free wheeling front hubs

[GGear]

I am assuming my 2006 Ram is spinning a lot of weight it does not need to.

Anyone bring me up to speed on free wheeling hubs - benefits/downside

Thank you

 

[JKloppe]

https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/search.php?f=39

 

[rbattelle]

There are a couple companies offering free wheeling hub kits. Dynatrac (expensive) and EMS (less expensive).

Both kits use the same principle - replace the hub/bearing assembly with a custom spindle machined to fit the bore in the steering knuckle, and replace the axle stub shaft with a custom extended-length version.

Very simple. From the way I see it, there are only 2 disadvantages. First, cost. Second, the resulting hub sticks WAY out, which may increase the chances of damage.

[For the record, I'm sticking with the factory hubs. I've just read enough about the kits to be able to comment. ]

Ryan

 

[RJWEST]

MO, Well worth the cost, About same cost as a 'break down' and hub replacements. and this is not considering wear on front
axle joints, drive shaft,diff, etc...
Should save a little fuel and Steers better also.

I have the EMS Conversation, very satisified,

As to sticking out, I'm old school, use to be normal to see the hubs. .
And , as I travel a lot, I carry 1 assembled OEM Hub,
if I ever need a complete hub, I can swap back to OEM on one side

 

[RHestand]

I am assuming my 2006 Ram is spinning a lot of weight it does not need to.

Anyone bring me up to speed on free wheeling hubs - benefits/downside

Thank you

I installed the EMS kit this prev. summer. (about $1350+shipping)

The install was not bad just using my standard hand tools, and the EMS folks were great about answering any questions that came up. Also my truck had no rust for me deal with.

So far I've put about 6000mi. on this kit with no problems.

There is a lot of info. on the search forum here,but I can give you some personal insight as to what motivated me to go this route.

My two main reasons were:

1. It is a complete waste and went against any good reasoning IMO to spin everything from the transfer case forward.

2. With this kit you get conventional wide spaced tapered wheel bearings(also serviceable) as opposed to the failure prone, non serviceable, expensive, (assembly line friendly?) stock bearing packs.

And yes, the Warn Hubs do protrude farther than I would like,(about 1inch past my 315 tires on H-2 wheels) but I consider that a fair trade-off for the wider bearing spacing.

Among several other things I like about this kit, that I won't get into here, is I've picked up a solid 1 mpg in all around driving, towing, etc.

I would def. do it again.

Ray

 

[steved]

I've got around 70k on my DT kit, while it was one of the only mods I've done, it was one of the best.

Driveability is better, mileage is up a little, and best of all; it ridded me of the 3rd gen 70mph vibrations.

The cost difference between the two kits comes from the components... DT uses a lot of custom made components while EMS uses modified over-the-counter components. And while there seems to be a wide price variance between the two kits, once the EMS kit is upped to the specs of the DT kit, the prices are fairly close.

steved

 

[EEdmondson]

I've got around 70k on my DT kit, while it was one of the only mods I've done, it was one of the best.



Driveability is better, mileage is up a little, and best of all; it ridded me of the 3rd gen 70mph vibrations.



The cost difference between the two kits comes from the components... DT uses a lot of custom made components while EMS uses modified over-the-counter components. And while there seems to be a wide price variance between the two kits, once the EMS kit is upped to the specs of the DT kit, the prices are fairly close.



steved

Steved, what do you mean "upped to the specs of DT"? Please explain. I will probably switch to one of these when my hubs need to be replaced.

 

[steved]

Steved, what do you mean "upped to the specs of DT"? Please explain. I will probably switch to one of these when my hubs need to be replaced.

The DT kit is offered in basically one kit... 35-spline stubs and premium hubs. They have a single upgrade to 35-spline inners (and a CAD elimination deal I believe)...



The EMS kit offers several kits... the basic one comes with 30-spline stubs and standard hubs. However you can upgrade to a kit very similar to that of the DT kit (for similar money IIRC).



Does this really make a difference? For 99% of us, the basic EMS kit with 30-spline stubs would suffice for our pavement pounders. Just pointing out that the kits are not really "equal" when comparing the monetarily cheaper EMS kit to the more expensive kit.



steved