As far as the F-150 goes, from 1980 on it had a twin I-beam dana 44. If you have one of these I would change over to solid axle. Late '70s F-150s are decent. You would have a solid dana 44 front end, a C6/C4,T-18, or NP 435, and a NP 205 or NP 203 transfer case. I have a '74 Dana 44 high pinion front end. If you older than that you get low pinion. F-250s/ 3/4 ton/ 8-lug dana 44s get high pinions later in the '70s. In the '60s and early '70s dana 44s had 1/2" x 2.75" axle tubes. The 3/4 tons got 1/2" x 3" tubes. Later half tons got 3/8" and 1/4" thick tubes.
I really wouldn't say there is anything wrong with the TTB front end - as long as it is aligned it won't chew tires, rides nice and can be beef'd up quite easily.
I wouldn't hesitate to look at any of the 80-96 F150's - the later years came with MPFI, Mass Air and power everything. In the 6 years of relentless ownership my truck has only needed a water pump and fuel pump @ 160K.
They are all pretty loaded down with emission controls. My 2005 is brutally dependable. It has a little 330 V8 but its fine. The AOD has come a long way in the last thirty years. The stock input shafts on the AOD suck. I have 2 AODs, both from 302s on 4x4 trucks. One of them had the splines on the input shaft twisted. They had a dual input shaft system. The input shaft is hollow. Inside resides the direct drive shaft which bypasses the torque converter in 3rd and 4th gears. Neither of these shafts are adequate. Direct drive does not happen when you would want it.
On a 700R4 you have the best of both worlds. It has a solenoid in the torque converter that locks it for efficiency. If you were drag racing you would want a loose torque converter to accelerate, and you would want it to lock at speed for a little more speed. You can put a toggle switch on the lock up solenoid to lock it when you want to.
The AOD-E is a good transmission but needs the computer to run it. This is an inconvenience if you are running a carburator or aftermarket EFI. The 4R70 is a re named AOD. It has steel drums which are lighter and stronger. The cast iron drums are not a problem though.
The 4R75E is a little bit stouter from the factory.
I would get a 351W with a AOD that has a forged 1-peice input shaft for a 31 spline C6 torque converter. You can put a carburater on the engine until you can afford after market fuel injection.
By the way, can anyone build a C6 torque converter with a lock up clutch and a solenoid?
I had great success with swapping in a D50 3rd which gives you a 1350 joint that won't break. I then ran cheap JBG chromoly outers, Spicer u-joints with full circle snap rings and MM Supreme lockouts.
I would say my F350 will outlast me. 86' F350 4x4 - 6.9IDI, T-19, BW1345 on a KP D60 and Sterling 10.25.
With that said why F-150? Why not F-250 with dana 60 high pinion front end, sterling 10.25" or 10.5" rear and a 7.3L EFI or IDI turbo diesel? Any faults of the 4R100 can be remedied with a good aftermarket build.
Does the Dana 44 IFS use the same axle shafts inners and outters as the older solid axle counterpart?
Yep, all same.
(well the inner's lengths are of course different, but the shaft diameters & u-joints are the same, even right down to those stupid neckdowns. Inside the diff is all same HP D44 too, TTB ver. has a bearing at the end to support the RH shaft)
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