Defining Differential Carrier Breaks

Differential carriers are designed to accommodate a wide number of  gear ratios for the various tire sizes and vehicle applications associated to them. As the numerical ratio of a gear set increases, the diameter of the pinion gear gets smaller. The reduced size of the pinion gear requires a thicker ring gear to keep the gear surfaces meshed properly.

It becomes more economical at some point to change the carrier deck height, so that the ring gear is thinner, and requires less material. The illustration above indicates the different carrier deck heights for a Dana 44 differential.

The point at which a different carrier is needed is referred to as a “carrier break”. The gear ratio at which carrier breaks occur varies, depending on the type of differential. For example, if

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Differential Deck Heights

The chart below lists the carrier breaks and deck heights for various models of differntials , as well as the range of gear ratios that work with each of the carriers available for each model.