I am new to this site so please be gentle.

I am converting an 03 police crown vic to my 70 f100 short bed. Looks ez enough with the help of sites like this and youtube. I am going to put both front and rear end of crown vic into the truck.

I have a question about wheels and tires. I was told that Mustang wheels 05 and newer will work. Does that mean 05-09 or can I use 10-13 also? if I can, why does the ebay helper say that '10 will not work on '06 mustang. Also, what size rims are best for this application? 17"? 18"? Is there a size tire that would be recommended?

I know that doing conversion it lowers the truck a bit and I do not want to have low profile tires. Not looking to slam it. I want to fill the hole and make it look good.

Any help would be great. Thanks in advance.

 

The lug pattern on a crown Vic is 5x4.5 so 99-04 mustang, ranger, and explorer wheels will all work too. Not sure about back spacing though. Also, the crown Vic rear end can be used with alot of welding and modification since its 4 link with coil springs but a 8.8 rearended from a Explorer is a direct fit since already uses leaf springs and matches the lug pattern of the crown Vic clip

 

Thanks for the heads up about the explorer rear end. Sounds like a better way to go.

Does anybody else have any info on the back spacing and/or size of wheels/tires

What about the width of the rims? I found some cobra rims that are 10" wide that I think would look excellent. They are 18" diameter and not sure if they will work. Esp the back spacing. I also found some '10 oem rims for a mustang that look good also. I don't want to take the plunge and come up with a set of rims that won't work.

Please help.

 

I am having my wheels custom built. I am confident if you contacted either theWheelsmith.net Home for Custom Wheels and Accessories or Wheel Vintiques they should be of great help. You will need the suspension in the truck first as they will require some measurements that can only be done in the vehicle. They will be able to tell you backspacing & everything else.

 

I just purchased the truck in North Carolina and brought it home to the Chicagoland area. I pulled the suspension out of the front of the intercepter just Friday. I am a long way from installing into f100. I was hoping to pick up parts and wheels to have them ready. I will keep in mind if I don't pick up a set. Thanks for the link.

 

I have another question or two about the rear end. What year explorer do I need and what about the gears. I am looking to get about 20 mpg with my truck. It doesnt have to be the fastest on the block. What are your thoughts

 

Explorers came with many gear possibilities along with either an open diff or a Limited Slip. They have 31 spline axles. Gear ratio will be mainly dependent on tire diameter. So I guess you are back at your original issue.

 

I think any explorer that has a solid rear axle will work. The newer ones went to IFS. And by using a axle from an explorer, the leaf spring purches are already in the correct location for mounting axle on top of springs to lower truck roughly 4-5in. You'll need that since installing a crown Vic clip is 5 inch drop in the front. For gear, I would assume they mostly came with 3.73-4.10 from factory so whatever you can find. I would think lower is better. I switched from 3.27 to 4.30 gear in a 02 GT 4.6 mustang and it was perfect. Still got 20 mph. I think when I get that far in my 1969 project, I'm either gonna run 4.30 or 4.56

 

WOW! With what trans & tire size? I tried 4.10s in mine & it was screaming at 45 mph. I am running a C6 & tire OD is roughly 26". I originally had 3.08s & they were fine. I ended up settling on 3.55s as I will be going to a taller tire when I do manage to order wheels. I heard a rumor that Fatman was going to offer 2" dropped spindles for the CV IFS. I am waiting to see what is involved there. If I can still run 16" wheels thus getting a full 2" of drop they will most likely be going into my truck. Of course this will mean another 2" drop for the rear as well to maintain attitude.

The Explorers came with all kinds of gear ratios. I just seen a chart on all available but do not remember where or I would post a link. I couldn't say for sure about anything being more popular or less in them. I know when I was shopping for my Trac-Loc & gears I looked at so many 8.8 rears in the salvage yard it wasn't even funny.

 

I could see that with a C4, C6, or even the AOD. I shoulda been more specific. If you run the 4.6 and auto from a Vic, then it needs a good gear. They like RPM. The setup in my mustang is with 26in tires. With 4.10's it would top out 4th at around 112-115 mph with Tremec TR-3650 5-speed which worked out great for the track.

If you aren't going to run the 4.6 the 3.55- 3.73 would be a good all around gear.

I'm planning on Vic clip and engine in my 69 and try to mate it up to the factory 3 on the tree so not sure what gear for that tranny. I got a stack of 3rd members so trial and error I guess

 

Something I wanted to add concerning gear ratio & the Explorer rear. The Explorer is an 8.8 so you can always grab any set of gears from an 8.8 & swap them in. The axles are 31 spline so you will want to maintain the spyders of the Explorer. So let's say you want a Trac-Loc unit & the only 1 you can find at the salvage yard is a 4.10 ratio but you want 3.08. Can't find a Trac-Loc 3.08 anywhere (I don't think they offered the Trac-Loc with a 3.08) but there sits a late model Crown Vic with an open diff & 3.08 gears. Simply swap in the ring & pinion gears on the Trac-Loc unit & you now have what you desire.

In other words you may not get everything you want exactly as you want it without a bit of work.

 

An exploder rear axle is way too narrow.

Either use the CV rear axle or find a 9" from an 80-83 F100 like I did on mine. It's the perfect width and has the right 5 X 4 1/2 bolt pattern. Drop the center section and swap in whatever gears you want.

You can also retrofit exploder rear discs very easily.

Look at my Project F'nstein post for more info.

btw: you will need at least 16" wheels to clear the CV calipers.

 

Never mind...... the Trac Loc is junk IMO.

 

How you can say it is too narrow? I have read the exact opposite about the CV IFS (too wide). Just how is it you make this determination? You can buy wheels with whatever offset you want nowadays. Would seem to me it is simply a matter of wheel offset. My IRS is far more narrow hub to hub than my CV IFS. My master plan is wheel offset. I will still have a deep dish look out back. So I am guessing narrowed rears are also way too narrow? Top Fuel cars must be all messed up.

 

It was a hypothetical example. My 8.8 Trac-Loc seems to be holding up just fine behind my 460.