Looking to Upgrade to 3.42 Read Axle

[ArmyVette]

Anybody have a late model A4 with the 3.42 rear axle? Looking at upgrading my stock 2.73 to the 3.42. [:-?]

Have also heard that I'll need to install the heavy duty drive shaft to accommodate this upgrade. Anybody have an info/experience/war stories/horror stories about this project?

Thanks.

Jeff [:D]

[ArmyVette]

To clarify the above post, I'd like to talk to a couple of folks who have the 3.42 rear end, particularly if they upgraded from a lower ratio, and discuss their likes and dislikes with this upgrade, lessons learned, etc.

Thanks again.

Jeff [:D]

[C5inWV]

I have an MN6, which comes stock with the 3:42.

I get good gas mileage and the throttle response isn't too long of a wait. I think you might want taller gears if you plan on a heads/cam change, so you could get to your sweet spot sooner.

I doubt that you'd need the hardened output shafts for such a minor change. You would need to recalibrate the speedometer and maybe a few other details that can be accomplished with LS1 Edit.

If you are considering the gear change, you may be able to find a set of used gears that someone traded. Mallet will sell used units at discount. I bet East Coast Supercharging does, too. Chris @ ECS is big into the gear changes; he can answer all of your questions. See the corvette forum for details.

I swapped a 2:73 for a 3:73 in my 383 stroker camaro. I had a manual valve body and an Auburn limited slip. It ran like a monster, spinning the tires thru the first 2 gears. I could break the tires free shifting from 2-3 at 65 mph. I had to change the panhard rod and trailing arms and a few other parts that are unrelated to a Corvette's suspension. I never broke an axle, despite regular trips to the dragstrip.

Good luck. You will be happy with the change unless top speed is your goal.

[ArmyVette]

Talked to Dom at Ferriera Automotive (who installed my Corsa pipe and does other work on Vettes). He told me that, unless I'm autocrossing (not likely -- this is a daily driver), it's not worth the expense (about $2500 with parts and installation).

Maybe I'll just put this upgrade on my "I'll do this when I'm stinking rich" mod list. [:D] [:D] [:D]

Thanks for the comments!!