10 Bolt Rear axle housing compatibility???

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Marshall 008

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I’m in need of replacing my rear axle housing on my 08 Tahoe Z71. Question is, are all the 07-14 Tahoe/Yukon/suburban/Escalade rear axle housings the same except for internals such as gear ratios?
Tks in advance.
 

OR VietVet

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Look at your RPO list on the glove box cover for either: GU4 for 3.08 gears, GU6 for 3.42 gears, GT4 for 3.73 gears or GT5 for 4.10 gears and G80 if you have a locker. That will get you started. Others will chime in with more info. Please make sure you know you axle ratio because the front and rear need to match.
 

swathdiver

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I’m in need of replacing my rear axle housing on my 08 Tahoe Z71. Question is, are all the 07-14 Tahoe/Yukon/suburban/Escalade rear axle housings the same except for internals such as gear ratios?
Tks in advance.
Not exactly but they will all physically bolt up. GM used two axle sizes in the wagon body, the 8.6 inch 10-Bolt, which you have, and the 9.5 inch 14-bolt. The larger axle is a nice upgrade for durability and they can be found under RWD Denalis and Escalades and some other more obscure combinations. Your axle ratio is probably 3.73 but check your RPO sheet to be sure. The vast majority of 14-Bolt axles come with 3.42 gears.

All 8.6 rear axles used in GMC and Cadillac wagons have the desirable G80 option, which yours should also have. Not all Chevrolets have this option.

Check out LKQ Online around where you live. A few months ago they were pretty proud of their 8.6s but they were selling some 9.5s for less than $300. Most people don't know about them.
 
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Marshall 008

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Just some additional info I discovered is that the housings for the 8.5"/8.6" are the same. However, up to 2008 they used smaller sized pinion bearing and 2009 on they used a larger sized pinion bearing. I ended up purchasing a 2011 housing with the pinion gear installed. During the swap of my internals, we discovered the size different in the bearings. I would have found this out if I did a little more detailed of a search. Oh well, were all good now. Just waiting on the new install kit.
 

swathdiver

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Just some additional info I discovered is that the housings for the 8.5"/8.6" are the same. However, up to 2008 they used smaller sized pinion bearing and 2009 on they used a larger sized pinion bearing. I ended up purchasing a 2011 housing with the pinion gear installed. During the swap of my internals, we discovered the size different in the bearings. I would have found this out if I did a little more detailed of a search. Oh well, were all good now. Just waiting on the new install kit.
Curious, what internals did you swap over?
 

Geotrash

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Been thinking about the 14-bolt upgrade since I do so much towing. Found one with 86K on it at the boneyard 6 miles from my house for $400. Is it really a simple bolt-in upgrade with no additional hardware or mods required?
 

OR VietVet

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You are going to want to compare spring perches measurements, shock mounting and know if it requires a different u-joint. I have heard here of straight swap ins and others mentioning different. It would also mean checking if the rear diff came out of a NBS or NNBS, I think?
 

Geotrash

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You are going to want to compare spring perches measurements, shock mounting and know if it requires a different u-joint. I have heard here of straight swap ins and others mentioning different. It would also mean checking if the rear diff came out of a NBS or NNBS, I think?
Okay, thank you. The unit is out of a 2011 RWD Escalade ESV and my XL Denali AWD is a 2012, so at least it's the same generation and very close in MY.
 
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