Ford 8.8 Rear?

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RaViNLuNeY

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I know a lot of ford parts are interchangeable with mopar, I always hear about the Ford 9" but I came across a Ford 8.8" rear with 4.10 gears for a very good price and would like to know if it would fit my 72 Swinger. Anybody have any experience with this?

:blob:
 
Depending on what it came out off, and the length, it may fit. I have been looking at this swap ever since I saw a guy put one in a S10. The reason to use them is this. Mopar 8 3/4's are getting harder to find. Around here, the 8.8 with a 3:73 posi can be had for $150.00. If you get one from a 97 or newer, it will have disc brakes. It is almost as strong as a ford nine inch, and we know Mopars run them. Here is a link to look at.

http://www.knant.com/axleswap/index.htm

maybe that will help
 
Depends on what the rearend is out of. If its a ranger or explorer the pinion is offset so one side will need to narrowed. If it is out of a mustang it's going to have 4 lugs not 5. I put a 8.8" in my 65 dart and it was a lot of work, but in the end it turned out pretty nice.
 
Why not use an 8.25? They have the same 1.626 pinion diameter as the ford 8.8 so I do not see any strength advantage (other than the ring gear being a bigger diameter). If you can't find one out of an a-body maybe one out of a dakota or a jeep cherokee is the right width. The later jeeps have 29 spline axles & probably disc brakes too. I am looking to replace the 7.25 in my duster and this is were I am going to look at bone yards. But in the end it is your car so it is your choice.

The ford 8.8 does have an issue with the axle tubes spinning in the housing that needs to be addressed if you use one.
 
QUESTION, after you put in the ford rear are you still gonna put in that 350 that you got a deal on?
 
smythge said:
Depends on what the rearend is out of. If its a ranger or explorer the pinion is offset so one side will need to narrowed. If it is out of a mustang it's going to have 4 lugs not 5. I put a 8.8" in my 65 dart and it was a lot of work, but in the end it turned out pretty nice.
Click to expand...

They stopped putting 4 lug hubs under Mustangs back in the late 80's but they still use the 8.8 in the 06's so there are a lot of years to chose from theat have the 5 lug hubs.
 
What were the gear ranges that normally shipped in the 8.8? I have an opportunity to buy a 8.8 from an 89 Bronco. I think the GR is 3.55, how will that fair behind a 400 stroker/727?
 
dgc333 said:
They stopped putting 4 lug hubs under Mustangs back in the late 80's but they still use the 8.8 in the 06's so there are a lot of years to chose from theat have the 5 lug hubs.
Click to expand...

Actually they stopped producing the 4-lug in 1993. From '94 up they are 5 lug. The axle tubes will distort with a lot of abuse (nitrous, manual trans and slicks), but they will stand up to quite a bit of abuse (speaking from personal experience).
 
just got the 89' Bronco 8.8 for $50.00 bucks and alittle sweat.

The only thing I noticed is the pinion is offset 2" (to the right when looking straight only. I'm going to measure the rear and see if I have to have it shortened. If I do, I'll make the adjustments so the Pinion aligns to center.
 
Well, just measured (Drum to Drum), 62.5", and according to the great A Body chart in the tech pages, looks like 7 1/4" came in a 57.20". So we have about 5" or so to play with. Measures the tire clearance (with current rims and tires, small bolt pattern, and we have 4" per wheel well to play with.

Has anyone done a similar swap? Any advice"

Thanks...
 
A long time ago...I had a 1987 Mustang 5.0 notchback with the 3.07 8.8" and a 5 speed.

The weak link in the rear is the pinion and the C-clips. The C-clips break when performing hard burn-outs with a sticky street slick under the car.

At the prices quoted though, unless you intend to use the car a lot on the weekends primarily as a drag race machine, you will be OK.

Parts are available, and cheap for that one.

Either an 8.25" A-body unit from 1973 and up cars, or a 1970s - 1989 Mopar RWD RAM van unit would have been beefier and a better overall unit, in long-term use.

Good luck with the 8.8"...
 
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