I have a 87 ford e 350 ambulance i'm trying to find out what rear end is in this thing and what all it will fit.On the pumpkin lower right it has a triangle with no in it, upper right it has 40235, lower left it has 174b. It has a 10 bolt cover, it's a dually 8 lug.....Anyone know what it is?.....

 

probably a dana 60 or dana 70. if you look on the pillar behind the drivers door there should be a sticker with a number of codes on it. post the axle code from that sticker and someone here will be able to translate that into exactly what you have

 

Cab has been junked and the sticker was missing

 

ok then, is there still a steel tag under 2 of the boltheads that hold on the diff cover? if yes, clean it until you can read it, and that'll at least get you the gear ratio, and someone else may be able to decode it to also tell the axle model. FWIW, the dana 60 and 70 used the same cover and look pretty similar, so it may be hard to tell which one it is from the outside.

 

Does this Help?

 

Dude that's awesome ^^^^ ! Where can it be obtained in a larger view? If so we might have it added to the tech folder or its link---great reference material.

Reps sent BTW!

 

Well, i found it via "google picture search"
Tag: "Ford Diferential Codes"

It's from this site:

Differential Identification | West Coast Differentials

Unfortunatly it's the original size

But there is even explained, what the codes on the differential tags mean

 

From those photos it's a dana 70, i know one axle is longer than the other, the question now is what it fits and what gear ratio it is

 

for what it fits, i know in the world of pickups, a dually axle was a lot wider than a singles axle, though i think their spring perches and everything were the same. i would suspect vans to have a similar story, though it would be wise for you to take a tape measure and find out the width between the spring perches, as well as overall width, and compare that to pickups and vans at your local junkyard so you know what it'll line up with.

 

I have the tag off, no way this will clean up have tried everything it's to far gone, from what i can make out to the right on top there is a D some space then7U4KO below that possibly 300 on the right bottom, can't make out any other numbers or letters rusted to bad

 

Most Dually's are 4:11 in the Econolines....

 

If the BOM ends with 300 its a 70U. 605300 will be the BOM. The number after the dash tells the gear ratio/diff type. 1=3.54, 2=4.10, 3=4.10LS, 4=4.56, 5=3.54LS. The VAST majority of them were 3.54 geared, though 4.10 is not particularly rare. Power-Lok was an option, and was often found on ambulance bodies. The axle is a drop in swap from 87-91 in E350 vans only. 4.56 was rare.

The diff is offset to the passenger side, and overall its wider than any other version of the Spicer 70. If you measure it you will find its huge, 73-ish inches I think. The drivers side axle shaft is made from unobtanium, and replacements would have to be custom made. The axle shafts in the 70U for ford vans were shared from 87 to as late as 98 (there is a transition).

It's axles are only slightly stronger than a 60, but has a great number of downsides. Parts are not aswidely available, little aftermarket support for the van version, its heavier, and it has lower clearance.

 

Not always true. Most older motorhomes with no OD trannies had 3.54 including my '87 26ft class C.


But my '85 E350 cargo van has 4.11 witch are annoying on the highway.

 

My 86 E350 ambulance has a Dana 70 with 4.10 gears. Back in the 80's when I worked for a fire depatment, we ordered everyone with 4.10 gears.

 

Dear Ed H,
Your differential is a Dana Model 61 with a 3.07 gear ratio with a open differential carrier. My job is a dana distributor. I used this website to find out what diff you have. https://www.expert.dana.com/expertforms/deabill.aspx
If your looking for parts call us. 1-800-225-0020. Good Luck.