3.05 Rear For the Ultimate Cruiser

[RAC68]

Hi All,

A good friend, without his own computer, is finishing a full rebuild of the running gear in his 1967 BJ8P2 and is intent on making it the ultimate Healey cruiser. He has rebuilt the engine and hooked it to a Toyota 5-speed and 3.54 rear but is in constant pursuit of a way to have a 3.05 rear. Since a 3.05 rear was offered in the XKE and MGC, he sees no reason that this gearing would not do well in his Healey and has been asking me to, again, ask the Forum. Does anyone know of 3.05 gears that would fit a Healey, could be modified to fit a standard Healey, or have any ideas of ways to achieve this higher gearing.

Thanks,
Ray (64BJ8P1)

 

[vette]

Ray, I have never heard of that gearing for a healey. But if I could do it, I would be interested. Dave.

 

[HealeyRick]

I haven't heard of any rear gear that high, either. Probably the "easiest" way to do it would be to call one of the rear axle specialists like Moser or Currie and tell them what you're trying to do. I think (but am not sure) that the Ford 8" rear end and perhaps the 7.5" use the same 5x5 bolt circle that would allow bolting up the Healey wire wheel adapters. And you can get just about any rear end ratio you please with those rear ends. You'd have to get the axles and housing narrowed, the Healey attachment brackets welded on and sort out the details of rear brake proportioning. Not going to be cheap or easy and frankly, I wouldn't bother. I drove my BJ7 with a Supra 5 spd and 3.54 gears and it was plenty relaxed on the highway. Unless your cruising the autobahn, I'm not sure the 3.09 would be worth the extra trouble and expense.

 

[drambuie]

Ray, You may want to tell your friend about Arrow Gear, They can manufacture any gear for any application and most likely can help with figuring the proper gear combinations to achieve your friends goal. Arrow gear has been around for many years and if you email them at least they may steer you in the right direction. They are suppliers for the military, Indy F1 cars and others. Arrow Gear is located in Downers Grove IL. 630-969-7640 or check out there website.

 

[RandyHicks]

Smith Brody (orig. builder Smitty 5 Spd.) runs a Ford rear end with I think a 3.0 in his BJ8. Has for years.

Randy

 

[RAC68]

Thanks All,

I appreciate your replies and suggestions. For some reason he has been in pursuit of this dream for years and plans to use the car extensively for high speed highway driving.

Thanks again and I will keep you informed as to his progress in the pursuit.
Ray (64BJ8P1)

 

[EV2239]

Very high axle ratios work best on the torquiest engines in my experience. I also have a MKVI Bentley with a 3.4 to 1 ratio instead of a 3.727 and it's far better for it. My sons runs a business that deals with these cars and has fitted 3 to 1 axles to them and still they go really well. I'm sure my BJ7 would be better with a 3 to 1.

My TR3A has a sports cam and a 3.5 to 1 (instead of a 3.9 as is normal with overdrive) and it is less happy. I didn't even notice the axle ratio until I stupidly fitted the sports cam. I now know that if you've tuned the engine, you need a lower ratio to get the best of it, but with added noise.