Ok so I’m working on my 87 5.0 hatch and I’m thinking of swapping read ends, different gears and better brakes. With that being said what all does swapping a 96+ sn95 rear end entail and exactly how much further out with my rear tires sit?
Starting this thread with the hopes of reducing the number of 5-lug or general brake upgrade threads that have been appearing on the forums since most of the major brake conversion sites have gone down. This thread will be strictly informational, and any off-topic banter or user specific...
Ok so I’m working on my 87 5.0 hatch and I’m thinking of swapping read ends, different gears and better brakes. With that being said what all does swapping a 96+ sn95 rear end entail and exactly how much further out with my rear tires sit?
86-98 Mustang 8.8 housing is exactly the same. The difference is the brake setups and the axle shafts. (brake lines differ too)
Bolting the housing in is a direct swap since it's the exact same housing. If you run the original SN95 brakes, the disk setup adds 0.75" to each side. There are offset caliper brackets that, when used with fox-lengh 5-lug axles) will bring that offset back in to be the same width as a fox rear. You can also CUT the SN95 brackets and bolt them on the backside of the axle. A few ways to skin the cat here.
If you plan on running Sn95 17x8 wheels, the Sn95 length axles fit rather well with those wheels and 245/45/17 tires. If you are planning on 9" or wider wheels and tires, you'll want the fox width setup, unless you can find wheels with rather deep backspacing (Around 6" or so).