Hi, a friend of mine is giving me a Ram 1500 for free but the rear axle is shot. the drive line is good but the rear axle pinion and carrier is shot and maybe the axle shaft gear teeth. i went to the shop and they quote me $3000.00 dollars to get it fixed. i was wondering if i can get a spare rear end from other dodge vehicle or should i just look for the same year ram or wht? please help. i checked every where and the junk yard don't have the exact one and im just not sure of spending this much. thanks in advance for al the help.

its a v-6 and not 4wd i believe. oh and auto.

 

you can shop around used auto parts stores nationwide and can probably find one much cheaper and they'll ship it to you. i do it all the time for major stuff like that.

 

Year would help but not essential. Any corporate 9 1/4" rear end should work. Make sure it has the RWSS mounted to the diff.

 

A 94-2002 is the same i know just make sure it's got the same gear ratio,3000 is way to high you can get a rebuid kit for under 500

 

$3000. that's pretty funny.
just get an entire 1500 rear end housing and differential from the junkyard that matches yours.
1. take a look at the top of your rear diff for the speed sensor. i don't know if all years 94-01 have that thing or not.
2. determine your rear end gear ratio. if yours is 4wd, then you need to get one with the same gear, since front/rear have to match. if yours is 2wd, then you can use 3.55, or 3.73? or 3.92? or 4.10 or whatever you find or prefer. i think there is a 3.2x for manual transmission - DON'T get that unless that's what you have now.
3. new one might be open carrier or LSD. either will work.

that's about the only things to worry about. otherwise they are all 9.25, and all the same size. the brake cylinders are a little bigger on the 00+, but you can keep/swap whatever you want off yours, other than you need to leave the new ring/pinion in the new housing. you can also keep/swap the leaf springs, as they come in 4, 5, and 6 leaf packs. if you can't find one local, hit the internet yards, they can have you one in no time.

 

can i use a rear end out of the dodge 15 passenger van with the same year?

 

sorry, i don't know. you would need to check the location of the spring perches, shock mounts, speed sensor, overall width.