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O.K. I am now rebuilding instead of swaping. I have been reading and asking around but I am still very confused. I am re building a 8.8 / 3.55 I that had a lsd in it but I do not know what kind. I just bought the truck 2 months ago.
what I am wondering about is What brand of gears, original Ford or is there aftermarket that is a better value? And wht kind of LSD for my driving? I live in a very hilly part of Wisconsin, alot of snow and ice, I drive up and down ridges every day. My off road is mainly field drives, logging roads and bad boat landings.
I hope someone can help me get through my curently confused state and back on the road.
Thanks for any help. Todd R.
If you need new gears, get a set from Ford Motorsport ( I think they call it FRPP now). They are priced right and come with lube and a crush sleeve and shims to set it up. The rearend cane with a Traction-Lok limited slip unit. The parts are available from Ford to rebuild it.
Jimmy
lxman1, Thanks for the info. do you think it is worth rebuilding the track-loc or would I be better off getting an eaton? how hard is a rebuild on the Track-lock to do?
Thanks, Todd R.
There are many units available (since the 5.0 Mustangs used them from 86 on up.) Eaton is probably a stronger unit. My Traction-Loc in my Mustang has about 130,000 miles on it and it will still jump sideways everytime I overpower the rear tires.
It's all in personal preference.
Jimmy
Todd, FRPP (Ford Racing Performance Products) sells very nice gears. They are made to more precise tolerances than many other aftermarket gear companies which, in most cases, makes for easier set up. I had a set of FRPP 4.30s in my 98' Cobra that I just sold and they were barely more audible than the stock 3.27s.
As far as your limited slip goes, I'd stay away from the Eaton myself. In my experience with late model Mustangs, I've heard much more negative feedback about these than positive. I won't say that they're not adequate for strength, but if memory serves, they are not rebuildable. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.
You can cure the notoriously weak differential torque break away on the Ford factory LS by adding an extra clutch per side in the diff. The LS itself is a bugger to get back together when you do this but it can be done. It's a lot cheaper than buying a new diff. The only thing extra you have to buy is second set of clutches, unless you can find somewhere to buy them individually.
I second steve83's comment about letting a pro set up/rebuild the diff and gears.