I have a stock diff in my 54 capri that has i believe a 3:23 ratio, or somewhere around there. I'm thinking about putting higher ratio gears in her to make it quicker. Are those gears available or is it easy to bolt up a ford 9 inch? Just starting to consider this since the engine and tranny are out. I figured it's easier and quicker to get good info on here.

Brad
Sierra Vista Arizona
1954 Lincoln Capri

If I recall right, you’ve got the 4 speed hydro. Gives you a pretty low first gear. I think the Lincoln’s all used a Dana rear end, maybe a 50 series? Those are good rear ends, bit difficult to work on as they don’t have a pumpkin you can pull. I have no idea on parts availability either.

I’d get it on the road and drive it a bit, you may not need it. I know you’ve got some altitude in your area, but those were fast cars in their day.

There’s charts out there on the wheel surface to wheel surface on a lot of 9” rear ends. You’ll have to figure out the spring pads and shocks. But they are also getting hard to find. A lot of the guys are now using the more modern 8.8 ford rear ends.

miker
55 bird, 32 cabrio F code
Kent, WA
Tucson, AZ

The original rear-axle ratio for the 1954 Lincoln Capri is 3.31; that's the same ratio that 55 Tbirds/w Fordomatic were equipped with. To continue, the hydramatic transmission in the 54 Capri has a low/1st gear ratio of 3.82. As long as the transmission starts out in low/1st, you shouldn't have any trouble moving your car from a dead stop (as long as everything is working as it should). I realize it's a heavy car; however, to put things into perspective, the Fordomatic in my 55 Tbird starts out in 2nd gear (in Drive). 1st gear in the Tbird is 2.32; 2nd gear is 1.48. Another benefit of the hydramatic is having four forward gears, putting the ratios closer together, thereby reducing rpm drop between shifts. 4th gear, however, is not an overdrive; it's 1:1. 

I think changing the rear gear or the complete rearend in your Lincoln is a bad idea.
#1 very expensive
#2 a lot of work
#3 not needed with your trans
#4 might make the car very unpleasant to drive 
#5 and a whole bunch  of other reasons I cant think of right now

Thanks yall.

Brad
Sierra Vista Arizona
1954 Lincoln Capri