I was recently given two Ford 8.8 complete rear ends. They are both out of late Crown Vics and are really too wide for any older cars. They are about 64" wheel flange to wheel flange. No posi in either one. All the disc brakes are there though. What can be done with them? narrowing doesn't seem to make sense and I don't even know if that is feasible economically. Are the rear disc assemblys adaptable to other diffs? Should I just scrap them? I have nothing invested and the guy I got them from even delivered them to my shop,so I'm not out anything one way or the other. Any advice or suggestions? I hate to scrap them,but if they arn't of any use I need the to be gone.
They can be narrowed, the brakes are adaptable to various other Ford rearends, I'd gooogle you up some references but I don't quite have time right now. 8.8 LSDs are relatively common.
8.8s SUCK if you plan on big,sticky tires or HP!!!! Been there,done that,the results were expensive and cost a lot of time and grief!!!!You can make them strong,but after you put a ton of cash in them you could have gotten a 9" with the good parts!!! JMO,ROY.
The good thing abut the 8.8 is they came in late model mustangs, so buying good used parts for cheap is really easy. They can handle plenty of power when built for it. 9" Fords are tougher, but they also need to be built to hold a lot of power.
I'm running a '94 Crown Vic 8.8 on my 56 F100. I plan on netting no more than 350 HP or 350 lb ft of torque. It is wide but.... I am running 3" wider fenders to bring them out even with the cab and High offset wheels. I grabbed it because it was cheap and a used posi for an 8.8 is cheap, and it has disc brakes. They have there applications.. There are some before and afters of all the crap being removed. I have it mounted now just havent gotten around to getting any pics up. One thing I think is odd is the fact that one caliper is on the front of the axle and one is on the rear. Why are they like this, they aren't that way on my 150.
I'm actually planning a 8.8 swap in my 55. Explorer rears are almost a direct swap and the right width (60").
I'm using an 8.8 out of a Ranger in my fenderless 33 pickup. I am not up and running yet but hoping for the best.
With one on the front and one on the rear both calipers can be the same part. This orientation places the bleeder on top for both sides. Some body at Ford had their thinking cap on that day.
The 8.8 is a decent rear axle for many projects and the disc brakes are nice to have. Many of these are finding their way into 40's and 50's Mopar since the bolt pattern is the same. .
Yes, it is possible to narrow an 8.8 rear, mainly to center the 2 inch offset of the pumpkin. http://www.carcraft.com/techarticles/116_ford_8_8_rear_end/viewall.html If you Google "How to narrow an 8.8 Ford rear." lots of stuff appears.
They're good rear ends. Take one apart, and it looks like the Ford engineers copied the old GM 12-bolt muscle car rear. Even the bearings are the same. I think the big difference is the number and diameter of the ring gear bolts... one has a couple more bolts, but smaller diameter if I remember correctly. Definitely not a "weak" rear end. -Brad
The 8.8 is a great rear end. I drag race with it, The only advantage a 9 has, is the gear change with the PIG. I would think you could sell that rear end, on craigslist, or narrow it. Strange , Moser, currey and all the rest sell c clip elim kits, multiple different splined axle shafts. Me personally I would take an 8.8 over a 9, or any chevy 10 bolt for sure.
I like my 8.8 and I am putting another one in my next build. Narrowing is not a problem and you can use 9" axles instead of a C clip eliminator. I am using 9" new style big bearing ends. I paid $80 for my 8.8" 31 spline 3.73 posi rear end out of an Explorer. Unless you are running huge torque they should be fine and I am so over the untraditional 1000 hp on the street, pro bleat, pro fairgrounds undriveability fad so 8.8" works fine for me....
The 8.8 is a great rear for the street . The disc brakes are very nice as long as you have disc in the front as well . The 8.8 can be build to handle 500+ hp with no problems at all ! Had a friend with a Mustang with a well built 347 and had a 8.8 with 4.11 posi that was drag raced and never had any problem with it . Car ran low 10's ! So yes they are good rears . Personally I prefer Ford 8" & 9" rears . The early 8" fit under so many older cars without having to cut them shorter . The Ford 9" is the best rear I have ever used ! I have had lots of HP & torque on SBF & BBF engine and never broke one yet ! It's the go to rear for just about all the drag racers out there ! In the end if you have a stock or mild cammed engine , I would use the 8.8 and never worry about them . Problem is you probably have the crappy 2.79 gears in them . Since you got them for free I would save them if you have the room for them . Retro Jim
Forgot to mention, it's a great idea to weld your axle tubes to the center section on an 8.8. (I started "hot rodding" on 5.0 Mustangs).
Are they just pressed in and plug welded from the factory? I have seen a lot of guys weld this on 4x4's. Is there a need for it in low HP situations, I mean ford doesn't weld them and they are in 300+ HP stock setups?? Just curious as to "WHY" because I have been debating on doing mine. Does anyone know if they're any calipers that are interchangeable with the Crown Vic calipers???? I would like to reverse them on mine to keep them on the same side of the axle, just for looks more or less.
Pressed in as I recall it. You don't need to do it for low HP applications, but if it were me, I'd do it while I had access to it. You could always replace the discs and calipers with Mustang stuff. The Mustang aftermarket is HUGE, so you can get all kinds of nice brake packages.
i'm using an 8.8 from a mid 90's explorer under my 57 f100. Direct bolt up to the factory leaf springs, and it is naturally over the leaf spring mount so an automatic 4-5" drop (c notch in the frame and I have all the clearence i need).
I narrow a lot of Crown Vic 8.8's. I like them because they have long 3" axle tubes and i don't have to fight the Mustang guys for them. The Mustang housings use small 2-3/4" tubes, the Explorers and trucks have heavy 1/4" x 3-1/4" tubes. The flange at the end of the Crown Vic axle tubes have a different bolt pattern than the Mustangs or explorers, so it's not easy to swap disc setups from other models. The 8.8 only has a 1/2" of pinion offset, and is about 3% more efficient than a 9" due to having less hypoid offset. That's about 15hp on a 500hp application, but could also net you another mpg or two. Unless you plan on getting over 1000hp to the ground, there is little reason to use a 9". I usually install custom axles and 9" ends on the ones i build, so i've got quite a few used 8.8 28 spline Traclocks laying around. I hate to throw them away, but i'll never use them. Free to anyone here, just pay shipping (i'm in WA state, Priority Mail Flat Rate is about $14).
x 2 but with fenders. price was right--free and width was right too. while there will be hp there I don't pound on it like I used to so I don't anticpate problems.
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