Muscle cars are all about nostalgia, noise, eyeball and tire smoke. Enjoying one to its fullest means driving it — sometimes flat-out.
In today’s market, date-coded original muscle car components, such as rear-axle assemblies, are valuable assets at sale time — especially with documentation to prove their originality. As such, cracking into one that’s otherwise original for a gear swap and internal upgrade to suit a long-distance road trip or summer of grudge racing is a hard call to make. But those high-strung 4.11s take the fun out of highway cruising, factory 3.08s won’t win you any drag races, and 100,000 miles on bearings, races and seals will make you think twice before leaning on that throttle. In those cases, valuable original parts can stop you from using your muscle car the way you’d like to use it.
What if you could pull your original axle, set it aside to preserve its integrity and originality, and bolt in a strong, new unit? One that’s visibly indistinguishable from an original and set up by experts specifically for your current needs? What if you had a lesser unit originally and want to upgrade without having to hunt down a list of elusive and prized original parts?
Moser Engineering, a maker of high-performance rear-axle components, has the solution. Just like a crate engine or transmission, Moser’s Muscle Pak axle is a ready-to-run assembled third-member. It’s built using all-new components, including brakes, and is available in a variety of styles, including 9-inch Ford, Mopar 8¾, Dana 60, M88 and the 12-bolt. It’s offered for a range of makes and models, is designed and manufactured in the United States, and assembled using stronger-than-stock internal components at Moser’s shop in Portland, IN.
It’s just the thing to take whatever punishment — or open highway speeds — you have in mind for your muscle car. If your original engine and transmission are already stored away in favor of crate parts, this is just the ticket for you.
We ordered a Moser Muscle Pak 12-bolt Chevrolet-style axle assembly from Summit Racing to upgrade a 1968 Camaro’s original 10-bolt assembly, along with a new set of OER multi-leaf rear springs, to show how easy this job is. Here’s how it all worked:
Summit Racing Parts List
(www.summitracing.com)
P/N MSR-Custom Moser 12-bolt Chevrolet rear axle assembly, complete, $3,387.99
P/N OER-RL5 5-leaf rear springs, $109.99 each (2)
P/N OER-RL8 Leaf-spring pads, $7.99 each (4)
P/N LUC-10043-1 Lucas heavy-duty gear oil, 80W90, $7.99 each (2)
P/N ADO-10-4003 GM friction modifier, 4 oz., $9.99
Other Parts
Custom U-bolts, ½-inch round stock, 3-inch bend radius, 7-inch length, with nuts and washers, $45
Prestone brake fluid, 32 oz., $7.99
Time spent: Eight hours
Difficulty: 3/5
