My plan a prostreet drag truck help?

[purplehaze]

8.8 ranger rear will be strong enough for what you want. I know the 89-92 ranger 8.8 are 28 spline axles, same as mustang 8.8. If your going for speed/ grudge racing, skip t5 and run a c4 trans. my first v8 setup in my truck was a bored 30over 302 with small cam, Edelbrock rpm alum. heads and airgap intake. ran mid 8.20s in the 1/8th mile. that is faster than 95percent of ricers on the road.

 

[--weezl--]

1/8th mile time means nothing, what was your 1/4?

 

[purplehaze]

didn't run a quarter with that engine, didn't see any need to. When I played around on the streets. If I got 4-5 car lead I would let out of the gas.that would be 70-80mph, but just to give you a 1/4 time, the 331 that was in it last year ran 11.50's.

 

[RangerRyan]

Okay, thank you guys. Next step is getting enough money for everything!

 

[RangerRyan]

Also I think it might be a f-series, he didn't tell me but ill ask him next time I see him.

 

[Snoranger]

the 8.8 is what all of the mustangs between about 78 and 96 have (and possibly mustangs out of that range also) and a lot of them have 300+hp put through the stock t5 and 8.8 (though i don't know the spline count on the mustangs, i would assume it's 31)

Just to clear this up, the 8.8 wasnt available in the 'Stang until '86. They were all 28 spline (unless its IRS from a Cobra, then it was 31 spline). All 05 and up are 31 spline.

 

[flaminranger]

And that includes droping it a little bit, adding "big ol' drag tires" in the back doing so interior work and a small cowl induction hood scoop. Oh yeah and a toolbox with a tonneau cover and a little exterior work. (paint, new bumpers, etc.)

if you plan to drop it why not use the explorer rearend and mount it up the way it is without rewelding everything. I was told on this site that it should bolt up but it is about an inch wider so get the correct wheel offset. then lower the front of the truck to match

 

[--weezl--]

Thanks for the clarification snoranger

I could be wrong on this, but I think the spring perches on the expo axle are narrower than the ranger, because the springs mount under the frame, instead of beside the frame like ours do, so it may be easier to weld on new perches on the top...

 

[Snoranger]

Thanks for the clarification snoranger

I could be wrong on this, but I think the spring perches on the expo axle are narrower than the ranger, because the springs mount under the frame, instead of beside the frame like ours do, so it may be easier to weld on new perches on the top...

Nope, same width. The rear of the frame is wider on the Ex. It flares out right behind the trans crossmember.

 

[Mac]

if you plan to drop it why not use the explorer rearend and mount it up the way it is without rewelding everything. I was told on this site that it should bolt up but it is about an inch wider so get the correct wheel offset. then lower the front of the truck to match

Well, Looking in the tech library, the difference between a '88' and a Explorer axle looks to be 1 1/2" per side. He wants to drop it a bit and run big tires so that may not be a good selection. I'd have to dig up some good reference pictures of some running some big tires with the Ranger rear. TeddyZee is one that comes to mind right away, his is dropped nice also.
Dave of the Nord

 

[RangerRyan]

I'm not sure what to do about the rear end now?

 

[JoshT]

If you want 31 spline 8.8 for your rear axle, the best bet on width would probably the axle from a FX4 L2 Ranger. These were the same width as the 93+ Ranger 28 spline units. They are spring over though so you won't get a drop from just installing it, but it will lower the same as any other Ranger axle. Plenty of people have lowered on this width, just have to make sure the backspacing/offset on your wheels is correct.

 

[--weezl--]

another side (not sure if it's up, or down) depending on the year, maybe? it will have a torsen diff, that would probably be a positive for the track/street, with near, but not quite equal traction on each tire

 

[JoshT]

Would have posted this with my last reply, but wanted to verify what I was thinking.

between the explorer and f-series, the difference as far as i know, is the intake, but i would assume the cam is different also, giving more low end torque to the f-series, for towing.

the mustang (ho) motor uses a different firing order, it does NOT use the 302 firing order, it uses the 351w order, which eleviates stress on the bottom end, and allows more power to be put through it, with less wear...

Actually the Explorer and the F-series are completely different. The intake, heads, cam, firing order are all different. The explorer motor is actually a 5.0 "HO" and has a lot more in common with the mustang 5.0 than the truck version. The truck engines have more in common with the full size car engines.

Back to axles

another side (not sure if it's up, or down) depending on the year, maybe? it will have a torsen diff, that would probably be a positive for the track/street, with near, but not quite equal traction on each tire

That's why I'd rather install the LS Explorer 8.8 I have in my 86 along with the Explorer V8. I'm just worried that it'll be too wide so I'll probably end up doing a gear swap and putting it into my 99 Ranger 4x4, and using it's 28 spline non LS in my 86. It's a less than ideal solution, but since I'm leaving the 180K mile engine (even the manifolds if they fit ) stock for now it aught to be enough to handle the power. Once I build the engine and decide how I want to set up the rear suspension I can pick up a different axle.

 

[v-8power]

If you are going to use a 8.8, and drag race it, you should get a c-clip eliminator kit.