If you're looking to improve the acceleration and off-the-line performance of your Mustang,
stepping up to a numerically higher gear ratio is a great way to do so. Now the Ford Performance
3.73 gear set and install kit will be from one of the most trusted names in parts for your
'86 to '09 V8 Mustang, with the 8.8 solid rear axle. Now this kit will include a brand-new ring
and pinion as you guys can see, along with everything you need to get them in place.
Price point for the 5-star rated kit will be in the mid to high $200 range,
and the install will not be for the timid or inexperienced mechanics out there so let's
call this one a full-blown 3 out of 3 wrenches on the difficulty meter with a little bit more
detail on that later in the video. So it's no secret that most of the factory gear ratios for
the earlier cars like the Fox Bodies, and the SN95s, and even some of the early S197s weren't
exactly ideal for off-the-line performance and acceleration. In fact, it was quite the opposite.
Now most of these earlier cars were working with either a 2.73, a 3.08,
or in some cases a 3.27 gear until some of the early S197s ushered in an optional 3.55
ratio. And with all that said, again, a great way to increase your off-the-line
performance and acceleration without even adding horsepower is to install a
numerically higher gear ratio or a shorter gear as they're sometimes referred to as.
Now doing so will help you get through those gears a little bit faster and get you up to
speed quicker. But the only drawback being a slight hit to your fuel economy, depending on
how aggressive you go. But, with the days of overdrive manual and automatic transmissions,
it's not nearly as bad as it used to be back on the old four-speed cars.
But getting into the kit that we have here and with that fuel economy thing in mind,
I would argue a lot of people would probably prefer the 3.73 to a more aggressive 4.10 or
higher gear ratio, because, depending on your factory ratio, you are still getting
a much shorter gear with the 3.73, especially if you had a 2.73 car or even a 3.07 car. So,
the car basically is going to feel totally different but without turning more RPM while
cruising on a highway like you would with a 4.10 or something higher. Basically, it's gonna be a
great compromise. Now as far as your physical construction of the gears are concerned, well,
really nice stuff here from Ford Performance, and that is what we've come to expect from anything
with the blue oval on it. We're gonna be looking at the strong forge construction throughout,
CNC cut, of course, along with the lapped teeth all finished in that black oxide coating.
Now the gears had been made in the USA, and Ford Performance likes to tout that these are gonna be
some of the quietest gears you'll find available in the after-market. But on the subject of noise,
it is important to point out, for me, that a lot of times the noise might not be coming from the
gears themselves but rather the install or the setup of the gear or rather the ring and pinion,
which does lead us into the next part of our product here. And that is the installation
kit. And while I don't have every single part on the table with me for this video,
you will be receiving everything you need to get the new ring and pinion installed and set
up in your V8, and that does include brand new bearings, new seals, new shims, crush sleeves,
pinion nut, gear marking compound and brush to check the pattern in-depth,
your diff cover gasket, and even a couple of quarts of the 75-90 Royal Purple gear
oil in addition to the 4 ounces or 3.8 ounces of the required friction modifier.
So a very complete kit is what I'm trying to say here, guys, at the end of the day,
and one that will be beneficial to either you or your mechanic when it comes time to
get everything installed. And speaking of the installation, listen, getting gear set
up properly can be a bit of an art form and does involve a bare amount of work under the car in
addition to using some specialty tools like the press, the dial indicator, and things like that.
So because of this, we're gonna call it a full three out of three wrenches on the difficulty
meter. Those of you who have done this in the past knows what's involved, so, yeah,
no problem locking this out and you're definitely gonna save yourself some money when it comes to
labor. On the other hand, for the novice mechanics out there who really aren't too familiar with
this sort of thing, you might wanna get this one installed by your local shop. It's not a
fun day in the garage. And again if you don't have access to all the specialty tools, it can
lead to a noisy operation. Typically labor for a job like this will vary depending on your area,
of course, but I'd say a ballpark of 500 bucks, give or take, is what you can expect for the
labor here. But again if you've done this before and you know what to expect. On the other hand,
I would strongly recommend getting this one knocked out by your local shop.
Another big thing to keep in mind when making the change to a different gear ratio is the change or
effect that this will have on your speedometer, and it will need to be corrected. Now you have
a couple of different options, '79 to '98 cars or V8 owners out there, you can simply replace
your speedometer gear. It's gonna be the most cost-effective way to go about doing
so. '99 and newer cars, on the other hand, with that VSS sensor, you can either fix this through
a handheld device or tuner, or you can look into a speedo recalibration box from a company
like Ford Racing, for instance, on the site here for a couple of hundred bucks. But in closing,
guys, if you're looking to really kick up that off-the-line grunt of your V8-power Mustang,
improve your acceleration and your ETs, a set of 3.73s from Ford Performance
would be a great choice, and you can grab yours right here at americanmuscle.com.