Hi hope everyones doin good today! next thing on my agenda is the rear axle , i know i want to use a ford 9" rear axle with a 4 link rear conversion utlising a disc brake setup for inproved drivability and braking , but, here comres the tricky bit , how do i know the ratio i need ? im not to bothered about top speed as long as its capable of 110 mph thats fine , but id like to make the most of the v8 low down power so i suppose acceleration is what im after, seen as most of my driving is around town. Cheers once again ASH
It all depends on what tranny you're gonna use. If you're using a three speed direct drive tranny like a TH350 then you will want to go with a 3:83 or so. If you're gonna use a 700R4 or any other overdrive then you can get away with a 4:11 or so and you will get good low end torque plus cruise down the highway with low RPM's. I hope this all helps. Let me know what tranny and I'll advise a little more into detail.
Hi Kev, there is a local firm not to far from me that supplies new TH400 boxes capable of taking upto 450BHP this is the type of box if been advised to use , so not sure but i think its a 3 speed , you will probably know more than me . you seem to know alot about these parts your advice is greatly recieved, respected and appreciated! ASH
Hi Ash, been ofline due to my home network going pear shaped, Question 1, do you really need a 9 inch axle? 10 bolt will do easily, and a box capable of 450 brake, all this means you will have to do some serious chassis strengthening and mustang brakes wont be big enough! you will have to go big disc, just dont aim to high or crazy and end up with an unfinnished project up for sale on e-bay, got a couple of cars round my way that started out like yours but ended up with 1000+ bhp undrivable road going race cars, its easy to lose your way and go crazy! ________ Vaporizer Wholesaler
Sorry for getting back on so late. Been a rough week. My best friend from 5years old (now 26) was killed in a car accident and I'm just now getting back in town from the funneral. The TH400 is a great tranny and yes it is a direct drive (3 speed) tranny. Like I said it depends on what you're looking for, a stop light to stop light truck, or a truck to cruise at 80+ mph with the engine at 2000 rpm. I myself am putting in a 408 hp engine with a 700R4 tranny and a mid to up 3 gear ratio. This will give me good torque feel out of the whole but be able to cruise at highway speeds comfortably. Another great overdrive tranny is a 4L60E or a 4L80E. The 4L80E is a little stronger but either one of them are good if you're just building a daily driver. I agree with Brit you can get a little crazy when building these trucks. You just need to decide what you really want out of your truck. I wanted something with at least 400BHP so I can light the rear up when I want to and have plenty of power with a good sound. It sounds to me the way you're going with your truck is you want that short burst power low end. My suggestion to you is to go with the TH400 (a little stronger than the 350) and a 4:11 gear. If it were me I would use the ford rearend incase you ever decide to narrow it. Plus the ford rearend is a very strong rear end. I guess that's my two cents for the day.
Tire Size Sorry to hear about your friend kevin. When you thinking about what gear to go with the trans is a huge factor. One thing that I have found to be helpful is adjusting your tire rear tire size. Adding or subtracting a few inches makes a big difference in rpms at highway speeds. So if you don't get the tranny to rear end ratio exactly right, you always have your tires. In my truck I have a 2 speed with a shift kit and all kevlar inside hooked up to a 393 gear in a 9-inch ford. I had mine narrowed by Moser. I know that I won't have much top end but comming out of the hole will be amazing. To help bring my rpms down I will have a larger diameter tire if I wanted to do alot of highway driving.
Thanks Borada, he was a great guy and loved vintage cars as well. He had 2 1964 impala's when we were in high school. Darn good looking cars. He didn't know much about fixing them, so I had to step in there and take care of them for him. But he let me drive them from time to time, so I didn't mind working on them. You brought up a good thought about tire size. It is amazing what you can do with putting on a bigger wheel and tire to bring those RPM's down. So with that said Ash what size wheels and tires are you going to run? This is important when asking about drive line setup.
I'm Sorry Kevin Loosing a long time freind sux . BT,TD and now again they're all dying of old age , heart attacks and so on , not fun .
im in 2 minds one part is saying 17" smoothies with a 50 profile and the other is saying 20" billets with a 40 profile so not too sure ASH
Tire Size & F.D. Ratio The outer diameter of the tire is the important part and you have a lot of lattitude there when deciding what wheels & tires to use . If you use low profile tires , you'd better install an overdrive slushbox else you're going to be screaming the engine on the freeway...
I'm going 22X10.5 in the rear and 20X8.5 in the front with a 40 to 45 series tires. I'm definately going with overdrive in mine. Better safe than sorry right?
Top Speed Vs. POWER Yes , I think so but then I don't feel the need to peel out from a stop light... Although I do tend to drive too fast in some of my oldies .
looks like im gonna have to decide on rims first then!! got to have power though its what the american thing is all about! , aint it ? ASH
No point driving fast in a cool truck if no one gets the chance to see you! mite as well fly about in a rice rocket, cool vehicles are meant to cruise at a leisurely pace so everyone gets the chance to get jealous! take the cruising scene in "cars" movie, wish i cud get my truck to do that down the high street! ________ General Insurance Dicussion
That would be the only way I'd keep from getting ticked off. An AD putting along. I might pass it, then pull over and let it go by- then pass it, let it go by- all the way to work!
