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Ring and pinion


Guest tin knocker

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Guest tin_knocker

Two years ago I purchased a 3.60 ring and pinion from a yard in Montana. The one sent had a badly rusted ring gear and was unusable. I returned it and waited for the replacement. After a year of stalling and excuses the owner admited that he didn't have one. I am still waiting for my refund.

Now I need to replace the clutch and would like to do the ring and pinion at the same time. If anyone knows of a salvage yard or anyone else who could provide one PLEASE let me know. My car is a 37 Special and I have been told the gears from later Buicks could be swapped. If you have ever driven a car with a 4.40 gear ratio you can understand why.

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I aam not sure whether the 38 gears will fit, but anything later will NOT! The 3.6 gears are VERY hard to find because they only were found in the Centurys. There was an article in the 37-38 Club paper some time ago about fitting later gears, but it required quite a bit of machining. Gears from 1940 to 1955 will interchange, so maybe the answer is to install a complete later rear end.

Good luck

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I have 2 New Sets of Ring & Pinion Gears. New in the Boxes.

1936 Buick All 40 Series Ratio 9:40 OEM Part #1399871

1940-47 Buick 40-50-60-70 Series Ratio 44:10 OEM Part #1394788

This is the information on the Boxes in original print.

I would like to know if these gear ratios are high/low ?

Standard on most models?

Greg...NEW1966

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Guest tin_knocker

Thanks Joe. It looks like a rear end swap would be the sensable way to go. I guess I will just change the clutch and start searching for a compatable rear end. The 37 has leaf springs so I will have to reconfigure the spring perches. Is it possible to find one with the same length driveshaft to avoid the pinion removal headache?

Rollie

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I have not done any research on drive shaft lengths. I know that the wheel bases were almost the same for many years, so it may be possible to find one that will interchange without cutting. I would look at the 40-41s as they will accept any gear up to 55. The 53-55 V8 cars had the best highway ratios (3.42-3.6) I have a 3.42 in my 40 and it will run effortlesly at 70+ all day.

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