Pinion nut torque spec?

The nut that secures the drive shaft flange and pinion is a pretty hefty torque (140 to 180 Ft/Lbs) for Dana 41 and 44. This helps insure the seating of the bearings & shims as well as securing the nut. This is from the 49 thru 51 Lincoln/Mercury overhaul manual of which the Mercury also uses the Dana 41/44 axles depending on year of manufacture.
 
The Ford cars normally didn't use the Dana rear axles so they are different. Police cars and station wagons were the only Ford car types that did use Dana axles. I don't have repair information of the 1949 thru 56 type of Ford car rear axle assemblies.
 
Last edited:
My Master Repair Manual FOMOCO Canada Rear Axles and Drivelines for the 1955/56 F100 (Dana 44) states 200-220 foot 1bs torque for the pinion nut.
 
My 1949-50-51 Ford F-Series Trucks Shop Manual on page 166 states 140-180 foot 1bs for the pinion nut. This information relates to the Dana 41.
 
Yes, "just changing the seal" will require the nut to be torqued as above. I thought I could just tighten the nut after changing a seal and the rear end sounded off with a terrible sound after going about 20 feet when I tried to take it on a test drive. Went back and torqued to specs and it was fine.
 
On most rear axles the pinion nut torque is an important setting. Some use a crush sleeve or collar that can not be retorqued once it is backed off so you need to know how the axle you are working on is set.
 
The torque setting is a range due to setting the bearing preload. You are going to want to make sure you keep the preload spec and stay within the torque range. I think the pinion preload is somewhere around 10 inch pounds. Notice inch pounds not foot. Nice write up on this in the shop manual.

JB
 
Some rear axles use a crush sleeve to set the preload and some use shims. The Dana axles use shims. I have used crush sleeves to set the initial preload then take it back apart and measure the crush sleeve to get the correct shim thickness for final assembly. This is not uncommon and some rebuild kits come with a crush sleeve just for that purpose.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top