Like its larger Ford brethren, the 8-inch Ford rear is plenty stout, only in a slightly smaller package. Introduced in 1962 as a light-duty, smaller version of the 9-inch, it was continued on ...

One of our first ideas was to go with a '71-and-later 10-bolt, which has the larger, stronger 8.5-inch ring gear (the same rear that's in our lighter and less powerful '76 Camaro, Project g/28).

To satiate this vocal demographic, Ford will sell a body-in-white version of the Stang, complete with a nine-inch rear axle, that will debut at the 2014 Performance Racing Industry show.