All of you with V8's

I am curious as to what you guys are doing with the rearend and cooling when you guys install your V8's? I am wanting to drop either a 4.3L or a 302 in mine but don't know what to do with the rear. I don't think that the cooling would be difficult though. Let me know.

I have a 351w H.O. In mine with the stock rear in it. I haven't had any problems with it yet, You'd have to actually get it to hook up to brake anything, or some axle hop/rap but my truck is 4linked so i dont really have to worry about that. I do have an extra ring a pinion laying in my garage. (just incase)
For cooling i just have an Aluminum Nissan 240sx rad and a electric fan in front of the rad, behind the grill!

do you ever really get on it? i would be afraid of tearing up the gears. i also have an extra rear, so if i don't hear of anyone ever having any problems with a stock rear i might just have to go all out and hook it up. thanks for the info bro.

The mazda gears will take just about anything you throw at them. I have the 4.3 pushing through 4.44 gears with oversize tires - no problems. With 3 leaves I don't get any sort of axle wrap or wheel hop. The cooling system is also adequate for the 4.3. You might need a new radiator with a V8, but other guys could answer that better. FWIW, I've sat in motown traffic in summer days and never approach overheating.

Yea i've gotten on it plenty of times and never hade anything go wrong. Have smoked both tires till they blew to and its still working fine.

Are you using the stock radiator?

well now i really feel like a jerk since i rebuilt my 2.2l instead of dropping a v8 in her. oh well. my brother-in-law said he's got a 305 i can have, it just needs to be rebuilt and i will have to find a tranny, and get a driveshaft made. maybe i will have to start on this soon!!! mooohahahahaha!!!

i'm running a ford 9" with 3.50 gears and a detroit locker w/ ladder bars. for my radiator i've got an aluminum one.

what is the rear out of? is it a wider or shorter rear than the mazdas? this has been my main question because that is the same rear i was thinking about dropping in it but don't know the different dimensions.

mine was from a lincoln versile 1979 which is a disc brake rearend. it was narrower then the mazda.i'll try to look for the website i've been on before that will give you info on widths of ford rearends. i know that late 1950's ford rearend is narrowest, but good lucl finding one of those.