do i need a dana 44 in the front??

[trains11tjc]

This may be a stupid question but i dont know a horrible lot about vehicles yet.I've got a guy who's giving me a dana 44 rear diff. and im wondering if im gonna need a dana 44 in the front or if i can just keep my dana 20 in the front. will this affect my performance any as far as mudding and highway travel? thanks

 

[STLKIKN]

Couple quick things... I see from your posts that you seem to have a 66...

Your truck should have

a Ford nine inch rear differential

a Dana 20 transfer case

a Dana 30 front differential.

There is no need to swap your rear diff to a Dana 44, the nine inch is much stronger than the 44.

(sell the rear 44 to a J**p guy, they'll pay good money for it!!)

As far as your front diff goes, what are your plans for the truck?

If you plan on mild wheelin with 33" or smaller tires, don't bother swapping for a 44 yet.

Do a disc brake swap on the 30, and upgrade the rest of the braking system while you are at it (dual master cyl and proportioning/ combination valve, with new lines)

 

[Bully Bob]

Naw,

My front (D-30) is 40 yrs. runn'n & still strong.

If something happens to it, (D-30) then it (44) is an option....

BTW, driver style, experience, determines longevity of most drivelines...

Have fun out there..!

 

[trains11tjc]

Not planning on doingany serious mudding but i'll be mudding here and there nothing too heavy....but...im building my engine up to have 400 hp and a little under 400 ft/lbs of torque so do you think that the diffs. on there will be able to handle it? Im not planning on putting any bigger tires on it anytime soon...right now i've got 32s on it.

 

[trains11tjc]

ok so the guy tells me it has disk brakes /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> so what u guys think still worth it?

 

[fireman1749]

If he's giving it to you take it and sell it to some Jeep guy... dont get rid of the 9" rear, it is stronger than any other 1/2 ton axle. With 400 hp, i'd be careful with the 9" axle shafts, especially the D30 axle shafts. But whatever you do dont get rid of the 9".

 

[trains11tjc]

OK got my dana 44 today...its pretty nice! i mean it needs to be sand blasted and painted but its in great condition! i even got a **** little chrome cover for the diff. /

 

[S_bolt19]

Still wouldn't swap a rear 44 for a 9", not even on a bad day. If you plan on running that much HP, I would suggest going to a 44 up front and even a 9" big bearing in the rear, just for pure strength issues. But if you really want to go beefy, do D60s and be done with it.

 

[trains11tjc]

Still wouldn't swap a rear 44 for a 9", not even on a bad day. If you plan on running that much HP, I would suggest going to a 44 up front and even a 9" big bearing in the rear, just for pure strength issues. But if you really want to go beefy, do D60s and be done with it.

not taking out my 9" im just changing out my d30 in the front out with a d44.