7.5 open diff upgrade.

[rangers92]

i made a thread about welding my diff and got a lot of good responses i decide to power trax my truck. but i dont have 459 right now. so i found a ford 7.5 trutrak on summit for 204 231 with shipping. i was thinking about buying that. i know that if one wheel comes off the ground it will be of no help. but if for instance im in a mudd hole or climbing a hill the clutchs will engage and boths wheels will recive power is this correct.? its just the places i go i need that little bit off extra traction for my 2wd. mud puddles small boggs. rocks i crawl (none over a foot tho), pot holed dirt roads small to moderate hills, and water. i feel limted slip would help me very much in these situations. i how ever need my fellow members opions.

my other question is i have herd that you can tighten up the engagement on the limited slip diff so i can get as fast and as strong of a lock as possible. is this tru?

also bottom line is would i see a good diffrence with limted slipp off raod verses my oepn diff.

 

[06RangerXLT]

no doubt LS is better, regardless. now with that said, heres what id do.

go on your local adds, and find a ford 8.8" out of an explorer or ranger. make sure its a LS. if you plan to offroad, sinking a penny into that 7.5 is a horrible idea. they are weak for anything except highway driving.

they run about 300, and will give you a very strong axle you will probably never break, and a LS system.

any questions let me know.

 

[rangers92]

Thank you very much. Here's the thing I wouldn't have themoney to afford the install on the swap. Having a shop put a carrier in is much better

 

[06RangerXLT]

if you cant unbolt a rear axle, and bolt in a new one, i wouldnt reccomend offroading at all.

it takes about 2 hours, with simple hand tools and a jack and jack stands.

also, you dont replace the carrier, you replace the spiders.

look at it this way...

buy a repair book ~ $35
have a shop install a rear axle ~ $600-800

Learn how to do a locker ~ free
have a shop do it ~ 300-500

if you catch my drift, your gonna waste money on something you can do. read my build thread, theres an axle swap there.

basically i have $7000 into my truck in parts. if i had them installed, id have over $20,000 invested. save your money, learn how it works, and then when something breaks you dont have to rely on a shop to fix it, especially if its while your offroading.

ask your friends, your dad, your uncle. you pick. someone has gotta have mechanical knowlage in your family.

 

[Beef52751]

i would swap the entire axle out of an explorer like suggested, where are you located??? maybe a trs member lives close and would help

 

[Captain Ledd]

Thank you very much. Here's the thing I wouldn't have themoney to afford the install on the swap. Having a shop put a carrier in is much better

Having a shop putting in a new carrier is going to run you a few hundred. They're basically setting up the ring and pinion again (which takes a lot of time, and shop time is $$$). I'm serious, you're going to spend at least $400-$500 (or more depending) getting this L/S diff into the 7.5" all said and done.

Instead, spend maybe $200 on a RANGER 8.8" with the L/S unit already installed. Get the brake lines, u-bolts and spring plates. It'll be roughly 10 bolts/nuts and it'll pull right out. You current axle is the same way. It's literally a driveway job. DON'T get an EXPLORER 8.8", this will not bolt in and you need to weld. Yes technically it's the better axle, but it WILL NOT BOLT IN.

THE RANGER 8.8" WILL BOLT IN, %100.

I bought a used set of clutches off a more local website for $20. Rearrange and re-pack the clutches to get them to lock up better. You'll need a second set to do this. Here is the link, I have actually, physically, personally done this using this link. Trust me it works.

http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/rebuild_tractionlock.htm

Just check the tag to make sure you are getting an axle with the same ratio.

 

[rangers92]

i live in eastern ct and i think imma start searching for a 8.8.
you guys are great help.

 

[Captain Ledd]

i live in eastern ct and i think imma start searching for a 8.8.
you guys are great help.

Just make sure it's out of a Ranger, not an Explorer. While similar the Explorer will mount on top of the springs, the Ranger mounts underneath. Unless you have access to a grinder and a welder (and it sounds like you don't) the Explorer axle will pose a huge problem for you.

I'm putting an Explorer axle under my red one, replacing my 7.5".

I paid $80 for that axle. By the time I get it in my truck I'll have $1300 JUST IN PARTS, and doing all the labor myself. Of course I'm basically building a brand spanking new axle.

Trust me, you start tearing into axles and it'll get expensive faster than you can imagine.

 

[Beef52751]

captain ledd is correct, you want a ranger 8.8 so it can be a bolt in upgrade, an ex will require some work

 

[rangers92]

But what I'm askin is if I get a ford tru trak l.s.d will I see a night and day diff from my open diff. And whith limited slip can I tighten the clutxh engagement for better lock