Rear Axle for A-Body

Hi Peelo,

greetings from Germany up north!

i had to make the same decision, built a 408 for my slant six / 7,25" axle equipped Valiant. Engine is done, will be in next spring.

Thought about a 8,25" but even this one is rarely available here, could get one from a jeep but then it still needs a lot of attention = money....

Then i thought about a Dana 44 from a Opel Frontera. Good Axle in my opinion, but the length is different and they use six bolts to attach the wheels - so custom axles is a must have....expensive.

I ended up with a Explorer 8.8, in my opinion best solution if money counts (if not i´d get a new 8,75").

Got this axle for 250 Euro from a parts car, 3,73 Gears and Limited Slip in good working condition. Got another one with open diff 4,11 Gears and complete Disk Brake setup for 100 Euro. Shortened the long side according the 8.8 Thread here, used the short axle from the second one i bought. New bearings, new mopar spring pads.....we´ll see how it works.

I think this is the best and cheapest solution to get a decent axle.

Hope this helps!

Michael