like many of the manufacturers in this text, Dana has many different-size axles and combinations available. I am going to concentrate on the Dana 60 (D60). It has a large 9¾-inch ring gear and was used in many different Mopar truck applications, passenger cars with 440, 4-speed combinations, and the legendary 426 Hemi cars. This axle is far superior in strength and efficiency to the Ford 9-inch. For some reason, Chrysler was the only OEM to use the indestructible D60 in their muscle cars.
Typically, you can build a custom D60 for one-third less than the cost of a Ford 9-inch. Unfortunately, you cannot get a D60 for certain applications—one being the Ford Fox platform. However, if the ring gear in your muscle car is less than 9 inches and it cannot handle the torque input, you should opt for the Dana 60. Many sub-9-inch axles cannot hold up when horsepower rises to 800 or 1,000 or more.
The D60 hypoid offset is half that of the Ford 9-inch. Therefore, less torque is lost and less heat is generated in the D60. There are many aftermarket companies that make their own version of the D60, such as Strange and Teraflex. Most of the D60s use a solid spacer, while some use a collapsible spacer, to set the pinion bearing preload. The spacer needs to be adjusted to obtain the correct preload, and then the nut is tightened to the correct torque value.
Ford Axles
Ford has produced its own corporate axles just like GM and Chrysler. Some of these axles are similar to the other OEMs, while others are unique, such as the Ford 9-inch. We are going to review the more common available axles.
Not all banjo-style Ford axles are in the best condition from the factory. This housing has been media blasted, and you can see a weld repair was performed to correct a poor factory weld.
Ford 8-inch: It may seem strange to compare the 8-inch to the 9-inch because the 8-inch axle is weaker than the 9-inch. However, an important distinction needs to be made. Many people are not aware that Ford made a smaller banjo axle and confuse the 8-inch with a 9-inch. There’s an easy way to tell them apart. An 8-inch has case nuts that can be accessed with a socket, while the 9-inch has two nuts on the bottom around 6 and 7 o’clock that cannot be accessed with a socket and require a wrench. Both axles share a common design, but the little 8-inch just cannot handle the abuse like its bigger brother can. The 8-inch also was only available with 28-tooth axle shafts.
Here is a typical aftermarket triangulation support welded on the tube to reinforce the tube. Notice that this axle has the tubes welded solidly to the cast center section. This aftermarket process is not found on production housings. (Randall Shafer)
Also, don’t confuse the later pictures in this chapter that show independent 8-inch carriers with the 8-inch banjo-style beam axle housing. Both 8-inch and 9-inch axle housings are made from a series of stampings that are fixtured and welded together. This complex fixturing and welding process, coupled with fuel economy concerns, most likely led to the production demise of these Ford axles. In high-volume production, the two biggest quality problems were leaks from poor welds and poor alignment of the housings. So don’t be surprised that most of these axles leak from the welds. Careful aftermarket shops, with their stringent attention to repairing these housings, are able to correct many of these issues.
The usual 10-bolt gasket surface of the Ford 8.8-inch axle does not have the lube slots at the 3 and 9 o’clock positions as on the GM 12-bolt. The Ford axle relies on oil being indirectly channeled behind the caps from splash and churning of the gears. The oval-shaped cover is about 10 × 10 inches. (Randall Shafer/Joe Palazzolo)
An aftermarket chrome Ford 8.8-inch stamped rear cover does not have the lube shelf as on the GM 12-bolt axle. Therefore, it
Ford 8.8-inch: The Ford 8.8 inch is very similar to the GM 8⅞-inch, 12-bolt axle. Some folks may tell you that the Blue Oval engineers copied the 12-bolt design when they came up with the 8.8-inch axle. While that is a matter of opinion, one should recognize that there are many similarities. It is interesting that the Ford axle uses the exact same bearings as the GM 12-bolt. The Ford version uses larger axle shafts and a different lube strategy, but otherwise they are very similar axles.
A common Fox chassis Mustang is usually equipped with an 8.8-inch rear axle. This one happens to have a stamped-aluminum rear cover, which provides improved that are lighter cooling. Some of the truck versions had composite covers than aluminum. (Randall Shafer)
This rare Ford 8.8-inch independent carrier axle with a cast-iron housing was fitted to late-model Mustangs and Ford Explorers. Notice the 8.8 cast into the housing above the pinion.
This Ford Explorer 8.8-inch independent axle has a cast-aluminum housing. The sensor in the upper right measures ring gear speed and is part of the anti-lock brake system.
The Ford 8-inch independent axle has a cast-aluminum housing, and the 8.0 identifier is cast into the cover just below the fill plug on the right. This axle can be found in the Jaguar X-type and Lincoln LS.
Not all of the 8.0 ICAs were in aluminum. This Ford 8-inch has a cast-iron housing.
Another interesting fact is the Ford 8.8-inch axle has the same ring-gear-mounting distance (see Chapter 6) for all ratios. There is a ton of aftermarket support for this axle (see Chapter 4). This is your traditional semi-float Salisbury axle with C-washers for axle retention. There are even 8.5-inch gears installed in these housings for lower-powered vehicle applications. The typical car-sized 3-inch-diameter tubes can be a bit flimsy in higher-powered applications.
The 8.5-inch and 8.8-inch gears have even been found in the independent-carrier-style axles. The Ford Mustang and T-Bird used this style for a few model years.
Ford 9-inch: The Ford 9-inch has a reputation as a very reliable and durable axle. It’s by far the most common axle used by restorers, hot rodders, customizers, and racers. It has enjoyed a long production history with many variants. For its time, this remains one of the best axles to use. There is a huge aftermarket support for this axle design. Many companies are reproducing this design today, such as Currie Enterprises, Mark Williams, and Strange Engineering, to name a few. It is still used in NASCAR racing today.
Offered in Ford cars and trucks from 1957 to 1986, this banjo-style 9-inch axle is the big brother to the 8-inch axle. In the mid 1980s, the Salisbury-style 8.8-inch axle housing replaced the 9-inch, and the 8.8-inch saved about
