91 GM with snow tires or find a 4WD vehicle?

[Stealthlead]

From what most of you guys are saying I'm getting the feeling it will be do able. I talked to my roomate and the road I live on where its inclined and in the mountains is usually well maintained, so he says. That's really the worst part. I've actually got a set of brand new studded snow tires back in AZ along with my old stock rims. I can throw a set of normal snows on the front and run the studded, I don't want to get my new rims all fked up during the winter time anyways >.< I'd rather spend whatever it will cost for a new rear end rather than get another car right now. What effect would switching to a 3.73 rear end have in the snow? I've wanted to swap out to 3.73's and discs in the rear for quite some time now.

Thanks for all the helpful responses you guys. Like I said if its possible for her to do decent in the snow, get by and survive, I'll do pretty much whatever it takes. I want to drive my box lol

[Stealthlead]

Ok so this post below found here http://www.grandmarq.net/vb/showthre...-rear-end-gear leads me to believe a lower gear ratio is a good idea for my situation.. correct me if I am wrong.

I have two cars with 3.27 rears, and I honestly like them pretty well. I find that they generally give a decent blend of putting the power to the road, so to speak, and keeping engine RPMs down at cruising speeds.

In a nutshell, going to a "lower" (numerically higher) gear ratio such as 3.73:1 or 4.10:1 will give your engine more mechanical advantage and therefore more effective torque at the wheels. This can be a big benefit in any heavy car, or if you want to have good acceleration with a small engine (as in a lot of FWD imports that have little low-end torque), or if you choose to build an engine that makes lots of power at high RPM. It's also common for trucks of various descriptions to use fairly low rear-end gears to increase hauling capacity.

Cons of lower gears include higher engine RPM at cruising speeds (you can calculate a theoretical new cruising RPM pretty easily), lower theoretical top speed, and the fact that you may experience traction problems in a light car with lots of torque.

A "taller" gear will lower your effective torque at the wheels. Its main benefit is that it's good for having lower engine RPMs at a given road speed, as with my old '79 wagon with a 2.26:1 gear that made highway cruising at low RPM very comfortable with a non-overdrive C4 transmission (it could actually go 70mph in First gear at only 5000 RPM), or if you have a light vehicle, an engine that makes power only at very low RPMs, need to remedy traction problems at low vehicle speeds (again, as with a light car with lots of torque), or want a higher theoretical top speed. Lower engine RPM per wheel speed, of course, also means, aside from the fact that the vehicle won't be going anywhere in any great hurry due to decreased effective torque at the wheels (said wagon was quite the slug off the line), that the wheels spin faster for a given engine speed, as I was reminded of when I got stuck in the snow in that same car with the 2.26 gear and found I had tremendous difficulty controlling wheelspin compared to the 3.27 gear I was used to.

All that said, 3.55:1 rear gears are a fairly popular swap among Panther-body owners, with 3.73:1 gears a little ways behind. I know of a smaller number of cars with 4.10:1 gears, but I'm pretty certain those cars are no longer driven daily.

Like I said before I've been planning on doing a 3.73 swap for a while.

[79lincolnlover]

I won't be selling the GM, ever, and if I end up getting a second car it'll end up being the DD while I get work done on the GM.

If the roads get salted there, your GM will rust out.

[Stealthlead]

They don't use salt here and a lot of my underside has been por15'ed. I don't have a rustbucket.

[Mainemantom]

I have a Subaru Outback as my dd. In the winter it is 99% the only car used. I have four studless Bridgestone snow tires. With AWD the car is excellent in snow. My driveway is 1,400 feet with an upgrade. I have got up the driveway with 18 inches of powder before. The emergency car is one of the Lincoln TCs. It has four studded Bridgestones. I have put three sandbags up where the spare tire is. It has the "posi" and I hate how it handles !
One thing both cars have are separate wheels with the snow tires. That way the mount and dismount of the tires on the same rims doesn't happen.
I am a Ford person, so for me to say a Subaru is great as a winter car, is a big deal.

[Stealthlead]

There's no doubt a Subaru would probably be the best choice and is a great winter car, I'm not arguing there. The fact is I'd have to pay $3k+ for the car, more for the registration, work it needs (new battery, dirty, exhaust is banged up), and worst of all not being able to drive my box. I can't really afford that and I'm not trying to drive through piles of snow... if the roads are bad and unploughed I simply won't drive them. But like I said they maintain the roads here very well from what I've heard. I'm just trying to see if there is a possibility to survive the brutal winter here with a box or if I'm really pushing my luck.

[jaywish]

with posi & snows +chains for emergency.

Still won't compare to a real 4x4.

[Stealthlead]

Posi is the same as track-lok right? Wouldn't it be best if I just pulled a 92-97 crown vic/GM/TC rear end with discs, had it rebuilt and swapped it out with mine? That can't be more than $1k.

[Mainemantom]

with posi & snows +chains for emergency.

Still won't compare to a real 4x4.

+1 on that

[sly]

Posi is the same as track-lok right? Wouldn't it be best if I just pulled a 92-97 crown vic/GM/TC rear end with discs, had it rebuilt and swapped it out with mine? That can't be more than $1k.

posi is GM's term while traklok is Ford's term... same thing. And yes on the axle swap.

[Stealthlead]

posi is GM's term while traklok is Ford's term... same thing. And yes on the axle swap.

Okay, got it. Traklok is manufactured by Dana, which is a division of Ford, and trakloks are Fords term for they're limited slip unit correct? So if I wanted a 3.73 rear end, the best way to do it is to pull a rear end from a 91-97 like I said, buy a 3.73 unit separately and give it all to a shop to have it rebuild (seals, axels etc.)?

Is there a certain 3.73 unit I should be looking for? Would this work - http://www.ebay.com/itm/DANA-44-POSI...item53ff1eafb1

Is there anything else I'd need or would a rear end shop have everything else?

[VicCrownVic]

30 spline? I though most (if not all) box rear ends were 28 spline while most of the newer stuff is 31 spline?

[jaywish]

Correct 28 or 31 spline. The unit on ebay has the style of an oem ford unit but it could really be a 30 spline and so not compatible.

If you are getting new axles, you may be able to get 31 spline, then you could get a brand new posi carrier for ford. You would need to check with the axle manufacturer to see if they will fit the axle housing you are looking at.

[Stealthlead]

Correct 28 or 31 spline. The unit on ebay has the style of an oem ford unit but it could really be a 30 spline and so not compatible.

If you are getting new axles, you may be able to get 31 spline, then you could get a brand new posi carrier for ford. You would need to check with the axle manufacturer to see if they will fit the axle housing you are looking at.

The reason I say new axels (not the entire assembly) is because I've read on here that most of them need replacing, so if I'm getting the complete assembly from a junkyard CV/GM, I figured I might as well replace them. The axel housing I'll be getting is just an 8.8 isn't it? Sorry I'm not the best with differentials :p

Would it be a bad idea to jut buy an entirely new rear end? Something like this - http://www.summitracing.com/parts/fm...a373/overview/

[jaywish]

That would be great if you could find one for a panther instead of a mustang.

You need axles, gears, a posi unit, bearings and seals to have a total rebuild. Plus brake parts, maybe rotors, calipers, pads, pins possibly Ebrake shoes and hardware.
The cost gets higher the more new parts you put in, labor is the same either way.

Many folks use a combination of old and new parts.