Are all Dana 44 rear axles limited slip from the factory?

[Jerry Bransford]

This old TJ does have 170k on it though... you think better to go with higher weight anyway given the mileage???

The differentials aren't really fussy about the exact viscosity they run on, you can go with a higher viscosity if you like. I personally will only run a conventional gear lube in my axles.

 

[AZSobo]

If your Dana 44 has the Tracloc and requires the friction modifier additive, 99.999% of all GL-5 gear lubes for axles already contain the additive. It would be hard to find a gear lube suitable for our axles that does not contain the additive. You can verify whether it has the additive or not by reading the back label. If it has words to the effect "Compatible with limited slip differentials" the additive is already there and no more is needed.

There's a chance there may be a decal inside the glove compartment warning of the limited slip's (Tracloc) presence if the factory installed on. Or there may be a steel tag bolted onto the Dana 44's differential cover at about its 2 o'clock position indicating that the additive is required. The steel tag bolted onto the differential cover at its 9 o'clock position is not the one I'm talking about. That tag indicates the axle ratio ("3 73) and some other Dana p/n information.

Jerry - I know this is an old thread......
I'm getting ready to change the gear lube in diffs, my TJ has a Dana 44 with Tracloc, will probably use Sta-lube SL2473 (not synthetic), it says on front label it is Hypoid / Limited Slip API GL-5, I emailed their tech support b/c of conflicting info on in the Amazon reviews for it, they said it does not have friction modifier in it, I'd need to add if needed.
I was under the impression that it did have the modifier as it has the Limited Slip label but on the back label after actually reading everything, it says use on Limited Slip, Trac-loc etc however at the bottom of the label it states some manufactures require additional additive to prevent chatter and vibration and points to their Sta-lube Equa-Torque product.

Going to get the Lube locker gaskets for front and back, you have any thoughts on those?

 

[Jerry Bransford]

Lube Locker gaskets are great.

Yes sometimes a little more friction modifier is needed in addition to what is already contained in the vast majority of GL-5 gear lubes for a TracLoc.

But how many miles are on your TJ? The Tracloc's clutch pack is usually worn out and has stopped working by 45-50k miles so by then the friction modifier is a moot point. It is not that easily rebuilt with a new clutch pack, it's normally a better economic choice to replace it with a Detroit Truetrac LSD which is gear-based not clutch pack based. The Truetrac also works significantly better. Or perhaps a locker of some type.

 

[AZSobo]

I have a little over 85K - so if the clutch pack is worn out, would it just operate like an open diff? Tires spin in opposite direction when lifted?
I wouldn't waste my money repairing the Tracloc, as long as it doesn't have any ill effects, I haven't had any problems with what I do offroad, that cash would be better spent elsewhere.

EDIT: Part of the reason I ordered the Lube Locker is b/c I've seen people reuse them several times over - have you found this to be true? If so, how do you clean them in between uses, just wipe it down - no chemicals?

Second edit: I ran across something from you in jeepforum about a Currie diff and in their notes they specifically said not to use Sta-lube, do you know anything about them? Is there a reason not to use it on my stock diff's? I'm pretty sure this is conventional, no markings on gallon jug saying it's synthetic, it was about middle of the road price wise.

Thanks for your time, I appreciate your knowledge!

 

[TurboTJ]

If you have a Rubicon, the rear diff is a “Tru-Lok” which is a limited-slip differential with locking capability. This differential is gear-based and has no clutches so presumably it will not wear out as fast as the clutch-based Trac-Lok differential.

 

[AZSobo]

I have a 2001 Sport, unfortunately it would be Trac-Lok.