axles, what works best for us?

[Shadowv4l]

I had the usual intermidiate shaft failure recently and im looking into the unequal length setup. It's for my 88 csxt which has an OBX LSD and A555 trans. Which unequal shaft should I buy? I currently have two equal length axles im running and they are custom built "race" axles. Wasnt sure if there was a certain axle that would be best used with the stronger driver side axle installed. The car will be somewhere under the 400hp mark on the street.

and yes I was reading through the hundreds of other axle threads, lolz. Just wanted to make sure I had the most up to date information before buying something.

Thanks!

[Turbo Joe]

driveshaft shop makes really nice stuff, its what I'm running along with a few others here.

[Shadowv4l]

driveshaft shop makes really nice stuff, its what I'm running along with a few others here.

Found their site, didnt find an axle selection from their list. Did you have to ship them an axle for them to copy?

[tryingbe]

Make a phone call, and you'll probably find they have what you want.

[Turbo Joe]

they used to have it on the drop down menu but all they have is the new stuff listed... just call them and tell them what you want and they'll make you brand new axles built, depending on how much you want to spend.

[turbovanman²]

Stockers, you want the R/T and Dynasty axles, large 3 joint inner tripot, or the very large, heavy round inner joints.

I've am using the large round inners on mine, equal length and same setup as 2003, :nod:

[135sohc]

Find a really late 4 cylinder spirit/shadow ect. Those have the HD saginaw axles in them for the most part if your looking for a junkyard price part. otherwise DSS is the other option as mentioned. Remaned axles are a waste of time and the new chinese axles from the parts stores are going to be hit or miss.

[black86glhs]

On a side note, does anyone know if the saginaw inner joint from the larger cars will work on the 88-90 Lbody auto axle? Take place of the piece of crap tin can inner on the Lbody shaft? I never had a chance to check it out.

[turboshad]

I use stock Saginaw axles and only one breakage so far though I'm sure that will change some day. Just take note that there are two differen diameters for the passenger side. Not all shadows have the larger size but I found most spirits do. Just make sure you measure it first.

[roachjuice]

I use oreilly 1990 automatic Omni lifetime warranty axles. I've been through 4 driver side ones and one passenger side. All have been manufacture defects. This last set here has lasted the longest. Its not a big deal to me to swap some axles out. Especially if they are exchanged no questions asked lol.

[RoadWarrior222]

Just wanted to make sure I had the most up to date information before buying something.

Yah, you tend to need up to the second info an all aftermarket these days, what was good 6 months ago might have gone Chinese since.

[Shadowv4l]

I was probably going to grab something from Rockauto, is that a no no?

[Shadowv4l]

looks like the EMPI axles offered at Rockauto have the Saginaw axles http://www.showmetheparts.com/EMPI/
I think i'll give it a shot for 60 bucks.

---------- Post added at 07:08 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:59 PM ----------

Looks like they all share the same part number as the 94 spirit I looked under

CHRYSLER IMPERIAL 93-90 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
CHRYSLER LEBARON 95-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
CHRYSLER NEW YORKER 93-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
DODGE 600 88-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
DODGE ARIES 89-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
DODGE DAYTONA 93-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
DODGE DYNASTY 93-88 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
DODGE LANCER 89-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
DODGE SHADOW 94-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
DODGE SPIRIT 95-89 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
PLYMOUTH ACCLAIM 95-89 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
PLYMOUTH CARAVELLE 88-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
PLYMOUTH RELIANT 89-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT
PLYMOUTH SUNDANCE 94-87 All- CV Joint Half Shaft - FRONT RIGHT

[BadAssPerformance]

Are they actual Saginaw axles made by Saginaw or "Saginaw" replacement axles as in "my car was originally equipped with Saginaw axles so these will fit?"

The aftermarket parts manuals (like the Chilton's/Haynes manuals) specify whether it is a Saginaw, GKN or Citroen axle based on what model and year it is, so it may not be a ture Saginaw.

From experience, the "lifetime warranty" aftermarket axles are not as good as a rebuilt stocker. Got a local axle shop that can hook you up?

+1 to what was said about the larger tulip Dynasty axles.

DriveShaft Shop? If there is enough interest, I can put together a Group Buy... I need to talk to them anyways about the one I think I broke.

[Shadowv4l]

well..... I have 2 other shadows (93, 94) with original passenger side axles, maybe i can do a swap with one of these new axles I get. Or just look at them both to determine if they are the same or not. hmm......

[shadow88]

Has anyone consitantly broke stock axles? I've been on stockers for a while.

[black86glhs]

Has anyone consitantly broke stock axles? I've been on stockers for a while.

After you start making more than stock power, it can be an issue. If you apply full throttle while having the wheels turned a lot, it kills them faster.

[BadAssPerformance]

Has anyone consitantly broke stock axles? I've been on stockers for a while.

*knock on wood* I only broke one in my Shadow and it had many many hard runs on it, and the replacement did too.

Several have run 10's on stock axles in cars, but most of those are lighter cars.

Years ago in the Z, back when it was still a 2.2L just when it started running 11's I broke 2 axles back to back. One was a brand new Saginaw axle too. Heavy cars punish axles more.

[RoadWarrior222]

Has anyone consitantly broke stock axles? I've been on stockers for a while.Well it seems that when above 400HP or so, it's hard to blame car, driver, bad suspension setup etc for breaking them.... but it's possible that careful tweaking gets them to survive another 50HP or so, or the owner happens to get a pair that are particularly good, high end of tolerances sorta thing. But some folks have broken a lot of axles at way below those outputs, and it's very hard to say whether it's really crappy axles, or badly maintained suspension, or abuse.

[black86glhs]

It is a combo of everything.

[wallace]

Is it the axle or the joint itself that usually fails?

[RoadWarrior222]

A frequent "fuse" point is the slight neck before the splines going into the trans.

[Polygon]

Here's a question.

I did this swap last year. Still not sure what axle I got. But do all the passenger axles have the teeth for the speed sensor?

[Ondonti]

A frequent "fuse" point is the slight neck before the splines going into the trans.
Which is why I don't see how fancy axles will help. Abusive clutch, driver, suspension, mounts won't help a part that nobody upgrades. I only broke a different part of the axle when I ran a non saginaw. Of course it could be that the Saginaw has a good shaft but garbage into the transmission. I don't know why we assume its all golden.

[shadow88]

Here's a question.

I did this swap last year. Still not sure what axle I got. But do all the passenger axles have the teeth for the speed sensor?

Yes they do, as well as all the intermediate shafts all have the speedometer drive gear cut as well.

[Polygon]

Hmm, we must have buggered up the gear on the sensor when we put it in then. The odometer hasn't worked for a while, but shortly after putting in the new axle the speedometer stopped working as well. Add another little project to the list.

[RoadWarrior222]

Yeah you're actually meant to pop the SDS deally out when you put the axle in, and then reseat it when it's in there. It might be okay after you do that now, just doesn't sit right when you push the axle in past it.

[135sohc]

not removing the sensor before removing/installing the axle is all but guaranteed to f-up the speedo gear, gotta remember is just plastic.

[BadAssPerformance]

Which is why I don't see how fancy axles will help.

If by fancy you mean DSS, they use different materials

[turbovanman²]

Is it the axle or the joint itself that usually fails?

Some have snapped the axles, some have sheered them off inside the trans.

[Polygon]

Yeah you're actually meant to pop the SDS deally out when you put the axle in, and then reseat it when it's in there. It might be okay after you do that now, just doesn't sit right when you push the axle in past it.


not removing the sensor before removing/installing the axle is all but guaranteed to f-up the speedo gear, gotta remember is just plastic.

Yeah, I should have done that. At least they're cheap, that's if you can figure out the right one to get.

[RoadWarrior222]

blue yellow or white gear, with or without speedo cable mechanical or later solid state, wtf is there to be confused about? that's only 9 different combinations. :D

[Ondonti]

If by fancy you mean DSS, they use different materials
So you are saying its a custom housing and splines, not just a worthless shaft upgrade that saginaws do not need. People seem to say something quite different every time. "parts from this and that with a 300m shaft" is what I tend to hear.

[86seeS]

I work for oreilly auto and I swap axles like its nobody bussiness lol I also run 90 omni axles in both chargers

[BadAssPerformance]

So you are saying its a custom housing and splines, not just a worthless shaft upgrade that saginaws do not need. People seem to say something quite different every time. "parts from this and that with a 300m shaft" is what I tend to hear.

And for different car brands there are many different options, I think for Honda's they offer like 7 levels LOL...

For our old-skool FWD mopars, we have two options, Level 3 and Level 5:

For L3, the ends and center bar are chrome moly

For L5, same as L3 but with a 300M center bar

So, yes, the CM ends are why they live longer and put up with the abuse.

I got about an inch of timeslips here since I got the DSS axles the spring of 2005 and just counted them... 48 passes with the 2.2L in it, and 143 passes with a 2.4L. I know I'm missing a couple and I didnt get one on the last launch which it broke, so pretty much 200 passes on those L5 axles. No complaints about that.

[Sundance 6g72]

Find a really late 4 cylinder spirit/shadow ect. Those have the HD saginaw axles in them for the most part if your looking for a junkyard price part. otherwise DSS is the other option as mentioned. Remaned axles are a waste of time and the new chinese axles from the parts stores are going to be hit or miss.

yep. :nod:

[Polygon]

This thread really has me considering getting some DSS axles.


blue yellow or white gear, with or without speedo cable mechanical or later solid state, wtf is there to be confused about? that's only 9 different combinations. :D

Hahaha! That's what I told the dealer when I was trying to find the right one.

[Shadow24]

just my $.02 but...

The saginaw's seem to take a lot of abuse before failing. I had over 100 drag passes, 250,000 miles and probably 30 or so passes with 24.5x8x15 slicks (6000rpm launch RPM on most of those) and the only OEM failure i had was I twisted the diff end off the Driver's side axle. I switched both axles to NEW GSP axles just in case (initially wasn't sure of the original circa 1992 axles with 250,000 miles of god knows what kind of driving). Next race day 1 week later, killed the drivers side again. This time the new axle SHAFT sheared right behind the tripod in the outer CV joint. Ok, no biggie, warranty the axle (shaft was noticeably a larger diameter on the new replacement) and replace. Same thing happened to the passenger side axle the next week, sheared just before the outer CV tripod. Needless to say, I had a Local driveline shop rebuild the stockers and i now have $140 paperweights. I'll never put a set of craptastic "NEW" axles in the car again.


IRGT the DSS axles, Until i start seeing consistent failures of the stock saginaw axles, i CANNOT justify $1000 or more on a set of axles. Especially when the rebuild on the stock axles was $50 per.


I did some research as well, the OEM saginaw passenger axle long shaft is a thick walled tube rather than a solid shaft. It actually will twist and absorb some of the shock load better than a rigid shaft. So for now, its Saginaw stockers for me.

[Polygon]

How can we spot a Saginaw?

[RoadWarrior222]

Yup, tubes can be stronger than bar, because a surface hardening treatment will have 2 surfaces to work on.


I think for Honda's they offer like 7 levels LOL... But the first two are wet noodle and drinking straw aren't they? :D

[BadAssPerformance]

IRGT the DSS axles, Until i start seeing consistent failures of the stock saginaw axles, i CANNOT justify $1000 or more on a set of axles. Especially when the rebuild on the stock axles was $50 per.

Any many light cars out there will never need DSS axles


But the first two are wet noodle and drinking straw aren't they? :D

LOL... I think they have tiny splines so early levels are beefier small spline, then one level upgrades the spline size, like a neon going to a shadow knucle/hub

[anokabball24]

I work for oreilly auto and I swap axles like its nobody bussiness lol I also run 90 omni axles in both chargers

So what is the consensus here on who makes the best OEM axles? Oreilly (MasterPro), Rock, Napa (seem to all be remanufactured), etc? Having a hard time deciding on which outlet to purchase from. Car is going to be a 2.2l, a555 built Omni (225–275 whp).

[wallace]

So if I read the information correctly it is the shaft and not the cv joints that fail. The level 5 DSS stuff replaces the shafts that break with a moly one? IIRC you can also send the shafts to Moser and they will make you a set as well, not sure on turn around time though.

[BadAssPerformance]

So if I read the information correctly it is the shaft and not the cv joints that fail. The level 5 DSS stuff replaces the shafts that break with a moly one? IIRC you can also send the shafts to Moser and they will make you a set as well, not sure on turn around time though.

The center ber/shaft can break, but the only two DSS axles known to break in our cars (kelly and mine) both broke next to the splines on the inner CV ends.

DSS L3 will be good for most applications as they have the CM ends. The L5 adds the better 300M center bar, not needed unless decently over 400whp with a heavy car

[tryingbe]

So what is the consensus here on who makes the best OEM axles? Oreilly (MasterPro), Rock, Napa (seem to all be remanufactured), etc? Having a hard time deciding on which outlet to purchase from. Car is going to be a 2.2l, a555 built Omni (225–275 whp).

Whatever ones have good life time warranty with no question asks.