Dropped her off for the V8 upgrade!

If I remember right I think it is bad on the other side... he'll let us know.

 

Don't the 200 CI six cars in addition to 4 lug wheels have smaller drums than the 5 lug V-8 cars? My 72 302 has the factory drums and I really started noticing how inadiquate they are since I souped the motor up. Perfectly fine in normal driving but sudden bursts of speed tend to require sudden aplications of the brakes. Inadiquate brakes were a standard feature for almost all American economy cars from that era at no extra cost!

 

I'll definitely address the breaks after the engine is upgraded. I think I'll do it myself so I can save some money. Doesn't look hard, we'll see.

 

Updates!!

V8 installed.
He's waiting for the A/C bracket.
Headers are installed.
After engine done he's gonna send it for dual exhaust install.
Maybe it'll be ready by 1/2/09 . . .

 

It sounds like you're doing everything the right way. I did a V8 swap on my '72. I did everything myself. It's got 5 lug power disc brakes from a '77 4dr car. You're gonna have to change the WHOLE rearend when you upgrade to 5 lug. The backing plates have different bolt patterns. Also, the driveshaft is 1" shorter in the 6cyl car thatn the V8 car. It'll work, but you may have a 45mph+ vibration. You won't need a high stall convertor if you have a stock cam. Etc, etc, etc. Good luck!

 

Drive shafts are the same between I6 and V8.

 

I had a driveline vibration that I couldn't figure out. After I replaced the u-joints 2 or 3 times I grabbed the driveshaft out of my V8 Grabber. When I layed them side by side, the OE V8 driveshaft was about 1" longer than the 6cyl shaft out of my car. After I put the Grabber driveshaft in the car (didn't even change the u-joints), the vibration went away. The transmission sits farther back in the tunnel with a 6cyl.

 

Yea I've gotta look into a rear end. I read some threads but don't know much about the ass of my car (well, don't know much about the nose either) so I'm gonna have to do some searching still.

Running cost:
tranny crossmember --------$75
bell housing-----------------$50
labor-----------------------$900
V8 engine------------------$600
frame mounts---------------$85
engine crossmember---------$50
accelerator cable-----------$25
misc parts-----------------$500
exhaust-------------------$400
S&H for parts---------------$50
---------------------------------
total $2,735

yikes!!

 

Mine sounds just like yours. 200, C4, A/C. Mine had a 3.00 gear in it. Most Mavericks seem to come with 2.79s. That 3.00 is a good gear! It works great with a 25-26" tire. I reused the 3rd member when I changed the housing & axles. Later on I built another 8" w/ 3.55s & a locker & swapped it out. But man, for cruising & long burnouts the 3.00 was key. Not to mention I dropped 2 mpg when I moved up to the 3.55!

 

what 8" did you use? is it easy to swap the rear end?

 

That is strange. I have a couple of V8 drive shafts, and several 6 cylinder shafts. All of mine are the same. I've also done the V8 swap in a couple of cars, and had no issue with the drive shafts.

A 5 lug from any '71+ Maverick or Comet will bolt right in. Only real difference is they changed the diameter of the center "hub" piece that fits through the center of the wheel. It got bigger in '74. Won't be a problem unless you try to use factory 5 lug '71-'73 wheels on a '74+ rear. Any aftermarket wheels will fit either rear with no problem.

Swapping the rear is straight forward. Getting the emergency brake cables loose was the only part that really gave me any trouble.

 

Your car should have an 8" in it now. My rearend came from a '77 4dr V8 car. What kind of exhaust are you gonna run?

 

Mine might just be a bastard, but that's how was.

 

If I have an 8" in there already then should I still change it?

For the exhaust I'm gonna have a dual with dumps at the axle.

 

You have to change the rear, because the one you currently have is 4 lug. When you put disc brakes on the front of the car, they will be 5 lug. You cannot swap 5 lug axles into a 4 lug housing, because the bearings are different sizes, and the axels themselves are a different diameter, so you can't just swap the bearings. You must swap the entire rearend. You can swap the center sections between 4 lug and 5 lug.