Same axle, different ring gear diameter. Literally the actual ring and pinion and the diff cover are the only differences. Actually, if you convert your 11.5" axle to a 4.30 ratio it automatically becomes an 11.8 because that the only size that ratio comes in. The only thing you have to change is the diff cover.
How important is GVWR?
- Thread starter jornvango
- Start date
Same axle, different ring gear diameter. Literally the actual ring and pinion and the diff cover are the only differences. Actually, if you convert your 11.5" axle to a 4.30 ratio it automatically becomes an 11.8 because that the only size that ratio comes in. The only thing you have to change is the diff cover.
DRW holds 2 tires per side, whereas the SRW doesn't. How are they the same? Are axle shafts and all the internal components shared between the 11.8 and 11.5 rear axles?
rruff
Explorer
You mean like all those HD trucks with C-channel frames? I guess that means the Tacoma should be rated higher than the Hilux.....
I've been looking at some reviews. All the little trucks sold overseas have ratings >2,000 lb payload, not just the Hilux.
The width is different but they are fundamentally the same axle. A different axle width and different ring and pinion do not make it a different axle. I guess you could say they have different part numbers so they are different but they are as much the same as different width Dana 44s with different axle ratios would be.
Arguing that the DRW 3500 has a different axle so it has a higher RAWR is patently false.
Buliwyf
Viking with a Hammer
While I agree completely. We can't tune-up the door sticker.
F150's and any SRW pick-up truck towing a 5th wheel camper is super easy to spot game, for the Highway Patrol now. EASY MONEY. People don't want to pay taxes to the HWP, they'll squeeze the yuppies other ways.
The days were we could tow anything we wanted to, because we aren't big rigs, is over. I was just pulled over and checked again last month. They wait just downhill of campgrounds now.
Expo people are next. It's only a matter of time.
Except the Aisin equipped trucks, all duallies are 11.5" AAM. Obviously they have a hub adapter at the end to utilize dually wheels, but if anything, that makes the housing WEAKER, not stronger.
You mean like all those HD trucks with C-channel frames? I guess that means the Tacoma should be rated higher than the Hilux.....
I've been looking at some reviews. All the little trucks sold overseas have ratings >2,000 lb payload, not just the Hilux.
Without turning this into a C-channel vs boxed frame, there're MANY parameters that Class 4+ truck frame has that enables them to carry the load:
- Much higher tensile strength steel: Volvo uses 130,000 psi
- Much thicker steel, we're talking a 1/4" and beyond
- Much higher section modulus (height of frame combined with thickness)
- Double frame on heavy spec trucks
It's much more complicated than "big trucks are c-channel, therefore c-channel is better". All things being equal, a boxed frame is superior in every way.
However, I doubt the Taco's frame limits its GVW.
Well, the DRW axle does in fact have a higher rear axle weight rating (9750lbs for the DRW vs 7000lbs for the SRW). So that part is not false.
I don't know if the DRW's higher axle weight rating is attributed to having 4 tires, or having a more robust axle and larger ring and pinion, or both, but the DRW's axle weight rating is higher than the SRW's.
I'm sure at some point in adding weight over the GVWR, the c-channel is a limiting factor for the Tacoma. There is a reason that Toyota still uses boxed frames on their prominent overseas 4x4's (LC's, Hilux).
It's purely a tire thing. 100%. If you look at the rating from AAM rather than the derated number from Ram you'd see that. Actually only the Aisin DRW trucks have the 11.8" gear. The 68RFE trucks have the same 11.5" axle as the SRW trucks. The actual axle rating from the axle manufacturer is the same on both trucks. I did this research when I bought the 3500 SRW that I OWN. You're just looking up stuff quickly through a google search. Seriously, just accept that it's the same axle.
Why are you getting so aggressive about this?
If I admit that the DRW 11.8" is basically the same as the SRW 11.5", will you admit that the DRW axle has a higher weight rating than the SRW?
We both misspoke, and this isn't even the main issue I was bringing up. In fact, I've been arguing that the 2500 platform likely has room for adding more payload (even if its not legal) because it is basically the same as the 3500, minus the suspension.
No aggression. Just trying to make sure the facts are out there. The DRW TRUCK has a higher RAWR than the SRW TRUCK, stock, due to tires. The axles will carry the same load. No one on this forum keeps stock tires on their trucks so the factory tire limited rating of the SRW trucks are not an issue. In fact, you can easily find tires to fit the 18" and 20" tires that come on these trucks with a rating of 4080# to bump the rear axle capacity to 8160. I actually did that within 100 miles of buying my truck to carry a heavy Lance truck camper.
I'm really not trying to be aggressive. I just hate when I search for things and misinformation is the first thing that comes up on a google search.
redthies
Renaissance Redneck
Watt maker
Active member
Aren’t the frames different as well on the 2500 and 3500 Rams? The 2500 has coils or airbags and a 5-link setup, the 3500 still has leaf springs. I’m thinking that alone would make the rear section of the frame entirely different. How about the wall thickness of the two frames, is there any difference between the 2500/3500?
Also, the rating difference between the SWR and DRW could also be attributed to the narrower axle of the DRW. The shorter the axle tubes are, the stronger they are. Are the axle tubes between the two the same wall thickness?
Also, the rating difference between the SWR and DRW could also be attributed to the narrower axle of the DRW. The shorter the axle tubes are, the stronger they are. Are the axle tubes between the two the same wall thickness?
While I'm sure no one here as the official gouge from FCA, the unofficial consensus is that the frames for the 2500 and 3500 are pretty much the same (excepting the mounting configurations for the different suspension types as you noted).
There was ONE model year where the 2500 still used the old weaker frame, and the 3500s moved onto the new 50ksi frame - 2013.
Starting in 2014:
http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2013/09/2014-ram-hd-2500-3500-first-drive.html
"All 2500s get the new, higher-strength steel frames the 3500 duallys got last year, but now they are offered on all single rear wheel versions."
They did have to customize the spring mounting points to allow for coils vs leafs, but the overall strength and section heights are identical. This is not isolated to Rams - all Domestics use the same frame between 2500/3500.
As mentioned before the actual AAM ratings for the 11.5" axle is fixed. When OEMs re-rate them, they take suspension and tires into consideration, hence the lower rating on 2500 and 3500 SRW.
No different than the rear GAWR of a Taco vs Hilux, I'm sure Toyota artificially lowered the Taco's rating based on other constrains. These are the exact ratings we rely on to determine how much we can "safely" exceed factory ratings.