Frustated with Alloy USA replacement axle...

[shoalcreek5]

First the story--during a snow storm a few weeks ago, I slid hard into a curb in my 99 Explorer. I broke the rear passenger side wheel and bent the wheel flange just enough to barely scrape the backing plate in one spot part of the time.

Anyway, I bought a pair of chromoly axle shafts from Alloy USA (part #'s 15114 and 15115) to replace the bent stock axle and to match the other side. I just received the axles earlier today and upon checking the wheel flange and hub for fit, I found that the new Alloy USA passenger side axle hub (15114) is way out of tolerance. My calipers measure the hub at 70.7 mm--wheel center bore spec is 70.3 mm and the stock wheels won't even fit over the hub.

Upon closer inspection, I find that both hubs are tapered and that the driver's side axle will barely allow the wheel to contact the brake rotor. I'm afraid if I used the driver's side axle, the wheel would be pressed onto the hub so tightly by the lug nuts that I wouldn't be able to get the wheel off if the tire went flat.

Now I am frustrated and wondering where to look for decent axles that will actually fit the way they should. My budget limit right now is about $250 dollars, if I can get back the money I spent on these Alloy USA POS's. If I could get a good price on an original axle shaft that is in good shape, I would go for it.

I'm not in any real hurry. I haven't yet taken anything apart and the wobble produced by the bent flange is quite minor. (It appears to be bent just barely enough to create a short scraping sound on the back plate, but only when the axle is riding on the inside of it's in/out travel.) If the axle was bent enough to cause a leak, the leak is small enough to not be noticeable, even upon close inspection. As the original wheel was broken, I am running on the steel wheeled spare right now. I can get a decent replacement matching aluminum wheel cheaply at a nearby junkyard.

(P.S. Alloy USA is actually now just a brand name for an Indian company named Omix-Ada. These axles are actually marked, "Made in India.")

 

[white_shadow]

dont explorers have an 8.8 rear end? i would think you could get a quality set of axles from a mustang speed site. keep in mind, i have never done and serious work to my explorers rear end, just tossing an idea out...

 

[shoalcreek5]

There are 5x4.5 31-spline Mustang shafts available for a good price, but the shaft lengths are different (the pumpkin sits in a slightly different spot and vehicle width is a touch different). Not to mention, I might still have issues with the center bore on the wheels not fitting the hubs. It looks like the Moser shafts are the most popular for Mustangs, but their price jumps up by $100 for the same axle shafts cut to fit an Explorer.

 

[shoalcreek5]

Okay, I just modified my habits on searching Superior's site. Whenever I told the search function to find an axle shaft for my 99 X, it would only come up with the expensive c-clip eliminator conversion kit. This last time, I told it to search for all parts, and BINGO! On the last page of the search, I found my axle shafts without all the extra stuff that I don't need. While these have a listed length of 3/16" more than stock, I am betting that this is because of extra hub length to sport their logo (just a hunch based on the glowing reviews I've seen of Superior Axles that are everywhere). I'll call them to make sure before I order on Monday, but I think I found my part. The best part is that they only cost $10-$20 more than the Alloy USA parts that don't work! WAAHOOO!

 

[obie]

PA5764 and PA5765 are the part numbers for the direct replacement axle shafts, right? Let us know how those work. A nice plus is that Superior axles are American made too

Doesn't surprise me that you have problems with indian parts. Lots of junk comes from there. I've seen nothing but problems with machining tolerances nowhere close to the specs, substandard castings and forgings, heat treatment not done correctly, and parts rusted to hell straight from the factories.