Very narrow S10 or Ranger? How to?

what rearend did the sunbeam alpine use they run a ford 260 back in the 60s tom

 

Interestingly enough they like to use the Postal Jeep DJ5 Dana 44 to upgrade the Tigers. Supposedly 50.5 WMS

 

and they will in no way,shape or form hold up to a v8.

 

I thought there was some info on here about forklifts using 9 inch ford rear ends?

 

An 8 inch rear from a Mustang II with two short side axles will get you to 52" wide.

 

2 short axles and cut / reweld the housing on the long side to fit the short axle, you can also pull the axle housing tube from the center, and cut the axle housing tube to length to fit the short axle, then press back into the center.

 

^^ what he said.

Simple answer is that you will need to buy axles shafts or get them shortened. Cost wise, it's a toss up.

The 8.8" would be my suggestion, because it is so widely supported. Axles will run about $400 a pair, after you narrow the housing to your liking. I like the idea of cutting down one side for the short shaft, but you need to be careful with how the pinion aligns in the tunnel. It's crowded. A buddy has a V8 MGB-GT. We'll be doing an 8.8 for it at some point.

Thinking outside the box, an earlyish Toyota pickup is 5 on 4.5 and has a design that looks a lot like a Ford 9". They are plant strong and the V8 swap guys have well tested them. You might find that one from a 1978-1989 era hi-lux or even 1988-1998 SR5 will fit well.

 

Great ideas. Thanks all!

 

A D44 from a jeep CJ is probably the narrowest and strongest 5 lug your going to find …. Newer jeeps got wider so that’s out.
It would be a good one to use …. Lots of aftermarket upgrade parts and they come with some good low gears and limited slips and or posies stock.

 

nissan 6 cylnder trucks from the 90s are great rearends, the have heavy 31 spline axles, they are same width as model a banjo and the look a whole lot like a ford 9"

 

nissan