Gear Swap Question...

[rabidscoobie]

I got a lil extra cash to spend and though about doing gears.I have done gears before on my old 3rd gen camaros years ago,meaning I did them myself.What I want to know is this:I was looking on Late Restoration's site and they sell 2 types of Ford Racing 3.73 Gears,1 is just that,pinion and gear for $140ish,then they sell a kit for the same gears saying it includes everything needed for gear swap for 280ish.I just wanted to do the swap like I did before on my old cars,so which set would I need to buy to swap from stock to 3.73.Im assuming I just need the gears and not the kit unless im missing something...never done a Ford rearend so I just wanna make sure

 

[02nightmaregt]

when i had my 3.73's pu in i didn't get a whole install kit. It would probably be better to replace everything at once but like i said i didn't and have put many miles on them.

 

[CMEFLY]

You can just buy the ring and pinion set and use all your old bearings and shims. The last 8.8 rearend I set up that is what I did and it works perfect. Your pinion depth should be fine if you use your original shim wih ford motorsport gears. just make sure your backlash is within spec when you are done.

 

[Dragstr05]

The "Kit" just includes all new bearings and such to overhaul the rear diff. If you have any kind of miles on mine it wouldnt be a bad idea. 112k on mine when I put the gears in and had some pitting on the bearings, so turned out the rebuild kit I picked up was worth it.

You will also need to reprogram your PCM for the gear change. Cheapest route is a speedcal, or you can just get a programmer which isnt a bad idea anyway. I got all my gear stuff off www.americanmuscle.com. They sell a gear set and a tuner as a package for a discount.

And depending on what you plan on doing with the car in the future, I recommend 4.10's. I love my gears. Even turned out with the 4.10's, SCT tune and simply switching to a better fuel I'm still getting the same MPG before the gears, so dont fear the gear.

 

[rabidscoobie]

Thx for the help.I was just trying to make sure that there wasnt some weird crap different in a Ford from a GM.This is the First Ford ive ever owned or worked on,they do have some differences.Anything I need to look out for with the speedcal,brand wise ect....

 

[SonicStangGT]

I used a Dallas Mustang speedcal and it worked great.I think it run me $80.

 

[97speedster]

I wouldn't re-use any old components when installing new gears. It will be to your best advantage to use new bearings, seals, crush sleeves and all. I would even recommend new axle bearings and seals. No way you would get me to scimp on something like the rear axles and gears considering this is how power is put to the ground. I am getting new gears and axles installed in mine next weekend and am replacing everything.

I also recommend getting a tune for it instead of the speed-cal. It allows you to make more changes especially if you plan on adding more to your car later.

 

[billfisher]

do the kit. it takes a little more effort to pull the races. if you damage you pinion bearing even a minute amount pulling it off it will crash. (tear up). besides its easy to press the new bearings on and just have to yank the old races and install new ones. consider it a rebuild. typically a spreader in needed to safety pull pinion bearings. the shim will be crushed. just pulling from the spacer can cause a delay while you get the whole kit. it can all fall apart. one nick....

 

[rabidscoobie]

Thx for all the replies.I would go with the whole,I was just making sure there wasnt any big difference between the Ford and GM.Ive done a few Z28's and TA gears in the past.Thx again all.

Also I have never had a tune done,I would prefer the tune over the speedcal,but as mentioned above he said that would allow more changes for later add-ons,what would those types be.This summer I planning to do Headers,thinking of JBA Mids,and JBA catted H, and UD pullies.Then after xmas this year im gonna do the CDC Shaker scoop(I know its not alot of power increase but I just love that look).Then the norm bolt-ons.

Also curious what kinda hp can the 4.6 make NA,I dont mean just with bolt-ons...but with getting the motor worked.

 

[rabidscoobie]

Forgot to ask,what can all be done with a programmer.Ive looked em up but I always like to get info from actual users.