Pics of a couple small but needed rear axle mods

[HemiDak]

Here's some new weekend mods I did. Switched both differentials to synthetic fluid, added a rear PML cover, and extended the rear breather line very high up.

PML diff cover
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v126/YellowKota2k/PMLdiffcover.jpg

Extended rear breather
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v126/YellowKota2k/Raiseddiffbreather.jpg

After mild offroading, and a lot of driving, the diff cover isn't hot at all. It's warm, but not hot like it used to be. It definitely cools well, and added almost a quart of fluid. The extended rear breather cost less then $5 in hose, and is much higher than it was before sitting in the frame. Hopefully all of the mods will keep my Detroit happy, and my 4.56 gears that are waiting to be installed.

[chris4x4]

How much was your diff cover? And where did you get it? Nice location on the breather. I was going to extend mine in between the bed and the cab, but yours is a much better location :clap2:

[DAKSPORT1PA]

The diff cover looks awsome. :biggthump Good choice going with the black. Will that bolt up to the stock rear?

[HemiDak]

It was $215 it you can get it right from PML

www.yourcovers.com

[KREWZER]

Im not up on the whole Off roading thing so i dont get what the breather thing is for, but.... AWESOME! That cover looks pretty pimp too, still way too much money for my broke bum butt self. And that rubber rized undercoating sure does look good. I bet its easier to keep clean too :biggthump

[jmac2000dge]

That is a sweet lookin cover. :biggthump Very nice. When are you getting the gears installed?

[HemiDak]

The diff cover looks awsome. :biggthump Good choice going with the black. Will that bolt up to the stock rear?

It sure does, fits prefectly.

Im not up on the whole Off roading thing so i dont get what the breather thing is for, but.... AWESOME! That cover looks pretty pimp too, still way too much money for my broke bum butt self. And that rubber rized undercoating sure does look good. I bet its easier to keep clean too :biggthump

Yeah the rubberized undercoating is awesome. It looks VERY good in person. Pics really don't do justice on how well it cleaned everything up. The diff cover set it all off too I think.

To explain about the breather lines:

When your fluids in your truck heat up and cool down, so does the air inside. Well, when the air heats up, it expands. When it cools down, it contracts. This creates pressure and a vacuum. Front and rear axles, transmissions, and transfercases all have this when this happens. The breather lines help relieve the pressure when it heats up, and lets it back in when it cools down.

There is usually no problem with regular vehicles, during the normal course of driving. When offroading, it's different. When you're offroading, your differentials will get warm like normal (or sometimes more depending on the conditions). When you get your differential surrounded by water, it cools it VERY fast. This makes the breather suck in air faster than normal. If the water (or mud) is covering the breather line, guess what it sucks in?

That's right. When the water or mud gets in there, it mixes very well with oil (though they usually don't mix) because of the constant and fast churning of the differential carrier and gears. This makes the gear oil milky looking and watery. It will then lose it's cooling and lubricating qualities. That of course means more heat and friction. As we all know, friction and heat = lost power.

This is why changing or checking fluids regularly is important. I prefer to avoid this step by moving the breater lines high up, and making sure all seals are water-tight. Plus, the new cover will allow me to change the fluids without breaking the seal on the cover itself. ;)

That is a sweet lookin cover. :biggthump Very nice. When are you getting the gears installed?

Probably in November. I've got a BIG offroading trip to the Badlands the last weekend of this month. I'm waiting to make sure I don't damage anything badly, so I'll still have money to get them installed.

[KREWZER]

thanks for the info, pretty much just common sense type stuff. I knew the gear would get hot and what not, like anything else that is constantly moving, i just didnt know it was enough to need its own breather. Cool and good info.

[DAKSPORT1PA]

It sure does, fits prefectly.

Sweet. I think I may have to get one of those. I think it would be a nice accent to my black and silver scheme. :biggthump