LUVTruck.com

Hello all
I need some information on chevy luv rear ends
what gear ratios where available in a 78 luv?
and what is that damn rear end called.....an s10???
(I am having one hell of a time identifying what luvs actually used and only own mopars......helping a friend with info...hes putting a 318 in a luv)
any information for the chevy illiterate would greatly be appreciated

If you got yourself an Automatic Transmission in the LUV.....4.10 Rear
If you got yourself a Manual Transsimision in the LUV..... 4.56 Rear

The rear ends on these trucks is fine for stock use, but when you drop a small block (or a big block in some people's case), the rear end will have a lot more difficult time holding up. With that being said, as long the rear end is in good running condition, it should hold up to a healthy small block for awhile. In time, it will eventually deteriorate, especially if drove hard and put away wet..

If your buddy is planning on taking it to the strip, find a Ford 9 inch or something of that nature, because the little LUV rear just won't take that.

As far as the damn rear end, I think its an Isuzu manufactered thing, but I might be wrong on that, somebody here will know for sure...

Good Luck!

some also came with a 3:73 ratio.
there was a thread a long time ago about this somewhere.

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03Cobra

ok here was an original thread about it http://forums.luvtruck.com/viewtopic.php?t=18&highlight=gear+ratio

I don't know where the 3:73 ratio came from that I had under my luv for years until I broke it, but originally it had the 4:56 ratio and I swapped it out of the "parts truck" I had.
so there are 3:73 ratio available for the rear, I just don't know where from.
hope this was helpful.

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03Cobra

The rear end in the Luv is a 10 bolt unit from Isuzu (not to be confused w/ the 10 bolt from GM) this rear axel was used in all rwd Isuzu's until mid 1987, when isuzu switched over to the stronger 12 bolt unit ( also not to be confused with the 12 bolt made by GM, which is just a junker axle in my opinion) the 12 bolt in these later Isuzus has disc brakes, it is pretty much a direct drop in on a Luv, i don't know what all gearing it came with, but i do know that in 4x4 Troopers, and pups the gear ratio is 4.56, as for those found under 2wd trucks and rodeos i don't know. hope this helps a little, another thing, there is a rear limited slip avalible, and also a locker for this axle, to find out more about this check out calmini.com

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'80 Luv 4x4, 3" BL, 1.5" SL, 32/36, 2.25" exhaust...and fuzzy dice.
'95 Toyota 4Runner Limited 5-Speed.

There is a fair bit of info about Isuzu rears at http://www.independent4x.com in their FAQ/Tech section. Look for Isuzu 10 bolt info and you can find more about the axle and what parts you can get for it. The powertrax locker is no longer made, but ARB does make an air locker. The LSD is elusive as well, but out there.

My 79 factory shop manual shows 3.73 or 4.10 gears for the rear end, and only 4.10s for the front. I'd guess that 3.73 ratio is for Auto trans trucks of that vintage. My 75 factory book says 4.56 only gears oddly enough. I was not aware there was so much variation over the years luvs were made until I saw that. From what I've been able to read up, ratios from Isuzu range from 3.73 to 4.77 with several steps in between. Tera MFG makes 5.38 gears for the crawler types. To find more that 3.73, 4.10, and 4.56 you'd have to explore other Isuzu rigs. They kept using the same diff even up to about 1998 as the front end in Troopers and others.

smokinLUV makes the real point though. Put some power to the stock rear and it will not hold up for long. Its probably ok for quite a while so long as you don't add a lot of traction. Make it so it hooks up good though and parts will break.

Thanks guys I really appreciate the feedback
Now that I can give him the few gear ratios that were possible
we can determine the right ratio

BTW
whats the weight of a Luv>?
(with/without motor>>??)

He is not racing it. He is customizing it to haul his wares to bike shows. (tanks etc) He does metal up righteous....he put two new quarters/trunk on my 68 charger.

318/904 and the way he is fabricating his aluminum radiator to fit up front is trick.


It will be two tone.......purple and gun metal grey with flames.
(the motor is purple to!)
Its gonna be slick!!!!

i'm not 100% sure if this is true, but if your looking for more beef you might want to check out Superior Gear and Axle, i know they have a fair amount of stuff out there for even some of the rarest axles, look 'em up they might have some stuff for the Isuzu 10 bolt

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'80 Luv 4x4, 3" BL, 1.5" SL, 32/36, 2.25" exhaust...and fuzzy dice.
'95 Toyota 4Runner Limited 5-Speed.

curb weight of a stock luv is 2460 lbs according to the 79 shop manual. That is as it came off the showroom floor with all its parts and no driver/cargo. Stock motor weight (with fluids) is 334 lbs, so subtract that, maybe lose another 125-150 lbs for the trans and all its parts and you end up with a no motor/trans weight of just around 2000 lbs.

Finding alternate ratio gears could be a real challenge. From what I've seen there is no way to tell from the outside so its a matter of shopping the yards and spinning a wheel to count yoke revs. The same basic diff will be found in the following:

LUVs: 72-82 rear
Isuzu Trooper: 84-86 rear, 87s could be front and rear but not all, 88-up front
Isuzu PUP: 81-86 rear, some after that as well, but not every truck
Isuzu Impulse rear thru 89 I think, turbo Impulses will have the LSD

Kewl thanks alot
Now converter selection should be right on the money now.

I'll see if I can get you guys some pics

And whats your take on the new Galactica>?
I cant wait for the new series

i've always insisted that a toyota 4x4 rear end from a '79-85 truck woudl be a good swap. it's about the same width as a luv rear end, same lug pattern but has a bigger 8" ring gear that's good for about 300hp in 2wd street application. there's also a ton of aftermarket support and they're dirt cheap(usually under $100)

the only thing you'd have to do is set it up to run spring-under like a luv, it comes with the springs over the axle on a toyota

What gear ratio are in those Toyota rear-ends? Can you convert the same rearends to Disc Brake?

common factory ratios in the '69-present(though only in 4runners any more) toy 8" are:

3.08, 3.90, 4.10, 4.30, 4.38, 4.56, 4.88

4.10s and 4.30s are the most common, all 4x4s until '95 had a 6 lug 8" rear end, 2wd 1 tons, v6 and turbo 4 cyl trucks and most 4 speeds(dunno why) had an 8" rear end.

all 8" axles are 30 spline 1.3"(?) diameter shafts

There is a ton of aftermarket support for Toyota axles. Companies like All Pro, Sky Manufacturing, and many others ought to have a rear disc kit. Go to Pirate4x4.com bulletin board and have a look around.

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"Rum And Pepsi's Got Your Whole Perception Of Me Sketchy.....Cause When I Stage Dive, People Are Scared To Catch Me"

for the rear of the Toyota trucks i cant remeber if it was 86 that they got bigger drums or not. But that would be ideal. As far as aftermarket goes, think it and its out there for Toys.
And as far as the LUV reas go, they dont have enough fluid capacity or ring gear diameter to hold onto much power for long. But if you can find a Rodeo or a 1ton truck(im not shure on the 1ton trucks) they will have Dana 44 rear(these ones have a removable diff cover and are not a third member design like the Isuzu axles). These units will handle a good small block perty well. Im not shure about the 12bolt isuzu, i think they have the same problem as the 10bolt whith lots of HP (disc brakes is how you tell this one from a 10bolt). Also im perty the Isuzu spec Dana44 would be a perty easy swap, might even be a direct bolt in and ill bet it would be cheaper than the other options too.

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1980 LUV 4x4, going under re-construction...

[quote="MEPR"]for the rear of the Toyota trucks i cant remeber if it was 86 that they got bigger drums or not. [quote]

Thats correct. 86 and newer Toyotas with IFS have bigger brakes than older models. The most desireable ones are from V6 or turbo applications which are a little beefier. Keep in mind that these later model axles are also 3" wider than the older ones which will kick your wheels out @ 1.5" per side.

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Cement Shoes available here....One size fits all!

"Rum And Pepsi's Got Your Whole Perception Of Me Sketchy.....Cause When I Stage Dive, People Are Scared To Catch Me"