sport tracn

[sport tracn]

Ok so i've had my 2001 trac for six years now. All the tires ive had put on the rear (new and used) wear out faster than the front like crazy. I finally took it to a frame shop and turns out it had been hit in the driver side rear. The guy said the axle was 3/4 inch bent. I bought the truck with only 13,000 miles on it. So if im going to replace my axle im wondering if anyone out there knows anything about info on a better axle swap. Something simple that will just hook up or minor adjustments. I currently have Shelby22s on it and i want a little more power if possible. Any comments or ideas are welcome and appreciated.

 

[Sams01XplrSprt]

do u got pics of ur sport trac

 

[Lacky01]

does the 01 sport trac have a solid rear?

are you looking for a stronger axle? or do you need suggestions for taller gears for better acceleration?

I've heard a lot about swapping in a Ford 9". run a search on that.

and there are factory 8.8s with 4.10 gears. let us know what you have. and also if you are 4wd or not.

 

[ncranchero]

The 8.8 is all you need for the 4.0L. Remember they hold up under 5.0L & 4.6L Mustangs, F150's and even Crown Vic Interceptors. Assuming you have a 2 wheel drive, you can look for a 4.10 geared axle from a Trac. Do you have the 4.10 or the 3.73 now? Hi-Bridge close to you used to have decent pricing....if they're still there.

 

[brianjwilson]

The 31 spline 8.8 is a great axle. As mentioned it was even in a lot of F150's.
Many people buy used 31 spline 8.8 axles as upgrades for rangers and jeeps.
The same axle is in 95-01 explorers with disc brakes. Most common with 3.55 and 3.73 gears, and available in many junkyards for $100-300.
Re-gear the axle if you want more power to the ground.

 

[sport tracn]

Well, thanx for all the suggestions. It is a 2wd and i think i want stock as possible. Will the 4.10 make it go faster?

 

[Lacky01]

it'll go quicker. some 8.8s came stock with 4.10s

 

[rmcalis]

4.10's will allow your ST to accelerate faster, cut down on the top end.
Depending on how you drive, you may either get better or worse gasoline mileage. If you do lot of highway driving you will probably notice a drop in mpg. In town driving mpg may actually improve to a small degree.

 

[sport tracn]

how bout posi on my trac? is this possible?

 

[TwoX]

i was always told limited slip was better that a full posi lock well mess up and the back end hops when going around corners because both wheels always pull, while a limited slip will unlock when turning and lock when going straight

 

[JohnnyO]

how bout posi on my trac? is this possible?

Yes. There are many limited-slip units available for the 31-spline 8.8".

 

[brianjwilson]

What gears does your current differential have in it? What size tires?
My 05 sport trac with stock 30" tires came with 4.10 gears and it worked very well. Lower gears (higher numerically) will get you better acceleration, better hill climbing. The top speed will not change since the computer is limited around 90 something anyway, but the engine will rev a little higher on the freeway. This is not really a bad thing since the 4.0L SOHC produces power better at higher rpms.

A posi is the same thing as a limited slip.
For a daily driver 2wd I would just run the ford trac-lock differential. It is a clutch based limited slip, and is commonly found it 8.8 axles. If you find one with high mileage it can be rebuilt fairly cheaply with new clutches. If you wanted to spend a lot more money you could always buy a detroit true-trac which is a helical gear driven limited slip that won't wear out like a clutch based unit will in time.

 

[Gay-briel]

stupid question,


do you rotate your tires?

 

[sport tracn]

Well i called a ford dealership and gave them my vin number and turns out i already have the 4.10 gear but what surprised me was that he said there is a left rear axle and a right. He said it is just a piece of tube that comes out of the axle held in place by a pin. Does this sound right?

 

[ncranchero]

He said it is just a piece of tube that comes out of the axle held in place by a pin. Does this sound right?

What is a piece of tube?????????

The axle shaft is held in place by a "C" clip. You remove the spider gear cross shaft, push the axle shaft in and slide the "c"clip off to remove the axle shaft.

Is your axle shaft bent or the axle housing?

Left and right axle SHAFT is probably different on the Trac, don't know for sure. Left and rights were different on my F150.

 

[sport tracn]

The frame shop said it was the axle shaft that was bent. What's the axle housing?

 

[ncranchero]

Axle housing is the big somewhat "T" shaped piece everything goes into. The last axle shaft I bought, about a year ago, was $40 from the salvage yard.

 

[sport tracn]

Ok cool. $40 bucks sounds great. As soon as i get the time to get under there i will take care of it. Is it difficult to replact the shaft?

 

[sport tracn]

Well, it took a week but it is done. Instead of changing the shaft i bought a used rear end from Vicker's in Chesnee SC for 300. I measured from center to center of the tires in front and behind the rear end. Both rear and front measured exactly 52 inches. The old rear end was 52 1/4 in front and 51 7/8 in the rear. Talk about wearing out some tires. im glad its over.

 

[ncranchero]

I think I'm going to need a passenger side axle shaft. If you were a little closer I'd just buy it from you and you could recover a few $$$'s.