Gear swap

LeadFoot357

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i've got a base 94 with a 93 trans and was contemplating switching to 3.73 or 4.10 gears but i'd like to know what i'm getting into first. what ALL do i have to do short of buying the gears, overhaul and installation? will the driveshaft hold up, will i have to correct the speedo, uprade parts in the trans, etc? oh and will i be able to use a set of gears & Limited slip out of an 8.8 f150?
 
Lets see....

Everything you will need....

Gear and Tlock, I don't think an F150 unit will work.... due to the IRS axles... I'd recomend getting all the parts from Max at 5 Star Ford.

Tune, this will be required to correct the compressed shift schedule

Speedo Gear/Dallas Speed Cal, I'd personally get the speed cal as the gear needed for 4.10's is flimsy and wears out....

Driveshaft, a 93 one peice unit might be adequette, a 3.5 or 4 inch aftermarket shaft will be much better but only needed if you want to do 100+ runs...

I'd also replace the carrier bushing when you have the diff out...
 
I was wondering the same thing for my 98, i was going to swap to 4.10 with a diff loc, i have a sniper tuner which should correct the speedo and to correct the compressed shift schedule as you were saying hopefully..
 
PLEASE do not forget the most important thing, DO THE ONE WHEEL METHOD for the labor and save yourself HOURS! LOL
 
PLEASE do not forget the most important thing, DO THE ONE WHEEL METHOD for the labor and save yourself HOURS! LOL


+1
we did that method when we did my 373's.

From driving the car ON the lift, to driving into the beams at the dragstrip was 2 hours after the car hit the lift and the track was 50 miles away.

So using the 1 wheel method we were in and out in less than an hour and two hours after the job began the car was ON it's first "geared dragstrip pass".
 
PLEASE do not forget the most important thing, DO THE ONE WHEEL METHOD for the labor and save yourself HOURS! LOL

I'm gonna get myself criticized for asking... but would you mind sharing the gist of this method with the rest of us?
 
I was wondering the same thing for my 98, i was going to swap to 4.10 with a diff loc, i have a sniper tuner which should correct the speedo and to correct the compressed shift schedule as you were saying hopefully..

Gen2 speedo runs off the abs so your speedo will be fine. Shift schedule still would need to be adjusted.
 
I'm gonna get myself criticized for asking... but would you mind sharing the gist of this method with the rest of us?

nah its a fair question..

rather than taking both sides of the rear suspension apart
you can do it by only taking ONE side apart.

now.. go stand in the corner n00b until you find the search button.
(joking grin)
 
Do they sometimes refer to the carrier bushing as something else? Can't find it in parts catalogs.
 
If you want to save a bit of money and use junkyard parts, an 8.8 Trac lok TBird diff will work (after doing a TL rebuild.) I would honestly not bother with 3.73s, and you can't find junkyard 4.10s.
 
thanks for that advice geno & xlr nothin better than knowing it can be done quick. and thanks for that info mediumd plenty of them around here to scavage but still dont know how or where i can get the speedo and shifts adjusted?? dealership? someone on here with the equip. to do it that's near NW indiana? trans shop...?
 
Get 4.30's you won't regret it and the RPM difference is negligable compared to 4.10's on the highway...
 
Rangers had them... it's just hard to find.... 3.73's are everywhere in junkyards...

Wow, now that you mention it you're right. I was thinking they only had 4.10s in the 7.5, but sure enough the 8.8 did as well.

still dont know how or where i can get the speedo and shifts adjusted?? dealership? someone on here with the equip. to do it that's near NW indiana? trans shop...?

You can get pretty close with a speedo gear (small gear that's driven off the tailshaft of the trans that essentially runs the VSS,) but you can get it pretty much dead on with a SpeedCal:

Dakota Digital

DMP and a couple other manufacturers make these, but last I checked the Dakota was the least expensive.
 
sweet, so i just install the gears/tl/driveshaft pop that dakota digital in there and im good to go. on that note i have 18.5" rims with lowpro tires that came with the car and my speedo is still on so unless the circumferenc is the same or close i might already have a similar device installed
 
...on that note i have 18.5" rims with lowpro tires that came with the car and my speedo is still on so unless the circumferenc is the same or close i might already have a similar device installed

Well, it's pretty easy to tell how close your tires are to stock, just plug the P-Metric numbers into this calculator.

And 18.5" wheels? The only half size I think I've ever seen (for cars) is 16.5, which is pretty much phased out these days.
 
my dads F-450 came with 19.5" wheels from the factory. 18 wheelers use 22.5" wheels.

Wow though, ive never seen 18.5 on cars. must be hell finding tires!
 

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