Both the cars started out life with Ford 8" solid
axle assemblies with leaf spring suspension with open differentials.
Both cars were ordered with a 3.00:1 ratio rear. As you can see,
these cars do not scream performers.. yet that is.
The first
thought was to simply hunt down a Ford 9" with a locker and a decent
ratio and go from there. This solution gets costly very quickly.
Seems as though everyone wants 9" rears, so you have to pay a premium
to get one with a desirable ratio and with the traction lock.
The next problem is you are still stuck with a leaf spring suspension
which is not optimal for handling and will not allow for wider tires
to be used without significant modifications. The other problem
is the sway bars available for the setup are not optimal, and add
further cost as well. Disc brakes etc will also needed to be
added.. so the costs keep going up.
Enter once again modern technology. Time to erase the
chalkboard here and start from scratch. Both vehicles will be running an independent rear suspension (IRS) out of a 2003/2004
Mustang Cobra. The unit is a Ford 8.8 and has a limited slip
differential. The base gear ratio is 3.27:1, which will likely
be changed out to 3.73's or something along those lines. The only real drawback here is the weight. We
are not sure exactly the difference, but there will be a slight weight
increase.
To date, we have both IRS assemblies and have parts and pieces to
almost complete another.
Quick Tips:
- A 1999 or 2001 model would work, but they have
different splines in the half shafts, hubs and differential.
1999 models have 28 spline inner and outer, and 2001 has 31 spline
inner and 28 spline outer. 2003/2004 models use a 31 spline
inner and outer. For the power levels we will be running, we
opted to hunt down the higher power capacity units. The
difference in price is minimal, and they are fairly easy to find, as
long as you search in the US.
- The easy way to spot a 2003/2004 unit is to look for the 2R3V
part number prefix as shown on the axle shafts below.
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