Rearend swap

[estm8tr]

first post ever!
I have a 97 c1500 w/ a 3/4 drop want a limited slip rear end in place of one legger. Can I Swap a Z71. Will it bolt directly up. Thanks in advance

 

[poncho62]

I dont see why not....I take it your truck is 2 wheel drive?.....The Z71 rear is likely to have a different (higher numerically) gear ratio....2.73-4.10

If yours is 4 wheel drive, you will have to check this out, might have to change both diffs

 

[skylark]

2wd is 3" narrower than the 4wd.

 

[oohunter04oo]

2wd is 3" narrower than the 4wd.

Not to mention its 6 lug compared to the 2wds 5 lug. But if your drop widened the tract width up front, (i know some drop spindles do) you could do the swap and it probably wouldn't be noticeable. you would have to swap out the front rotors for some light duty c2500 rotors and buy some new wheels.

 

[someotherguy]

Negatory...the 4wd rear will be much more noticeably wider and will also become an issue with tucking most wheel/tire combos on a dropped truck. Skip the 4wd rear.

There's no factory limited slip in our trucks. It's a "locker" called the Eaton Gov-Loc; you can look up info on how it works including there's a video out there that shows the design in action. It's a low-bid unit that works "OK" but not very strong, especially in 10 bolt form. They have earned the nickname... Gov-Bomb

Put an aftermarket piece in your existing open carrier. Far better solution

Richard

 

[estm8tr]

thank you all , yes mine is a 2 wheel drive. I was hoping to swap axels as wess to maintain the 5 lug because I already have wheels. But the six lug swap would be cool as well more options

 

[gmcyukondriver]

Negatory...the 4wd rear will be much more noticeably wider and will also become an issue with tucking most wheel/tire combos on a dropped truck. Skip the 4wd rear.

There's no factory limited slip in our trucks. It's a "locker" called the Eaton Gov-Loc; you can look up info on how it works including there's a video out there that shows the design in action. It's a low-bid unit that works "OK" but not very strong, especially in 10 bolt form. They have earned the nickname... Gov-Bomb

Put an aftermarket piece in your existing open carrier. Far better solution

Richard

Richard, slightly off topic, but does that include the 454SS axles? Are those also lockers, or are they limited-slip?

 

[someotherguy]

thank you all , yes mine is a 2 wheel drive. I was hoping to swap axels as wess to maintain the 5 lug because I already have wheels. But the six lug swap would be cool as well more options

If you mean swapping your 5 lug axle shafts into the 4wd rear, not gonna happen, different lengths.

Richard, slightly off topic, but does that include the 454SS axles? Are those also lockers, or are they limited-slip?

The 454SS rear is a 9.5" (semi-floating) 14 bolt; the G80 option on those trucks is also the Eaton Gov-Loc. Problem is "posi" "limited slip" "locker" get swapped around so much in casual conversation it muddies the subject.

The 9.5" 14 bolt in my C2500LD is also equipped with the Gov-Loc. They don't seem to blow up as easily in the 14 bolt but that's strictly due to the difference in carrier design. The locker itself still isn't very strong and they simply quit working after a while.

Richard