt in 9 inch would be? i have access to a compleate 9 inch with disk brakes for 50 dollars. thanks everybody.
Only problem with what you're suggesting here is, it's going to look retarded with deeper dish wheels up front. If he's going to use an 8.8 for a donor, then an Explorer rear is what he wants. These have 31 spline axles, many have discs (not that he'll really need that) and traction loc units, combined with better ratios (3.55, 3.73, a few with 4.11's) The pinion offset can be corrected by narrowing the long side. And the C-clips can also be eliminated by using 9" style bearing housings.
the things i consider on deciding if a dif is strong enoungh is hp (around 400 max for for a 8") the type of trans, a stick shift with a strong clutch can send huge shock loads to the diff or an automatic with a trans brake can send huge shock loads. an auto with out a trans brake should not shock the 8" hard enough to brake it. the intended use of for the car. if it will never have drag race tires on it, it should not hook up hard enough to brake an 8". in this case i sugested replacing the 8" becasue of the anticipated 400 + hp, the stick shift trans (i suspect that the t-5 will brake), and the intention to drag race. ford puts the 8.8 in the new shelby mustangs. they have over 500 hp. ive built several 8.8s that are in 800+hp drag race cars and have not had any of them brake. the 8.8 is a very stong diff. the t-5 trans can be broken with the stock 225hp that the fox body mustangs had by powershifting with a good aftermarket clutch that doesnt slip. the stock clutch has enough slip in it that it doesnth hit the trans that hard. i ran a stock clutch on my fox mustang till i was running in the 12.0 range just to keep from braking my t5. at that point it was sliping really bad and would have to cool for an hour after a run just to go again. im looking into a g-force t-5 trans to put into the maverick. they susposedly are strong enough for around 500 hp.
i agree that the explorer diff is the 8.8 to work with. we do that exact modification at work all the time. we will make one short and another one long. use the short one on cars and the long one on trucks and jeeps. he was asking about that lsc diff and that is what i answered about. as for wheels having miss matched offsets that entirely up to him. if he choses to run big wheels in the rear and skinnys up front, no one will notice. he can use spacers up front and be able to run the 94 and up mustang wheels all the way around. there are lots of options to keep from looking "retarded". its his car and his choice as to what he wants to do.
hey im sorry about my spelling it sucks. thats why i turn wrenches for a living and not write posts or books for a living. im sorry but everybody here will just have to live with my bad spelling. i do try but its just not my strong point.
I'm just a lowly truck driver, but I guess after all the reading I've done in my spare time (waiting to load/unload) in thirty years, it's improved my edumacation. :16suspect Don't let your occupation keep you from improving yourself.
