Ring pinion installer in South jersey

Consider what it takes to replace the rear end gear set:
1. put the car on a lift
2. remove the two rear wheels
3. drain the rear end fluid
4. open the rear cover and remove
5. pull the two retaining clips so the axels can be pulled out
6. remove the retaining pin holding the gear set in place
7. pull out the old gears and replace with the new.
8. repeat steps 6-1 in reverse.

you are paying for an expert and several hours of his / her time. We are not snarky, we are stating facts of life.
 
376shovel said:
I've already priced places around and gotten anywhere from $300-500. If you aren't a shop in South Jersey giving me a quote, at this point telling me I should pay more is not helping. Sometimes this forum just likes to be snarky and feel as if theyre right. Shame. I really enjoy this car even though I'm a Chevy guy, and I was really hoping to network with some fellow owners who like to help each other. It seems although those gentlemen are here in plenty, there are some who just like to jump in to be pests. This isn't just reflective of this thread, I'm merely stating from everything I've read on the whole here.

Btw someone who is going by Mitchell or alldata for shop times doesn't know what they're doing.
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How is going by the only two recognized places to get labor rates not knowing what they are doing? You do realize that its these same places that we (shops) get our repair and diagnosis info from right? Talk about snarky...

If your snarky/pest comments were aimed at me that's fine, you are welcome to your opinion. I'm just telling you that for the work we do when we build a rear end there is no way we can do it for $300 dollars. Nothing snarky about it. There are plenty of threads on here where guys got a "good deal" and the gears are screaming after one weekend.

Here's a break down of what we do for $400

1. Tear down complete rear end, all bearings, all seals, remove the case, ring, pinion, axles, brakes.

2. Start at one end, clean the entire housing from end to end. (this is not a 10 minute job due to the fact that most of these cars needed an axle at one point in time and the housing was not properly cleaned out the first time.

3. Tear apart and clean the case, check the posi traction clutches, more than likely replace them with the carb fiber cobra upgraded ones along with a new s spring.

4. Install the new FoMoCo bearings in all locations

5. Install Ring gear

6. Install Pinion and crush collar (hardend if the car is making over 400 to the ground) Yes, we check the pinion bearing preload with a dial type torque wrench

7. Install case with ring gear and check side to side pre load (we always use FoMoCo parts so the side clearances are almost always on the money the first time

8. Check backlash and heel toe pattern on ring gear

9. ALWAYS install a Girdled rear end cover no matter what

10. Fill with synthetic fluid and additive for posi clutches

11. 50 mile test drive with customer, we go out 25 miles on the highway never holding the car at a steady pace, then grab lunch, then city roads back to the shop. This includes two on / off ramps one in each direction so that the fluid runs down the axle tubes to the outter bearings.

12. Bring it back in the shop, double check for leaks, double check fluid level.

By the way, we buy all of our gears/clutches/ and install kits from Sparta Performance who is a site sponsor here. Tommy is very knowledgeable and he is fast on delivery. I live and work in Michigan, I can buy this stuff from a local dealer and it would probably be cheaper. I have never even asked. I will gladly pay a little more (very little if any) to support those who support our site and sport and get it right every time.

Don't forget, if you are changing gear ratio you need a tuner and a tune installed. We do this as well while we are doing the labor.

So if you walk in the door, it's $400 labor.

What seems snarky to me is that you say you want the best service possible, done with the utmost care and professionalism, with the latest and best tools, by a shop that will stand behind their work no matter what... but you want it cheap...:depress:
 
The problem is that type of service is extremely rare. I would absolutely pay $300, even a little more if it was handled that way. I've paid 200 before but the dude moved away. I couldnt make it any easier, itd all ford parts going in. My buddy had one on a ford 8.8 that the pattern and backlash were spot on using the fsctory shim setup. The original question was who is good around here. Because it seems the less experience the shop has the more they want to charge. They act like its a big deal to do a simple job that I would love to do myself if i had a few more tools i would need and a place to do it. Around here you're lucky to have someone even check the backlash. I've literally heard a dude say he checks it by feel. Been in the business 30 years. Etc. U know the story. Just looking for someone I can trust rather than throw 400 at someone who is quick to shirk responsibility when the **** whines.
 
could buy some tools with installation money, just a thought...........


i usually pay $8.00 and a case of pabst blue ribbon :beer:
 
Update:

Elite auto did my ring and pinion, to include axle bearings and seals for $400. Originally they said $450 but I told them I got lower prices elsewhere so in order to be competitive they dropped it for me. Tom was customer service oriented. He called me at every junction to ask questions and make sure they got it right. I asked for the final backlash setting and they obliged. Very busy there, but nice people. Haven't driven very far on the new gears but so far I see no issues, and would recommend members head there to have their gears done.
 
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