Jerry Kugel called me back yesterday and we had a pretty good conversation. He said they could outfit me a 9" center section that would basically bolt in for about $2500. It would use everything stock on the outer ends and can definitely stand up to lots of abuse. Tom's can build a D44 for about the same amount.
I might go this route for the new 427 SBC we are building. I will see 750+ FWHP N/A and 1000 FWHP with 5 lbs boost, and expect that the D44 is going to make VERY bad noises the first time I put tires on that will hook up. I just need to find out what it would do to me class-wise for racing....
Just thought I'd share this with the rest of you...
Location: Exit 89 GSP,Lakewood,NJ The Land Of Mojo
Re: Ford 9" rear for C4's found!!!! (Joe90)
Ford 9",MOPAR 8 3/4 and the Dana 60 are among the best to use for our application.
Although when my time comes, I will probably go with a sold axle setup and do away with the IRS.
I have a guy locally who build those Fab 9 rears, I may consider that as well, but that's a few years down teh roads, I'm concentrating on hitting the 11's first.
Joe90, (First Timer) I'm trying to run a C4 in a class for Mustangs. We have to stay all stock suspension, Kinda. We have to go 5.60 to stay in the feild. Couldn't do it with the rear end. Your post gave me a new option, but when I called those Guys they didn't no about a bolt on app. I was wondering if You had more info. I had already givin up on running the vette and bought a 67 Camaro with Caltrackers. Hopeful!
Jerry told me they would need the suspension points measured to be able to get a unit to "bolt in".
We'd need to build the brace on our own to get it for the price range he quoted.
Also we would need to build a new C-channel beam that would mate with the Ford center.
It will take some careful thought and planning, but the end result would be a lot more reliable than the D44 when you start blowing high horsepower through it with really sticky tires.
It would also leave the IRS in place, so the car would still be very corner-handling friendly when you were not at the track. I know others have gone to a solid rear, but when you do that you basically kill what a Corvette is all about and make it a 1-dimensional car.
So your saying that we could get a Ford 9" center section that would bolt to the halfshafts???
How would we attach it in (we use the batwing thing now. It sounds like your not getting much for $2500 because you have to fabricate your own bat-wing rearend mount, c-beam and everything...
Re: Ford 9" rear for C4's found!!!! (BrianCunningham)
Quote:
Sounds like a good group purchase to start.
Find me a bolt in 9" center section
I'm in. There was a guy who had plans for a bolt in solid, but I don't want to loose the ride and feel of the car. I like to cruise and burn race gas. I don't want to give up the IRS if someone can provide a solution like a 9" center.
:cheers:
We looked at this every way the wind blows. Jeb even pondered it for a good while with a stock bolt in setup and could not get the instant centers to work out. Not saying it can't be done since we could not figure it out, but a direct bolt in seems a little too easy.
Nother thing that is not jiving with me is the statement that a new C-beam will need to be made. With a solid axle rear, you no longer can have a C-beam since the rear must travel up and down, no more 1/2 shafts.
If the center alone is replaced with something else, then we are back to the point someone else made with the fact we now use a batwing to position/mount the center...what does he plan to do with all this? And it still leaves the 1/2 shafts pretty much weaker than a full solid rear would have been.
This doesn't even address the shock mounts that need to be located for a solid axle, which we have no current provisions for. Rear Brakes are also an issue. Along with anti-lock brake sensors. etc.
Please do not think I am trying to be a wet blanket. These are all the issues we ran into when hashing over the idea. If this guy came up with a solution that is awesome. But before laying down cash for this thing, I would check into some of the items that I mentioned above..
I will keeping an eye here for more details. :cheers: :lurk: :thumbs:
It is not a solid rear. These guys build IRS rears for just about anything you want to convert to IRS...'55 Chevy Apache Pickups, T-buckets, anything.
Follow the link I put to their web site and you'll see what I mean. They take a Ford 9" and cut it off, put short stub-axles on it and then fabricate the rest of the IRS components to make it hang where it's supposed to.
You'll still need to deal with the inherent weakness of the half-shafts and universals, but I think Denny's can fix that problem pretty quick. Some billet outer axles to complete the package and you'll have something that can stand up to the abuse of high-horsepower motors. Not to mention that the choices of gearing for Ford 9" carriers are a lot cheaper than for our D44's.
Kugle's has been doing these kinds of rear-ends for years in the custom car market. If I can swing it, I'll let them use my car for the measurements and prototyping but it won't be for a while. What we discussed is a unit that would replace the bat-wing, have the mounting points in-place for the camber rods and the C-channel. It would use the stock half-shafts and all the outer wheel suspension points.
We won't get that for $2k though, he "estimated" it would be closer to $3k to complete the work. The $2k price was just the Ford 9" center, and I would need to do the rest of the fabrication to make it fit.
If we had a machine shop, had someone with the know-how, we could get it down in price I'm sure...
Location: Boston, Dallas, Detroit, SoCal, back to Boston MA
Re: Ford 9" rear for C4's found!!!! (Joe90)
This is what he's talking about.
Just skip the inboard breaks, and use the stock Corvette uprights.
Looks like it's based on the old Jaguar suspension.
I'd go to custom half shafts, they're easy enough to make up, and beefier half-shafts and u-joints are needed to take the torque.
Corvette Store
Ford 9" rear for C4's found!!!!
