Detroit Iron
Well-Known Member
What opinions do you all have on aluminum drive shafts for daily driver applications?
No concerns whatsoever ever. If I have the option for an aluminum shaft over a steel shaft I’ll take it. I’ve used a few crown Victoria aluminum drive shafts in projects and they work great and are considerably lighter.
It's not as much about performance (although there is a gain there too) but you'll see improved suspension compliance through reduced unsprung mass, and a reduced sensitivity to imbalance since there's less mass spinning underneath.Some of the videos I've seen showed no performance difference. There may have been a very slight performance gain in first '60 ft. With a very slight drop-off on big end. Not enough to draw any conclusions.
What opinions do you all have on aluminum drive shafts for daily driver applications?
Did you mean 1300hp and 2400lb/ft? Common in the diesel world.I just put a 5 inch, aluminum shaft with upsized 1490 U-joints in my 2008 GMC 2500HD. The shop I got it from said they have guys running this same driveshaft in trucks with 2400hp & 1300 ft lbs of torque without issue.
Got it here.
Aluminum lead sheet
I also went with aluminum driveshaft using 1350 u-joints in my 1968 Barracuda. It's beautiful, and the driveline has never been smoother.
Got it here.
39550 - Mark Williams Enterprises, Inc
There may be long term benefits on drivetrain wear? I have not seen data to support. But that certainly doesn't mean doesn't exist.The only benefit I see is the reduction in static weight. Because the OD is so small, any benefit from rotating wt reduction would be small in my opinion. Not like going from a 13" converter to a 10" c'ter.
Something else to consider if using deep overdrive transmissions and high freeway type gears, is driveshaft critical speed. The larger diameter shaft has a higher critical speed and this becomes important for fast road race type cars. Not so much on street stuff, but could be a concern.
Did you mean 1300hp and 2400lb/ft? Common in the diesel world.