Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Size of Front & Rear Dana Defferentials

[dsherman]

I have a 2002 2500 Ram 4x4 Six Speed heavy duty manual with HO diesel motor,trailer tow group and camper special group, what size dena defferentials do I have? Im buying mag-hytec covers for both front & back. I think I have Dana 80s in the back and dana 70 in front?

Here are my Differential numbers-



Front Diff#

on cover

49492-1

130-02

REV-U

012599

(ON TAG)

52070136A0

3. 54-611223-1



Rear Diff#

on cover

42434

112 2

REV AB

05 02 94

( ON TAG )

52069477AK

3. 54-606710-2

Thank You,

D Sherman

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

Dana 80 Hybrid in the rear (it has dana 70 axle shafts, 80 housing), Dana 60 Hybrid in the front (dana 44 axle shafts, 60 housing).

 

[jalberring]

Steve, That is the first time I have heard that the front axles have 44 shafts. Did you get this information by looking at the numbers posted or are all of the front axles this way? I was under the impression that the front is a true Dana 60. I also looked at my axle tag and according to Fritz's site I have a 60. I could not find where the axle shafts were different.

 

[HillCountrykid]

The shafts in our 60's are 1. 31" I think. The "real" 60 uses 1. 50" shafts.



Brian

 

[JTroiano]

I think I heard the front is a Dana 55? I know for sure those outer joints are bigger than a 44.

Jon T

 

[Rob Thomas]

jalberring,



Yes, Steve is right, the front's are 60 Hybrid's, with the same shafts as the 44's.



Later, Rob

 

[Goddard]

so thers something else we get tapped on! my old chevy 454 has got a 60 in the front and rear. but we get cheap little axles disguised in a bigger housing !



someone tell me why???



the longer i own this truck the more i figure out i did not get what i paid for!

 

[jalberring]

I feel the same Goddard.



Why did DC do this?



Is there any way to change to the larger axle shafts? And how strong is the current arrangement?

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

I've never heard of anyone on here breaking an axle shaft yet. There is a conversion kit out there to convert to full Dana 60 shafts with hubs, etc but it's CRAZY expensive ($3,000+ I believe) - I'm drawing a blank right now on who makes it.

 

[Pit Bull]

Our the front Diff's on the 4x4's - 248-FBI's or are they 216-FBI's?

 

[HillCountrykid]

We have the 248's in our trucks. It's a Dana 60. The 216 is the Dana 44 that the 1500's get.



The $3200 axle shaft replacement and manual hub kit it made by Dynatrac. As mentioned before, the stock shafts have'nt had a reputation for braking, so I'm staying stock. If it were'nt priced so sky high I might look into it, but I don't think it's worth it.



Brian

 

[Oxjockey]

The $3000 kit would be Dynatrac's?



Edit: Calling the 30 spline D60 a hybrid or ripoff is just not entirely true. There have been many, MANY D60s with only 30 spline axles, probably more so than 35 spliners.





Bryan

 

[MJawsman]

I think the whole front Dana 60 "hybrid" is being blown out of proportion. My understanding, and please correct me if I'm wrong (I'm sure someone will ), is that the shaft size is 1. 5" at the carrier and it "necks" down to 1. 31 at the hub. This in no way means our front axle is simply a Dana 44. Rather, it's just not quite as strong as a full 1. 5" 35 spline carrier to hub Dana 60 that you'd find in the First Gen trucks.



If it worries anyone, I'd suggest either the Dynatrac conversion kit for $3000 or perhaps a custom Dana 60, 70, or 80 at $10K ++ .



I'm not a fan of the front axle at this point. But it's one of the last things I'd worry about. When the lottery winnings come in, I'll beef it. But until then..... I'm

 

[Rob Thomas]

Both the 44 and the 60 have 30 spline, 1. 31 inner and 1. 34 outer diameter's, the differance is that the 44 has a 1. 25 spline pinch, where as the 60 has 1. 50 pinch.



Later, Rob

 

[tarussell]

Question- aren't the axle joint's on the C. A. D. Dana 60 larger than the C. A. D. Dana 44 ? I have tore down several Dana 60 front axles and our Dana 60's are the small 1. 31" / 30 spline just like the 44 .

Older Dana 60's ( with the bearing open knuckels w/disc brakes ) have 1. 5" 35 spline axles on the inner shafts. Some neck down in size after the spline but later ones get bigger.



My main question is are the axle joints on our Dana 60 axles the same joint as on the older "real" Dana 60 axles ? I think the older 60's Spicer part # is X532 for the axle joint-Does anyone know if this will work in our 60's ?

TIA Thomas

 

[Oxjockey]

Originally posted by Rob Thomas

Both the 44 and the 60 have 30 spline, 1. 31 inner and 1. 34 outer diameter's, the differance is that the 44 has a 1. 25 spline pinch, where as the 60 has 1. 50 pinch.



Later, Rob

What is a 'spline pinch'?

 

[Pit Bull]

Originally posted by Oxjockey

What is a 'spline pinch'?

That's when you run your truck into a big tree going 60mph and the drivers seat and the dash board get real close together, with you in the drivers seat

 

[willyslover]

BTDT... also known as the sphincter pinch

 

[csutton7]

I don't know about the front diff--but the diff between the 80 and 70 axles for the 3/4 ton trucks is the axle on the 70(32spline) is smaller and one dimension and for the 80 it starts larger(35 spline) and is tapered down to the 70 size at the backing plate--actually the taper is about 24" long+/- ... ... chris

 

[fj40charles]

I think you're blowing this way out of proportion. Unless you plan to do some heavy duty off roading or install some 44" Super Swamper Boggers and race in the mud pit, the front axle should hold up just fine for 99. 999% of the population. IMHO, the CAD is the weakness in the front axles. Not the axle shaft.



Early ford and GM D60 (trucks built in the 70's) had axle shafts that necked down, so it was not really 1. 5 inches. The outer stub axle was also a 30 spline too. If you want beefy, then you have to custom order some 35 spline axles from Dutchman, Moser, or Dynarape. The 35 spline outer stub axles only came in front D70 axles. This can be retrofitted to D60 axles only if you use lockout hubs.



Another thing to consider if you're really worried about brute strenght... . Our D60 axles have ball joints. For heavy duty use, you'll want Kingpins instead of ball joints.



In case you're wondering how I know all this stuff. . I had some custom kingpin RC D60's (reverse rotation D60 from 78 F250/350 single wheel front axles) custom made with GM knuckles and outer stubs (for 35 spline axle stubs) narrowed to 65" WMS to WMS, 1/2 ton hub drilled for 6 on 5. 5" (chevy toyota 6 lug), disk brakes, 4. 88 gears, detroit locker for front axle. Rear axle has ford motorsport disk brakes with e brake, spool, and RC D60 center housing. These axles will be going into my Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40 offroad rig.



Charles