new van owner - rear axle question

[hojhauler]

So i have always had a truck but the crew cab finally got too small for the 3 kiddos in the back...so the psd will be sold and I just picked up an 01 E-350 extended van with the V 10. I have had the V10 in an excursion before and really liked the motor but it really needed the right gears for good pulling. So, this van is mostly for pulling a 28' travel trailer or a car hauler w/ Early Bronco and it has the 3.73 gears (both around 8-9K pounds). I think that I need 4.10 or 4.30 gears to make it a little more enjoyable but I would also like a little more width in the rear as well. I know there are dually conversions but would really just like a couple more inches for stabilitly instead of 2 more tires on the ground.....so here is the question (finally!)

What truck/ van axle do I need to be looking for to get a slightly wider axle with the 4.10 or 4.30 gears? Are all the E series vans 8 on 6.5" bolt pattern or did they ever change to the metric 8 on 170mm?

 

[ujoint]

The vans are still 8 on 6.5. All of the late model E series have a Dana 60 rear axle, so is yours a full or semi floater?

You can swap to a Sterling 10.5 from a truck or Excursion like I did, but the bolt pattern is different. (8 on 170) It wasn't a problem for me since I used superduty knuckles on my front axle. ---

 

[hojhauler]

are the truck or excursion rear axle (10.5) wider than the van?

if I just use a sterling 10.25 from a pre '97 truck will the spring pads line up?

 

[deserteagle56]

Ujoint is correct, the vans are still the 8 on 6.5 pattern. On my Quigley conversion which uses a stock F350 front axle, Quigley used spacers on the rear axle to convert the bolt pattern to match the front 8 on 170mm. The spacers were just wide enough to make the rear track width exactly the same as the front. I think it added about 2-1/2 inches to the width of the rear track. So the cheap way to go to gain width would be to just add spacers. My van is also the V-10 but because it runs 33" tires it has been regeared to 4.56 ratio and that seems just about right for the power band of the engine. It runs about 2200 rpm at 70 mph. So if you will stay with the stock tire size I'd say that the 4.10s or 4.30s would work great, depending on how much weight you pull. For sure, that engine likes rpm. It is not like a diesel with all that low rpm torque - and I sure miss that after driving my pickup!

 

[ujoint]

are the truck or excursion rear axle (10.5) wider than the van?

if I just use a sterling 10.25 from a pre '97 truck will the spring pads line up?

The Sterling 10.25's are drum brake, and I'm not sure the VSS sensors are compatible. Yes, the truck axles are wider than the van.

 

[hojhauler]

thanks for all the info. I did not realize the brakes were different. My van axle is a full floater w/ the disc brakes. It might just be a better plan to pay and have it re-geared...I just thought that there would be a good junkyard find that I could start looking for to save a little money. I will see how it tows the 8K pounds with the 3.73's and will go from there.

 

[ujoint]

thanks for all the info. I did not realize the brakes were different. My van axle is a full floater w/ the disc brakes. It might just be a better plan to pay and have it re-geared...I just thought that there would be a good junkyard find that I could start looking for to save a little money. I will see how it tows the 8K pounds with the 3.73's and will go from there.

Good idea. No reason to get rid of the full floater!

 

[hojhauler]

well, apparently I was sadly mistakened and I have the semi-floater rear axle in my van. Don't ask me why I mis-labeled it b/c it was just pure laziness on my part....Why would Ford put a semi-float axle in a E350 extended van anyway, that's just stupid!

Anyway, so that brings up a whole new axle search....If I were to be looking at duals in the rear conversion in the future but now just some extra width then is the superduty truck axle (8 x 170) the best option with front conversion spacers right now in the front to match bolt patterns?


Is this a semi float Dana 60 in the rear of this van? I know the trucks had sterling 10.5's, so what has the Dana 70 w/ disk brakes?

 

[ujoint]

I feel your pain! When I ordered my van, they couldn't even tell me what axle was in the rear! it came with the semi float as well. ---- You want a disc brake rear axle, so a Dana 80 from a superduty is what you'll need if you want to go DRW. They are 8 on 170, so it may get tricky in the front if you want to run a dually wheel. You'd have to get a dually adapter that is 8 on 6.5 to 8 on 170??? ot, just convert it to 4wd, and all your problems will be over!!!!

 

[hojhauler]

4wd conversion would be the ultimate goal as long as it does not get too high to be an effective tow rig/ family hauler. I saw on your website some mention of a 2wd lift, what is up with that?

 

[ujoint]

4wd conversion would be the ultimate goal as long as it does not get too high to be an effective tow rig/ family hauler. I saw on your website some mention of a 2wd lift, what is up with that?

I plan on adding a 2wd lift in the future, one of these days!

I have pics of a few vans that have the lowest lift height with the conversion.