I like my DTT so far, but I only got it to function as an LSD on the road. I'm not sure what the OP's intended use is, but for better traction on the road in rain or snow it has done well.

 

roughly same price for TrueTrac and he said 590 doesnt include master install kit but will change parts out as needed. said bearings should be fine. This is a 4wd suspension shop. what do you guys think?

 

The price is reasonable since labor is typically $300-400. Do you know anyone who's had differential work done there? From everything I've read you should have new bearings for a new ring and pinion as well as for the new carrier. How many miles are on your truck now?

This site has some helpful info http://www.ringpinion.com/HowTo.aspx. Check around for other shops and get quotes and see how often they do ring and pinion work. The shop is really the most important part, I've been through choosing the wrong one and it is a huge headache and will cost you a lot more than the job should have. You might want to try posting in the 3rd gen section here or on dodge talk that you're looking for a good differential shop in the area you live, and then someone who's had good work done can point you in the right direction.

 

Might want to make sure that they have done a lot of gear work on street trucks. You can get away with fairly sloppy gear setup on offroad vehicles. I'd make sure they use new bearings with the new carrier. Normally you setup the gears with a set of setup bearings and then only press on the new bearings when you are pretty sure you have it correct (depending on the type of diff).

 

You are absolutely right about the detroit locker, it's not operator selectable. My mistake. It locks up when torque is applied. While it's not a lunchbox type locker, it looks to me like similar operation... spring loaded and not selectable. I ran a lunchbox (Aussie Locker) in my Jeep D44A and it did work great when I needed power to both rear wheels, the street manners weren't bad, but I paid for it in terms of tire wear and gas mileage.

I had a Truetrac in the front (D30) and never had any problem with it. It didn't create steering problems and seemed to keep both tires turning when I needed it to. It also seemed to be pretty bulletproof. I don't have any experience with the Auburn, but they do have a good rep, from what I hear.

The Truetrack and Aussie Locker worked perfectly for me in both mud and snow. While I never buried it above the door sills, I never did get stuck after installing the lunchbox.

 

I have been, since reading this site, wanting to upgrade my 4wd to at least 3.92 (maybe 4.11) and the auburn or detroit lsd.

I was told yesterday by a friend who is rather knowledgeable on car mechanic type issues to not even try it. He said that I need to change both the front and back (makes sense so the gears match) and there is a lot of engine management stuff that would need to be addressed.

I know a lot of you are have 4 wheeler type vehicles and maybe for my purposes with this truck I am looking at something more than I need but can anyone verify how much work it actually takes? what about the 2wd people, did you merely change the gear and diff and call it a day?

 

If you stuck with the same sized tires you would need to either take it in to the dealer to have them starscan it so that the speedo reads correctly - or use one of the aftermarket tuners that has that functionality.

 

I contacted a 4wd shop do front and rear gear change on a 4x4. The front diff is a fairly easy set up compared to the rear (9.25 dodge 12 bolt). Numerous web sites attest to its difficulty.

Consequently I had the shop change out the rear first and left the front original until I was satisfied with the rear set up.

The shop failed to get the set up right with after market gears after two tries. So I took it to a dodge dealer and had them install OEM gears. It took them two attempts to get it set up right (no gear whine). Then I had the front done with aftermarket gears and it worked fine on the first attempt.

In the future, I will find a complete rear axle assembly from a low mileage salvage vehicle rather than change out ring and pinion only.

-or-

Buy the proper tools and change out the ring and pinion myself. Numerous web sites and forum posts with pics demonstrate how to set it up PERFECTLY. It just takes a lot of time, patience and trial and error.

 

It's one of those jobs that you need a ton of patience for. I've done about a dozen sets of gears now - for jeeps and my streetrod, but I still don't think I'd want to do a set for my daily drivers.

 

I agree completely.

One other thing: The reason I decided to do a change out was due to a pinion bearing failure in a podunk town in west Texas. The ONLY mech in town (and within 100miles) that would do the repair found a 1/2" chip on the toe of the ring gear. I had him reinstall it anyway and figured it would last until I got home (500 miles away).

As it turned out, his set-up was pretty darn good. Fortunately, my service contract paid for that repair, the towing and my 5 days lodging and meals.