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building the ultimate mazda rear end,

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Old 08-09-05, 08:38 PM
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building the ultimate mazda rear end,

ok, so im trying to piece together all the parts for my turbo 1 gen, i cant find a gslse rear end, so i figure im gonna do it right the first time instead of goofing around with parts that "should hold up" or might hold the power, so i want your opinion on what parts i should add onto my 84 housing,

everything will be upgraded:
brakes,
lines
appearance (paint)
axles
3rd member, and gears,
-panhard bar, and 3link, and coilovers will also be fitted (but have nothign to do with this particular thread)

ok, just remember this is on a budget, dont know for sure if im willing to fork out the 1000$$ for the miata torsen, or not, but here are my ideas so far,
possibly new axles from victoria british, or aftermarket from guru or whatever other company carries something for it
2nd gen brakes, custom brackets for them braided brake lines,
choices for 3rd member,

miata, obviousely best, not sure about power handling but it might be tooo expensive
fc / gearset and rearend, (not sure about the power handling capabilities,
or aftermarket,

those are the plans, allong with brand new bearings in it from end to end, and high grade fluids, any suggestions would be much appreciated, also keep in mind that the bolt pattern must be 4x114.5 and i am on a budget, of about 5-600$$ for the whole thing, hoping the expensive pieces to be junkyard finds, also the lmt slip i choose will be rebuilt,
thanks , Paul
Old 08-09-05, 08:41 PM
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Ford 8.8
Old 08-09-05, 09:54 PM
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Don't waste your time. As long as you're not running slicks, or drag radials with ALOT of power, - stock will hold just fine.

Street Tires will be the "give" you need.
Old 08-09-05, 10:11 PM
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Directfreak should know too. He ran over 300 hp through his stock GSL-SE rear end and to my knowledge, never had any problems. Correct me if I'm wrong though.

IMO, unless your running a turbocharged car, you shouldn't worry about the rear end. The internals of a ford 8.8 are too heavy and create drivetrain losses. I don't know how much more loss there would be, but I would imagine it would be around 20+ hp. If your only running 200 hp or something like that, its not worth it.
Old 08-09-05, 10:51 PM
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Originally Posted by 85rotarypower
Directfreak should know too. He ran over 300 hp through his stock GSL-SE rear end and to my knowledge, never had any problems. Correct me if I'm wrong though.
Not until I tried the drag radials at the track. Then it twisted an axle.

Originally Posted by 85rotarypower
but I would imagine it would be around 20+ hp. If your only running 200 hp or something like that, its not worth it.
More. Between 40-60 Wheel HP.
Old 08-09-05, 11:10 PM
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Yea,Ive never had any axle/diff problems with mine either.300hp for over 4 years,daily driven and pushed hard.I recently replaced my 3rd member due to some noise,but there was no abnormal wear or twist in anything.Even with my wide,grippy 245's out back,theres nothing bad yet to report.
Old 08-10-05, 12:55 AM
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i dont have a stock se rear end,
as the thread says im starting out wiht a base model rear end housing which is the same as any gslse housing as long as its 84-5
i will be runnign a turbo, and have plans for slicks, and i said i dont want something that "should hold up" i want something that isnt going to break, and will last me for years,so i can do it right once the first time,

keep in mind i have to get axles from somewhere, i cant find usedones, so i iether have to get aftermarket stuff, or replacement parts from victoria british, as it says in the thread, i also must get a 3rd member, thats the most important part, as i dont know whether or not an n/a 2ndgen ltd slip would bolt in or not, I do not have any gsle se parts to speak of, because i dont have a gslse but i still need the 4x114.5 bolt pattern and i want to upgrade everything listed above, im not going to get a ford 8.8 thought about it, but its too heavy for my application, thanks,
Paul
Old 08-10-05, 01:17 AM
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Your going to be severely limited as to what 3rd member will work since your utilizing the stock housing.Axle size will also be limited,so custom, stronger axles that are physically the same size will likely be neccesary.
The 2nd gen 3rd member is totally different since its bolted to an IRS subframe.The LSD and internal diff parts are similar,but really not much stronger than the 1st gen stuff.
Old 08-10-05, 01:35 AM
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Originally Posted by Directfreak
Not until I tried the drag radials at the track. Then it twisted an axle.


More. Between 40-60 Wheel HP.

are you freakin kidding me? you are trying to say that a ford 8.8 rear will suck up 40-60 hp???



bahahahahahaha!



where is your proof?
Old 08-10-05, 02:54 AM
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Originally Posted by theantirotor
are you freakin kidding me? you are trying to say that a ford 8.8 rear will suck up 40-60 hp???



bahahahahahaha!



where is your proof?
One of the Aussie guys dynoed his car before and after the switch from from the stock rear to the Ford. Don't remember if it was an 8.8 or 9", he lost 40 rwhp, and gained about 60 lbs.
Old 08-10-05, 05:29 AM
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Do a Miata 3rd member, And get the axles from Mosler.


If you truely want it to last then get the 8.8 Anything else and you are just waiting for it to break. I have seen a 4 port 13B break two rears and three trans.

by the time to spend all the money to build up an SE rear you will have spent enought to have gotten the 8.8 and will still have to worry about breaking it.
Old 08-10-05, 10:17 AM
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Originally Posted by trochoid
One of the Aussie guys dynoed his car before and after the switch from from the stock rear to the Ford. Don't remember if it was an 8.8 or 9", he lost 40 rwhp, and gained about 60 lbs.
Exactly. The place I dyno my car is owned by a friend of mine. He literally has seen hundreds upon hundred of cars on the dyno - including his own toys.
His toys include:
Turbo Honda S2000 making over 640rwhp /
AE86 powered by a Turbo S2000 engine making 414rwhp.

Both cars have Ford 8.8.'s. The Honda has an IRS pumpkin from an 03' Mustang Cobra, and the Corolla has one from a regular GT.

Doing those swaps, and nothing more -

He lost 42 whp on the Corolla, and 56whp on the S2000.
I believe he lost more on the S2000 because of the taller 3.55 gearing.

Mind you, both those engine make more torque than a rotary at the same HP, so It is only fair to assume that the rotary would have a little more loss to begin with.

On top of that, my rear is even heavier, with 9" ends, C clip eliminators, Big Bearings, Big 31 spline axles from Strange, and Auborn limited slip diff, 3.73 Ford Motorsport gears, and 4 piston rear brakes.

AntiRotor - you have a nice V8 powered FC - I suggest you play with it, and stay out of crap you don't know about.
Old 08-10-05, 10:48 AM
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Originally Posted by Directfreak
with 9" ends, C clip eliminators, Big Bearings, Big 31 spline axles from Strange, and Auborn limited slip diff, 3.73 Ford Motorsport gears, and 4 piston rear brakes.

Nice Rear.
Old 08-10-05, 07:40 PM
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ok, i know i want a mazda rear end, i dont want this to be a thread about whether i need an 8.8 its a thread about how to make a strong, mazda rear, using some aftermarket, and some junkyard parts,
i dont want a heavy *** ford rear in there, cause my car is lightened, but i still want it to stand up to whatever i throw at it, yes it will be turbo with grippy tires, but its lighter than most 1gens, so a modified mazda rear will hold up, i just want your opinions on what parts to build my rear with,

i went to http://www.moserengineering.com/
but couldnt find anything, can they ship to canada,

- still in the air is what 3rd member to use, does anyone have any info on what ltd slip fc 3rds are strongest? besides turbo,
Old 08-10-05, 08:00 PM
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ok on a serious note, how much power are you planning on having? what they are trying to tell you is, why build this rear end when it's just gonna break?
Old 08-10-05, 08:27 PM
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a guy i used to work for has an '03 Mach 1. 8.8" rear, 3.53 gears stock. first time at the track with MT ET Streets, he twisted an axle and welded his differential to the housing (i saw the aftermath, he keeps it to show people, it was ****** sick). 6k clutch drop is all horsepower, so don't claim that the low end torque twisted his axle. before he went to the track he had it dyno'ed and it put about 270 to the rear wheels, but then again it weighs 3600 lbs. you can theoretically break anything with any amount of power, depending on how stupid you are when you drive/launch it. if you stay all mazda, be more concious about how hard you launch it, and if you decide to go for broke on a trip down the strip and grenade your rear end, then go with the 8.8"

Last edited by OneRotor; 08-10-05 at 08:30 PM.
Old 08-10-05, 08:41 PM
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Wink

Originally Posted by Hades12
Nice Rear.
Where you looking at my ***?
Old 08-10-05, 09:06 PM
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ive decide on the moser axles but im still unsure about shipping to canada,
also unsure still about 3rd member, really want to got an fc lsd 3rd member, but still unsure,
paul
Old 08-10-05, 09:15 PM
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You want a Miata Diff, Get the Mosler axles for the diff, they make them just a little longer then normal SE axles. the PN of the Axles is on a website. the link can be found in the archives or by search. build up the breaks like a normal SE And if you want some extra protection have someone weld reenforcements to the stock housing.
Old 08-11-05, 09:46 AM
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http://www.rx7.org/jes/axles.html

There's also a Floating hub kit from Guru Motorsports in Australia. You can swap axleshafts easily if you twist them. They're supposed to be much stronger than stock.

ALSO, I thougth the disc brake rear ends had a 3 bolt flange and the drum brake units had a 4 bolt flange, making the axle housings incompatible.

And since when did a Miata torsen cost $1000? I got mine for $250, as a bonus, I got 4.30:1 ring and pinion.
Old 08-11-05, 10:51 AM
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Originally Posted by Pele
http://www.rx7.org/jes/axles.html

There's also a Floating hub kit from Guru Motorsports in Australia. You can swap axleshafts easily if you twist them. They're supposed to be much stronger than stock.

ALSO, I thougth the disc brake rear ends had a 3 bolt flange and the drum brake units had a 4 bolt flange, making the axle housings incompatible.

And since when did a Miata torsen cost $1000? I got mine for $250, as a bonus, I got 4.30:1 ring and pinion.
that is the Site I was talking about.

Guru also makes a Diff for our cars.


Pete did you ever install the Miata Torsen?
Old 08-11-05, 11:18 AM
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What about a gsl rear? How much power do you think that can hold?
Old 08-11-05, 11:46 AM
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Originally Posted by gerbraldy
What about a gsl rear? How much power do you think that can hold?
"With pinkey in mouth"

1 Million HorsePower.



any first gen rear will have trouble in the 150 to 200 range. How you treat it will determine how long it lives.
Old 08-11-05, 03:02 PM
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Originally Posted by Directfreak
Exactly. The place I dyno my car is owned by a friend of mine. He literally has seen hundreds upon hundred of cars on the dyno - including his own toys.
His toys include:
Turbo Honda S2000 making over 640rwhp /
AE86 powered by a Turbo S2000 engine making 414rwhp.

Both cars have Ford 8.8.'s. The Honda has an IRS pumpkin from an 03' Mustang Cobra, and the Corolla has one from a regular GT.

Doing those swaps, and nothing more -

He lost 42 whp on the Corolla, and 56whp on the S2000.
I believe he lost more on the S2000 because of the taller 3.55 gearing.

Mind you, both those engine make more torque than a rotary at the same HP, so It is only fair to assume that the rotary would have a little more loss to begin with.

On top of that, my rear is even heavier, with 9" ends, C clip eliminators, Big Bearings, Big 31 spline axles from Strange, and Auborn limited slip diff, 3.73 Ford Motorsport gears, and 4 piston rear brakes.

AntiRotor - you have a nice V8 powered FC - I suggest you play with it, and stay out of crap you don't know about.

well gosh i bet i freed up like 50 hp just from switching the ls1 from the camaro with the 10 bolt chevy rear to the rx-7 with the mazda tii rear!! wow! i never knew!
Old 08-11-05, 03:26 PM
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Lightbulb Rear Huh.

Just weld your spider gears on your final drive, its cheap and should hold so long you dont go over aprox. 225 horsies. i have an 83 with a v-spec turbo thats running about 250 horses with the boost up. and i have a welded stock rear thats held up good so far. the reason i did it was to give me time to save up for some thing better, but its been working fine for the last 6 months. you can get any old school mechanic to hook you up, if your not handy with a welder.


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