Low pinion 60 in front of a JK...will it cause problems?

[Dewayne]

Hey all, this is my 1st post, but I searched for this particular subject, and didn't find it. Here's my situation: I have a 2007 JKU Rubicon, lifted 6 inches, adjustable control arms all around, currently switching it to rear long arms, and probably will be doing the front soon. I also have a 99 Dodge Ram 2500, V-10, MANUAL trans. In the manual trans diesels and V-10 trucks, they had a 60 front/80 hybrid rear combo. The truck engine blew, so I now have a 60/80 combo, which already have 5.38 gears in them, the front CAD (axle disconnect) already has the CAD delete kit/one piece axle shaft in it, and I've already got them out of the truck. I've already begun stripping the mounts off the rear, and got some artec stuff ordered for it, but my only concern is that the front 60 is a low pinion design. I mean.....the axles are free and already geared for my application, so is the fact that it's a low pinion design going to cause me problems in the 07 JK? Please keep in mind that I'm not concerned about the JK electronics, the ESP, Speedometer, etc....I'm just concerned whether or not I will be able to drive it without front driveshaft vibration. I know I'm going to have to have new driveshafts front and rear anyway, and I know TJ's all had low pinion front axles, so I'm hoping it won't be a problem. Any ideas or comments? Thank you all, Dewayne.

 

[croge17]

as long as you get the pinion angle right so the driveline wont bind and run the right driveshaft for the angle it shouldnt cause any problems... It will be a slightly weaker ring and pinion set up due to being run on the coast side of the gear but you shouldnt have any problem with a JK. It will also be more likely to drag the yoke on the rocks if you center the diff on a rock.

 

[Dewayne]

Thanks croge17, that's what I was hoping. It's going to be a toss up between perfect pinion angle, and correct caster angle, but there's ways to gain some caster, offset ball joints being one of them. I had also heard that about the low pinion fronts being weaker than high pinion, but even so, wouldn't it still be stronger than the Stock Rubicon 44 in the front now? I know the shafts and housing definitely will be, after I truss that long side tube where the CAD sleeve is located.

 

[wayoflife]

I'm just concerned whether or not I will be able to drive it without front driveshaft vibration.

Even with a high pinion, it's pretty hard to keep vibrations at bay without setting your caster at 4° or lower. With a low pinion, it'll even be harder to deal with. Of course, assuming your 60 comes with locking hubs, this should be too much of a problem.

It will be a slightly weaker ring and pinion set up due to being run on the coast side of the gear

This ^^^ If I were going through the trouble of installing a 60, I wouldn't want to half ass it but, that's just me.

 

[croge17]

Even with a high pinion, it's pretty hard to keep vibrations at bay without setting your caster at 4° or lower. With a low pinion, it'll even be harder to deal with. Of course, assuming your 60 comes with locking hubs, this should be too much of a problem.



This ^^^ If I were going through the trouble of installing a 60, I wouldn't want to half ass it but, that's just me.

The caster can be adjusted if you are going through the trouble of fabricating all the mounts I assume you are capable of cutting and turning the C's to make the caster correct.

 

[David1tontj]

Even with a high pinion, it's pretty hard to keep vibrations at bay without setting your caster at 4° or lower. With a low pinion, it'll even be harder to deal with. Of course, assuming your 60 comes with locking hubs, this should be too much of a problem.
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Pretty sure the dodge he is talking about (v10 era) did not come with hubs factory. My 95 v10 didn't.