First, I want to say thanks for a great site, I've been reading and learning alot of DIY for a year or so but now I have my first question.

I have a 97' Dakota Sport Club Cab and after some rear end gears grinding and locking up, the local mechanic said he cleaned out the rear end housing and that it does not have much life left. I've made it a little bit longer with one clean out of the rear differential but I'm gonna need to get a different one on there.

My first question is, do I need the whole rear end, axle and all OR just the gears, pumpkin etc? How would I know?

Seconly, I have an opportunity to pick up a 99' Durango being sold for parts very CHEAP. Would the rear's be interchangeable?

Thanks for the help guys and I look forward to reading more and more on this site.

Nick

 

I'm no expert here, but for a quick and dirty answer I think Durango's also came with both 8.25 and 9.25 rear ends (same as our Dak) so I would think that if you get the proper gears (3.55, 3.92 etc) from the same rear end I don't think you should have a problem.

Wait for a member named Tom A to answer - he'd definitely know!

Also, have you googled your answer or checked out the Durango part of the website?

 

Im not sure but the Durango rear ends may be spring under instead of spring over like the Dakotas. Could cause a problem with the perches.

 

Haha... thanks!

AFAIK, Durangos are, in fact, spring under, which will work fine with a 2WD Dakota but not a 4WD. If the "new" rear axle is the same size (8.25" or 9.25"), you CAN change just the gears, but it's not as easy as it sounds. You would still need to do the whole setup (setting pinion depth, etc.) because there are variations in housings.

Is the problem definitely with the gears? If it's actually the carrier (bad posi clutches or something like that), you can change just the carrier without disturbing the pinion and you'd only have to worry about getting the backlash and bearing preload right (piece of cake). The problem with that is that if there have been metal pieces going through your rear end, your pinion bearings probably aren't going to be any good, either.

Easiest way is to find a complete rear end from the same truck you have. The Durango may be cheap, but it's not that great of a deal if it won't work for you.

BTW, where are you located?

 

Thanks for the replies....yes it is a 4WD and quite a bit of metal has gone through the gears. Mechanic said he got some decent chunks out and then i did another clean out about 2 months later (it does not get driven too much) and had a decent amount of metal shavings come out with fluid. A good cleaning and new fluid and it does okay for now but seems to be a time bomb waiting to go.

Am I looking at getting the whole rear axle, pumpkin, and all (which I have not really seen cheaper than about $425 or can I get by with something less?

Tom A, I'm located in SE Missouri

 

As to the rears being interchangeable, you having a 4x4 is going to change things. What ratio do you have now? The front/rear ratios MUST match exactly. If the Durango doesn't have the same ratio, it's not worth it.

There should be a tag on the pumpkin or you can request a build sheet from Dodge.

 

As Tom and Dan have said, alot of intricacies to be dealt with in a swap. Gear matching, spring matching (You'll have to loosen the springs to put them on- dur springs are 3/4" wider centerlined), and most importantly, why did your gears fail.

 

have no idea why they failed, just know that I was driving it and turned out of a parking lot and it just locked up and was popping on me. Did that with every tight turn on pavement or asphalt, not so much on gravel. Figure it had something to do with the limited slip. I bought this truck very used so not sure how it was treated. After a clean out of all metal shavings and pieces along with fresh fluid it seems to do fine for a while minus the whine when accelerating.

guess it looks like it would just be easier to stay away from the swap and look in some yards for a replacement. Anyone know what years I can look at or do I need to stay with a 97'?

 

the gear ratio still has to match your fronts, plus the spring perch has to be on the right side (top/bottom).

If it locked up, that's not the clutch. Sounds to me like a bearing race or a tooth. Or the former leading to the latter.

This is from the camaro a few weeks ago.