01.5 dana 80 problems BEWARE

[dabubba]

just had the rear end bearings and gears and carrier replaced-- it seems that some d 80's were assembled with a bit more slop than is allowed- thus a whurr noise from the rear end - the problem is made worse by towing a load (if I didn't want to tow i'd of bought a dorf or a cheby)- my inner bearings were toast---so if you have an 01. 5 listen or check your d 80-

 

[John]

Dana 80

There have been more problems with the Dana 80 which are not exclusive to the '01. 5 model. I have personally seen numerous failed units dating all the way back to early '98 (my first observance of this). I have seen many more Dana 80s being rebuilt than Dana 70s.

 

[Bad340fish]

Of course you see more 80s being rebuilt than 70s. They are behind the 5 speed trucks. A 5speed truck is 50 times harder on a rearend than an auto is. Especialy the stock dodge auto. Just my . 02

Clark

 

[Don M]

I rag on mine alot and still have the original 80. I do keep my fluid changed as well. I have 200,000 miles on it. Have towed way in excess of the rating and she still hangs in there.





Don~

 

[dabubba]

well in talking to the service writer and service manager- this problem was bad on the 01. 5's- the factory slop took out the pinion bearing- I've only got a little over 10,000 miles on it--- oh well just sharing--

 

[MJawsman]

When the Dana 80 first came out I spoke with an engineer at Dana's light truck axle division. He said it's a great, strong axle. But be sure check the backlash often and maintain factory (Dana) tolerances for a minimum of trouble.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

In TDR #24, p. 46 I noted that Dana has reduced the preload on the carrier bearings. In-service units often have zero preload or slop upon teardown. They should have the shim pack increased for slight preload. I did this to mine at about 70,000 miles--it had a little play, maybe 0. 002" and now has 0. 001-0. 002" preload after adding a shim and setting backlash to 0. 008". More backlash helps the rear to run cooler but under high shock loads increases the chance to crack a tooth. Spec is 0. 005-0. 009" on most Dana's.



The carrier bearings are about 40% wider on the D80 than on the D60/D70 and overall it is very beefy. I feel Dana should have put a little more preload on the carrier at the factory, but not as much as they did back in the 1970's and 1980's when 0. 010-0. 015" preload was usual.