Im going to the Junk Yard this weekend to shop for a new rear end for my 56 Ford Customline. I have read that 70's Monrach and Granada are a straight bolt in. I have a few questions if anyone knows the answers. 1) I plan to run a stroker motor (375-400HP), so I need a rear that can handle it 2) What choice of donors do I have, with little to no modification to bolt in? Explorer, Granada, Monarch, etc.. (years would be handy if you know them) 3) Is an 8.8 strong enough, and should I go only 9 inch? I do know the 57-59 ford 9 inchers will work, but were I am at, I am very limited for old car yards, havent found any 57-59's anywhere. I may have to find and order a rear somewhere anyway, but still need to know what car/year should I be looking for. there is a 78 granada that just hit a local yard 3 days ago, no idea if its a v8 or what type of rear end yet. Thanks for any help.
Hi, I used a 94 ranger 8.8 out of a 4.0L truck, I used it over the explorer version since it is a little narrower and had drum brakes. It ended up being 1/4 wider overall I believe. I have a 390 and a c-6 in front of it and it seems to like it just fine. If you go the ranger route make sure its a 4.0L since 3.0 and 2.3 used a 7.5 rear end. I can post some pics if you need some to compare the 8.8 to the dana. Brad
I used a Granada 8" in my '55 Customline. The 9", from what I've heard, only came in the Versailles, which also had disc brakes. The 8" Granada wasn't a true bolt in deal. I had to change the spring perches on mine, but it wasn't a big issue. It was the right width anyway. I ran a beefed up 302 with a C4 and never had issues, even when I launched as hard as I could. Unless you're planning on racing and doing hole shots every time, the 8" should be just fine.
Thanks for the responses guys. Brad, pics would be great if not too much trouble. Any modifications needed for the 8.8 ranger swap, other than maybe spring perches? What gears came in it, you remember? I am going to check the granada on the yard and see what it is. I heard that some granadas had 9, but fairly uncommon and hard to find, as most had 8's. I will also check the rangers while there, there is a 89, 91 and 93 on the lot. I assume I should get the emergency brake equip as well, right? I havent found any Versailes locally yet, still looking.
they're not easy to find. Most of the rodders snagged them all up in the 80s and 90s, but if you can find the Lincoln.....JACKPOT!
Hey, the only things I had to change where the perches, and man did they come off hard. Got some new ones at speedway, and I had to use the ranger driveshaft flange on the rear axle and get some conversion u joint for my granada driveshaft. Funny thing, I dont remember the grenade having an 8 inch, looked more like a ford 6 3/4 or 7.5 anyway heres some pics and btw, if you find a granada steal the spindles, rotors, calipers master and booster, it will fit your ride sweet.
Yeah, what he said ^^^ about the spindles. They'll work on your car and automatically lower it about 2" and give you front discs. I never got around to doing that conversion on mine, but I had planned to.
Thanks for the pics and info. I actually will steal the spindles and all from it for a future project, if still there, but I have already done the front granada disc swap a few months back. I actually installed the ford aerostar coil springs as well for a couple more inches . Only thing I have left is mounting the prop. valve and redoing brake lines (which I have another thread for cause I havent done that before). Did some research on the granadas and some had 8 inch in them and they were some that had a 9 inch in them as well. Going to get the tag id when i stop by there.
If you did the granada spindles and areostar coils, how much did you lower the rear and how did you do it? I used 2.5 blocks and when I stab the loud pedal, the 50 year old springs wind up and the pinion hits the floor. I see the 94-97 Mustangs have a pinion snubber that bolts to the floor, I been thinking about scoring a junkyard one to try to make a snubber but I dont know if will help. Brad
An 8 inch is plenty strong, unless you are going to be running slicks and doing hard launches. In that case I would look for a 9 inch. I have a '69 Mustang 9 inch in my '56 Customline. The only problem with this rear is I can only run steel wheels, because it is slightly wider than the original '56 rear. Try this site. http://50chevy.freeservers.com/Suspension_Widths.html
I used a 77 Lincoln (full size) 9" (actually had the 9 3/8 ring gear) in my 56. Sorry don't have any pictures of it though.
I went to a junkyard yesterday and pulled a 8.8 inch rear end out of a 98 Explorer. Complete, with disc brakes and calipers, for $110, including tax. They are as strong as a 9 inch (except the 28 spline axles-which can be easily upgraded), and they are a lot lighter also. Pretty much the same exact design as a GM 12 bolt. I have an 8 inch out of a 64 1/2 Mustang complete with rebuild kit (not installed), mini-spool and 4.11s. It has 3.00's in it now. PM me if interested.
I used 3" blocks to lower mine, but had to build a hump under the back seat to keep the rear from knocking the floor pan. It was a piece of cake. I just cut an "H" in the floor with my cutoff wheel, peeled up the two halves and welded sheet metal in the gaps using paper stencils to guide me. Took about an hour. I got it sitting pretty low, too. Don't give me any crap about the red rims. I just did that to sell it
I actually havent touched the rear yet, and I havent put the wheels back on the front and let it down yet, so not sure how much I will need to do to the rear just yet. I am still working on brake lines, which is why i havent reassembled it all yet. I am heading to the bone yard right now to see what kind of granada parts we are working with, I just hope its not a 6 cyl.
Well, went to the yard today, the granada still had the spindles, so I got them and the proportioning valve as well. It is a 78 granada, 8cyl, front disc, rear drum. The rear end on this particular car (going by the tag ID) is below. Not sure of the length though, looking for that now. <table id="table9" style="border-collapse: collapse;" width="98%" border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td>[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Granada, Monarch '77-'78[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]2.47[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]8.75[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]NL[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]28[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Non-Removable Carrier [/FONT]</td></tr></tbody></table> My current rear end is this: (should I stick with it?) <table id="table9" style="border-collapse: collapse;" width="98%" border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td>[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Comet, Maverick '71-'74[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]2.79[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]8[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]NL[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]28[/FONT]</td> <td align="center"> [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Non-Removable Carrier [/FONT]</td></tr></tbody></table>
The maverick rear in your car is the narrowest 8inch with 5lugs,I`d leave it in.Swap center section if you want a different ratio. All 8 in. centers will interchange.
Gotta agree with hoop. If the Maverick will fit, go with that. I've heard they do. FYI, if you can find it (HA!) look for a Pinto wagon with a six banger. They had the 3.55:1 gears. Perfect for a street car that wants to roast 'em.
I am pretty sure it came out of the comet, but none the less, it fits, cause thats what was under it the last several years driving it. So I think I will just leave it in there and change out the center for better gears. Thanks for the info all. I will keep my eye out for a pinto wagon, never know!
I recently snagged one as well, 3.73 limited slip...$100. I am putting into a '56 Monarch (Canadian Merc) i was wondering if there was any tricks/details i need to know before hand...? I have already reamed Granada spindles, and purchased Aerostar Coils, waiting to sandblast frame before installing everything new... This site is great... lots of info helping me out for this huge undertaking. thanks a bunch. attached photo is 2 years ago, now it is in pieces...
I am still alive and kicking lol! I don't get on much anymore because quite frankly, life happened not long after this original post. We had twins in 2009 and I have barely touched my car since. We just moved and my new 40x40 shop is 98% done and I am itching to get back to it now that the kids are older. I ended up buying a 57 ford 9 inch from a guy on HAMB some years ago. Had a 9" chunk built with trac lok and 3.90 gears. Ordered power window kit and borgeson power steering kit and its just sitting for now. One day soon...
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