Déjà vu? No, I just did it again, couldn’t resist picking up this Ford Maverick 8 inch axle as a backup for my 8 inch Mustang II rear end. I know it isn’t as wide, and the perches are in the wrong place, and it’s a 5-lug, but in reality, I just got it for the diff. To be able to work on one while driving around with the other one. These things don’t grow on trees around here, and there are some hoarders around who ask crazy prices, so when one pops up, you go for it.
This one was just south of Bruges in Belgium, 3 hour round trip, Donkey happy all the way.
Fordification tag decoding for WDW-AA tag gives a 2.79 ratio 75-77 Maverick, seems correct.
We’ve had the discussion about the ideal gear ratio here before, but at the moment I’m certain 3.40 is to tall for my 195/65/15 winter tires. I checked what the gear ratio was on the Scorpio that supplied my drivetrain, and that was a 3.92 (with factory 185/70/14 tires)!
I think I’m going to aim for a 3.8 ring and pinion, which combined with the desired 195/55/15 summer tires gets me as close as possible to the original setup.
Wittsend, can you check my calculations?
And for all you folks with an eye for detail, yes the tailgate is held up with a broomstick, haven’t found a solution for the broken left tailgate spring yet. If someone has a set of these lying about, please send me a PM.