Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

... What kind of hellworld have we come to where Amtrak is the most sensible way to travel without a car?

It's not so bad, could be stuck on a murder train. ;)

@CraigB
 
Will if fit the BRZ?
I wouldn't want to fit anything taller than a Boxer in that nose. Lots of width, not much in the way of height. Then again, IIRC that one guy on Youtube that pisses me off apparently shoved a 2JZ into one, and he sucks.
 
It's not so bad, could be stuck on a murder train. ;)

@CraigB

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The expressive proportion made me think of the "shrinkage" incident on Seinfeld. I could here George saying "I am a grower, not a show-er"!
 
The silver one is owned by a guy in the town I grew up in, I've seen it IRL.
 
And you didn't tell us about it? What is wrong with you? You do realize there are a bunch of us here that like oddball stuff on wheels.
 
FWIW the only major difference between a current D44HD rear and a D60 is 3/4" of ring gear. The Rubicon 44s went to 60-size pinions and tubes a while ago and the JL's axle has massive pinion bearings. You can even fit 1410 U-joints in the front Cs. Those axles have come a long way over the years.

Then why wouldn't they call it something new? It will just confused FUD's like me that think that Dana 44 only means the Dana 44 that was made for about 60 with minimal changes.
 
There's several Dana 44 variants out there. Like the one in Nissans that has so little to do with the original that nothing from either fits the other...

I thought that was dumb too. I think one of the auto mags smoked theirs in their first long term titan too. Their marketing was like DANA 44 SO STRONG. Woo, half ton axle for a half ton truck. They should have just put a 60 in it.
 
Then why wouldn't they call it something new? It will just confused FUD's like me that think that Dana 44 only means the Dana 44 that was made for about 60 with minimal changes.

They do call it something different-ish (New Generation D44 since 2007 or D44HD for short) but most just refer to it as a D44 for convenience. The newest JL axles have dropped the old-school Dana nomenclature entirely and gone to the metric IDs (M200, M220, etc.) but people still call them Dana 35s and Dana 44s out of habit.
 
Salisbury! I was just feeling left out of the axle talk. Apparently it's a metric Dana 60 but not quite as strong, used as a rear axle in Defender 110s up to 2002 and as front and rear in snatch vehicles.

Would be nice to put a pair in the bobtail, also found a company doing portal kits for normal Land Rover axles for quite a lot of money.
 
Now you're thinking with Portals!
 
Salisbury! I was just feeling left out of the axle talk. Apparently it's a metric Dana 60 but not quite as strong, used as a rear axle in Defender 110s up to 2002 and as front and rear in snatch vehicles.

Would be nice to put a pair in the bobtail, also found a company doing portal kits for normal Land Rover axles for quite a lot of money.

The F150 has a Dana 60 sized rear end as well, the Sterling 9.75. I'm actually kind of surprised I don't hear about them being used for swaps since they are quite beefy and very common.

Salisbury type axles are fine but I do like a good Hotchkiss type.
 
The F150 has a Dana 60 sized rear end as well, the Sterling 9.75. I'm actually kind of surprised I don't hear about them being used for swaps since they are quite beefy and very common.

Salisbury type axles are fine but I do like a good Hotchkiss type.

F150s got the 9.75 with the max tow/7700 package, but guys looking to swap tons are more likely to go for a complete 03+ Super Duty setup (BJ60/S10.5). The main issues with the 9.75 are the thin axle tubes, lack of aftermarket support compared to the D60, and the oddball metric bolt pattern that doesn't match up well with the usual front axles that would commonly be paired with it. Awkward middle child, basically.
 
F150s got the 9.75 with the max tow/7700 package, but guys looking to swap tons are more likely to go for a complete 03+ Super Duty setup (BJ60/S10.5). The main issues with the 9.75 are the thin axle tubes, lack of aftermarket support compared to the D60, and the oddball metric bolt pattern that doesn't match up well with the usual front axles that would commonly be paired with it. Awkward middle child, basically.

Pretty sure all of the 09 and up trucks got the 9.75. Both of mine have had it.

Those are good reasons for not swapping, but I'm still glad it isn't a Dana 44. :p
 
Pretty sure all of the 09 and up trucks got the 9.75. Both of mine have had it.

Those are good reasons for not swapping, but I'm still glad it isn't a Dana 44. :p

It's tied to payload and engine, the lighter payload F150s still get the Super 8.8 while the heavier trucks (all 3.5 Ecoboosts, 2.7EB Payload Package, anything with Max Towing or HDPP) get the 9.75. There are some other combos (5.0 + 3.73 gears) that also get you the 9.75.

Fully agree I'd take it over a D44 if ground clearance isn't a major concern.

(For more axle fun, peruse the Jantz Engineering products that allow you to stick Dana 50 gears in a Dana 44, Dana 70 gears in a Dana 60, or D44HD gears in a regular D44. Hybrids galore!)
 
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