rear end ratios for 1956 t-bird | Ford Thunderbird forum club group 1955-2005 models

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rear end ratios for 1956 t-bird

  • Thread starter Thread starter ron56
  • Start date Start date
ron56

ron56

Bronze Member
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Thunderbird Year
1956
Hi, I'm looking to reduce the rpm's of my 56 t-bird on the freeway. I see a couple of maybe options and wondering if anyone has experience with either the Yukon Gear YG D44-308 or the USA Standard Gear ZG D44-308. They both appear to be for the Dana 44. None of the manufacturers list those part numbers fitting the 56 but NPD shows the 3.08 in their catalog. So I'm not even sure if they would fit. My current ratio is the 3.31 so the 3.08 should help. The Yukon Gear is priced at $301 and the USA is around $180. Anyone have any thoughts?.

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ron56 said:
Hi, I'm looking to reduce the rpm's of my 56 t-bird on the freeway. I see a couple of maybe options and wondering if anyone has experience with either the Yukon Gear YG D44-308 or the USA Standard Gear ZG D44-308. They both appear to be for the Dana 44. None of the manufacturers list those part numbers fitting the 56 but NPD shows the 3.08 in their catalog. So I'm not even sure if they would fit. My current ratio is the 3.31 so the 3.08 should help. The Yukon Gear is priced at $301 and the USA is around $180. Anyone have any thoughts?.
Click to expand...
I have not changed the ratio in my '56 but did a gear change in a 88 Trans Am using Yukon parts and was very satisfied with the quality. Ran very quiet.
 
You might want to compute the rpm savings by going from a 3.31 to a 3.08. I am not sure the cost would be worth the difference. I went the other way on my El Camino going from a 2.79 to a 3.55, but it had an overdrive tranny. I used Yukon gears also, and was happy.
Ralph .
 
Lowering the cruising rpm will also provide a quieter ride. With 2.72 gears from an 80s Corvette, my calculated rpm at 65 mph/w 215/70r15 tires is approximately 2200.
 
Rear end gear update:
It turns out that the 3.08 (really more like 3.07) gears will fit into the 1956 Dana 44 rear end. The answer to the question is it worth the expense. Probably not but is that really the point of having a early bird. I'm sure it wasn't worth it when I had leather hides dyed to match my custom paint either but I like it. Both changes make the car more enjoyable. Because I made the change to the gear ratio over the winter it's hard to be subjective but I really don't notice a drop in acceleration from a stop light and it did drop the engine rpm down about 300 revs at 70 mph. I changed the speedometer gear to a 20 tooth and by my GPS the speed is off 1 mph at 70 and the rpm is 2,700.
 
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