Started the 3.73 Swap!

Started teardown tonight! This is going to be a long project--only an hour or two per night, until this weekend (if I'm lucky and momma lets me play in the garage all weekend).

Anyway, got past the notorious pin retaining bolt...Didn't snap the bolt, but busted a Craftsman 5/16 socket--split it right down the middle!

A little more PB blaster, and 10 more minutes, and viola, it came right out (thank God that 5/16=8mm!!!).

Axles are out. I'm going to bed. Tomorrow night the real fun begins. I've never done one of these before, but I've read all the posts/articles I can find, and I'm a tightwad, so here we go!!!

Oh, yeah, and I gotta buy new rear brakes. PS pad stuck to the rotor, and left about 1/4" deep blob of material stuck to the rotor???WTH??? Not sure how that happened, must have somehow frozen on there over the winter?

I was hoping to use that $250 for an x pipe.

94-302-vert said:

Since the axles are out it is a good time for the cobra rear brake upgrade if you can find it...

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What all is involved in this? I was actually talking to Shaun at StreetorTrack (where I bought my Cobra upgrade kit for my 67). Obviously new rotors, pads, and calipers--do I need new brackets too? What does it do to my backspacing requirements for my wheels? Does it make sense to do a rear Cobra swap if I'm still running stock GT fronts? New M/C require? prop valve?

I'll consider it if it's not going to cost a LOT more, since I gotta buy new pads and rotors anyway, but I just went through the "while I'm at it" upgrade on the 67 brakes, from a stock 4 drum setup to the 03 Cobra 4 wheel disks, with the red calipers (running pony on the front--I think that technically makes them "Bullitt" brakes, but I'm still gonna call it a Cobra upgrade), Cryo-treated rotors, new MC and prop valve--spent $2500 while I was at it.

Can't afford to do that again.

RIO5.0 said:

Youll do fine if you take your time and swap in FRPP gears... you gonna do the Trak-Loc while your at it?? might as well rebuild that to while its open.

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Yes on the FRPP gears. No on the trac-loc. Car's only got 60k on it, and I've only had it a year. PO was an old mellow dude, so the trac-loc was only hammered on last summer.

Didn't get anything done last night (life got in the way), I'm still at work, so tonight's not looking good, and I'm traveling and won't be back home tomorrow night until after 10. Looks like I'm gonna have to wait and get it done this weekend.