78 rear end

[milo30]

Ok, this has probably been answered in the past but I'll ask anyway. I have a 78 with stock 3.73 rear end. I am going to do an engine and transmission swap sometime in the near future. I am probably going to go with a 6 sp. tranny for the fuel economy. The engine, I still haven't decided on. It will definately have more HP and torque then the orig. motor. I want atleast 400HP but the more the better!

I know the drive shaft will prob. have to be changed depending on the transmission. Other than that what do I need to look out for on the rear end of this car. I'm not sure what stock parts can handle even if they are replaced or what I need to start looking at as far as upgrading that area.

I already plan on upgrading my suspension to something more modern.

Any ideas of what I'm getting into would be appreciated.

 

[GTR1999]

Well, first a stock vette gear ratio would be 3:70, the 373 is aftermearket and only offered by Tom's. It is a better gear then stock.

Ok so much for numbers. Depending on the trans you may need a special fabricated DS. The differential in stock form isn't too bad but there are some things you can do to it to beef it up. A lot depends on how you plan on driving the car.

The late 70's diff's had poor quaility side yokes and often have been replaced by now. The posi clutches are also a poor design and should be upgraded to the solid steel type- not the fiber ones.

If you go to this post I have on DC it will give you a lot of info and tell how I build them better then any stock setup.

http://www.digitalcorvettes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77377