My 2002 F150 5.4L Scab 4x4 has had a slight roar in the rear for a while. Today I pulled the rear axles and found out the right side axle is slightly pitted on the bearing surface. The left side looks good. So, I need an axle, new bearings for both sides and two seals.

Should I buy a Dorman axle from rockauto or a new Ford axle from Tasca?

I called Autozone and they offered to sell me a Dorman axle for $250 which is more than a Ford axle from Tasca costs. Looks like a Dorman axle from rockauto is half what Autozone wants.

Thanks for the advice!

 

I'd probably stick with Ford.

 

I tried to order an axle, bearings,and seals from Tasca and was told the axle is back ordered with no expected availability date. So, now I have to figure out which dorman parts to order from rock auto I suppose. It's always hard to determine which one is the correct part because they have so many listed.

 

Well, I think I ordered the correct parts from rockauto today. I found out that if you know the Ford part number, you can search using that number and find the correct replacement part. I got an email this evening saying the parts are shipped. Fast! ETA in 6 days. If the parts work okay, it will save me about half of what Tasca charged for OE parts and Tasca offers a 31% discount.

 

The axle was delivered today. The axle came with a bearing and seal and also the lugs. Just what I was afraid of, it is not the correct axle. It's too large.

I used the part number from the Tasca Ford order attempt and the guy there assured me that the part numbers were correct for my VIN#. NOT! The rockauto part # that comes up with the Ford part number used is the one that came.

The bearing and seal I ordered separately for the driver's side appear to be the correct parts.

It's a lot of dang trouble trying to save a buck!!

 

You must be a victim of the 8.8 axle shaft in a 9.75 rear that Ford screwed us up with back around that time frame.

 

Waiting on parts to come in is aggravating, but, it sure beats paying the middle man his huge fee doubling the price of the local part. If you can return it for the possible 8.8 axle shaft, I say ship it back and exchange.

Before that though I would go to the Ford dealership with your old axle shaft and the new one, and ask to compare an 8.8 and 9.75 axle shafts together to see if you are indeed the 8.8 from factory in the 9.75 axle.

 

I looked at the rockauto catalog again and they have another axle listed that is also 5 lug for a 2002 5.4 9.75" truck rear. There are axle tag numbers associated with the axles listed, about 6 tag numbers for each. I checked my tag number and it is V919A. That particular tag number is not one of the tag numbers that rockauto lists for either axle. But the other axle did list a tag number of V919F. So, I ordered it. It's going to cost $9.31 to ship the incorrect axle back. I got a shipping label from rockauto. The hopefully correct axle is about $20 cheaper than the first one I ordered. Oh, by the way, it was manufactured in India. The bigger axle, the one I received has a bearing that is about twice the size of the correct one for my truck.

I doubt the Ford dealer would have an axle in stock. The incorrect one I tried to order from Tasca was back ordered with no ETA. Perhaps Tasca could have shipped the correct axle?

 

Photos of the two sizes of bearings and axles

 

When buying bearings, Try not to use bearing made in China! They don't last. SKF,Timken and BCA National / Federal Mogul, etc
always ask the auto parts suppler where they are made. Ford oem I think are from china too? here is a helpful link
http://wheelbearingsinc.com/search.cfm

 

Thanks. But the link provided only shows front hub assemblies for my truck.

The new Dorman axle that didn't fit was made in India. The bearing was made in China, and the seal and lugs that came with it were not labeled. The extra bearing I ordered for the driver's side is a Timken and is the correct size. The seal for the driver's side that I ordered is a Motorcraft. I hope the reordered axle and bearings fit and hold up.

 

Well the saga has finally ended. The second axle ordered from Dorman was the correct axle. It did have 10 lug holes with 5 of them smaller than the ones I used so I suppose it was meant to fit another size rear too. The bearing that was riding on the right side rear axle looked like new. Only the axle bearing surface was pitted, not the rollers in the bearing, which makes sense because the axles have to have high tensile strength and you can't harden the bearing surface without making the axle brittle. So you have hard roller bearings riding on a softer axle bearing surface. I finished the change out and roar is gone. I used one bottle of Ford friction modifier and my traction lock works fine. It locks up when I step on the gas while turning and doesn't make any noise while turning slowly.

The lesson I learned is to utilize the tag number on the differential cover when ordering from rockauto. Mine was V919A.

Also learned that my suction gun I tried to use to refill the diff didn't work well so I cut the tip off the tapered bottle caps and shoved on the tygon tubing and filled it from the bottles. I poured the modifier in one of the lube bottles and let it mix a little to get it in the diff.

Hope someone learns something from my experience.