I want to change my gears. This was one of the firdt things I wanted to do to the truck, but well other mods came first lol. I am going to get 3.73 gears and a LS. Where can I get the Ford LS from, or what is a good aftermarket one that is reasonable in price?

 

Any Ford Racing dealer. That includes both Summit and Jeg's. The Ford P/N for an 8.8" 31 spline Trac-Lok is M-4204-F318. List price was $299 back in 99. Summit sells them for about $250.

 

If the Ford LS just as good as any other?

 

For what purpose?
You have several options:
You can go with a locker. They're much better in the dirt but can be a problematic on the street. A Detroit locker for an 8.8 lists for something like $580, the Powertrax drop-in locker is about $420.

In limited slips, instead of the Ford you can use the Auburn, it's a much better performing unit because it typically runs at a much higher bias than the Ford. It costs a bit more than the Ford (around $340 IIRC), but it's not rebuildable. There's the Eaton, similar in design to the Ford but much stronger; it costs $440 and is rebuildable.

If you want to get into torque sensing diffs, you canget a Tru-Trac for $430 or a Torsen for $500. These diffs work very differently. They send torque to the wheel that has the most traction. They have no clutches so ebuilding is not anm issue. They can change the handling characteristics of the vehicle.

It all depends on what you want to do and how much you want to spend. For the street and normal truck service the Trac-Lok is fine. It's low bias makes it a bit more drivable in the wet or snow but still gives you some laden wheel traction. There are some durability issues with the clutch packs, but they're cheap and easy to rebuild.

 

I bought my Eaton LS from Pro Gear: http://www.progeardifferentials.com/parts.html

Cost me $269 which is about $110 cheaper than Summit Racing which is amazing there was that much price difference. This puts it at almost the same price as a Ford Trak-Loc and w/ heavier springs and supposedly better internals (Eation supplies OEM LS units for Chebys and other trucks) I went for it. Don't regret it for a sec..

 

I have a friend who works at a Ford dealership, and he can get me gears and the LS for under $400 and they have a guy at the shop who installs all the rear ends in the Stangs that they race at the track. He is supposed to do great work, and he only charges $100.

Ford Racing 3.73 Gears ~ $150
Ford Racing Traction Lok ~ $250
Rear end oil & Friction modifier - $40
Install - $100

Does this sound like a good price for everything?

 

That sounds like a good deal! I'd jump on it. Sidenote: you are a speed ***** you know that right? If you're never going to add a decent set of aluminum heads or aftermarket intake then you may want to go w/ 4:10 gears and give up the gas mileage and ever racing anyone over 95mph.. <- not that you should do that. Anyway, those 4:10 gears would give you some serious around town scoot. They would be overkill w/ another 50-70hp found in the heads/intake but if you don't do those it adds another mechanical advantage and won't cost more if you do it now..

 

WHO ME?? Well yes I know LOL But hey th truck will go 100+ cause Ive heard so LOL, but it doesnt win many races like that. Its much better from 0-75, after that, I am just a big brick plowing through the air.

Hey maybe down the line I will get some after market heads. For right now I am trying to do all the bolt ons I can, then I will dig into the engine. I would love to get GT-40 heads and upper/ lower intake, and something like an E303 cam, but I will have to wait on that for a couple of years. I dont want to go overboard with 4.10s, I was contemplating that, but actually since my tires are 1 inch shorter than the stock ones, if I put a 3.73 in, it will be like I am running a 3.84 rear end. Going to 3.73s from my 3.31s should make a nice improvement. This is everything I plan on doing between now and mid summer:
- 3.73 LS
- ASP Underdrive Pulleys
- Dual Electric Fans
- TransGo Shift Kit
- Shorty headers (JBA or Ford Racing)
- MAYBE - dual bore 60mm TB & 90mm L MAF

I think if I did all those mods along with what I currently have, that my truck would be pretty damn quick (probably mid to high 15s, sosomething that would keep up with a Gen 1 L.