Going For The 4•5•6 - Wrong Rear Axle

OK, so what's the story with the rear housing. Again, first some pictures. Here it is installed, with the Purple Cranium diff guard and the SuicideDoors adjustable panhard bar. Ryan says he got the axle aligned to within 1/8th of an inch.

One thing you may notice is that the anti-sway bar is missing! Well, its not entirely missing, you can see where we had to cut it. This was the result of some recent trail damage and trail repairs. More on that when I get some pictures together from the weekend event I attended.

You will notice where the control lead for the Auburn Ected locker exits the diff cover. These wires extend all the way up to the engine bay and into the driver's side where the switch is. I will have pictures of the switch and where the power is tapped shortly.

So, what about that 2005 rear axle housing I bought for so cheap? Well the problem that I missed is that in 2006, GM upgraded the ABS system to a 4 channel system. So 2006+ housings have ABS sensors right in the housing, close to the ends but before the brake shield. Other than that, they are identical (except for the pumpkin size).

2005 and prior, the sensor must have been somewhere before the rear housing because it does not have a sensor anywhere. In fact, now that I think about it, the actual axles may also be different between the years since the 2006+ sensors work with the speed of the axles.

So how does that leave me? Its on and workable ... for now. I have to live with:

• My ABS light being on all the time (the rear ABS leads are disconnected)
• Stabillitrack being off all the time (I pulled the fuse because it would keep indicating that it was active)

So for the record, an 8.6 EXT or V8 rear axle housing will bolt on no problem to a SWB Trailblazer, and the gearing parts for 8.5/8.6 diffs work perfectly. The only item of concern is to make sure you stick with the 2006 changeover year - 2002 to 2005 only - 2006+ only.

I am thinking of upgrading to a 2006 housing before winter comes around. They are now much more easily found at auto yards for under $500. It would mean another gear swap but I am thinking it may be worth it to have 4 wheel ABS and traction control for the winter conditions up here.