PPE Sterling 11.6 Differential Cover

[Apples]

Thanks, mang! Have you posted a cheesecake shot of that sexy diff cover that's peeking at me?



WANT to see. Rear shot. On the truck.

 

[McE]

Thanks, mang! Have you posted a cheesecake shot of that sexy diff cover that's peeking at me?



WANT to see. Rear shot. On the truck.

 

[Apples]

*spo0ge*

ok, I'm done.




Thank you!

 

[Apples]

cast, finned aluminum speed parts are my form of automotive jewelry.

I'd plaster my truck with it if I could.

PML makes a gorgeous diff cover for the smaller of the current-gen (going back to the 13th gen/2015+) F150 rear axles, the 8.8 Super, a 34-spline axle assembly. I put one on after replacing the 3.31 gear set w/ Richmond Gear 4.09s (and an Eaton Detroit Truetrac) to run a 34" Toyo A/TIII on my 5.0 Coyote-engine'd F150.

A PPE 11.6" Sterling diff cover is in my Tremor's future.

 

[KR3]

*spo0ge*

ok, I'm done.




Thank you!

Here’s another picture:

 

[TahoeBlue]

Yeah, this little guy...

View attachment 246643

Does it start leaking out at the right volume (5.3 qt?), or do you need to keep track of how much you’re putting in?

 

[Optimus🤖]

You've got major problems if your PPE starts leaking .

 

[TahoeBlue]

You've got major problems if your PPE starts leaking .

Lol, no man! I’m talking about using the secret fill hole at the front of the diff that @McE pointed out.

 

[McE]

Does it start leaking out at the right volume (5.3 qt?), or do you need to keep track of how much you’re putting in?

Mine started flowing right at 5.4qts which is correct for my gear set

 

[The Evil Twin]

Does it start leaking out at the right volume (5.3 qt?), or do you need to keep track of how much you’re putting in?

Essentially, yes. I have read that Ford cleared up the early gen problem with the plug being improperly located. The 2026 should be fine.
R&P gear sets are forgiving with oil level. Just keep a mental note of how much you add. If you are almost done pushing bottle / bag #5 in and it starts leaking out then you are good. If it only takes 4, I’d go through the ELD hole.

 

[The Evil Twin]

Well, ol Gale might have given in. Seeing that PPE is having some sort of issue producing covers for the 11.6, maybe he decided to give it a go. The 11.6 Banks cover says in production

 

[mattagc]

I wonder if this is back on, or a holdover on the site from when they first were saying they were going to do it up and then later canceled it. Be nice to have the options if so.

 

[The Evil Twin]

I wonder if this is back on, or a holdover on the site from when they first were saying they were going to do it up and then later canceled it. Be nice to have the options if so.

I don’t know, but with PPE being out of stock (of a number of items) for a while it’s good to have options.

 

[Toxophilite]

I hope PPE is out of stock because they are finally redesigning the cover so the fill port is not below the fill level.
One of the larger engineering "whoops" I have seen in a while. I am sure Banks knows this as well, and hopefully will capitalize on it with a better design (especially if PPE is not fixing it.).

 

[McE]

I’m going to try to make lemonade here by swapping the PPE fill plug for a sight glass.

Honestly it could work out great: I can still fill from the factory location, but with a sight glass I’ll be able to check level + condition at a glance. And since the PPE fill port sits a bit low, the fluid line should land right in the window (hypoid should be clearly visible).

The trick is finding one that actually fits the recessed pocket. I’m pretty sure the PPE fill port is -12 ORB / 1-1/16”-12 (straight thread) and seals on the O-ring/spotface, not pipe thread.

If anyone knows a good source for a low-profile -12 ORB sight glass (or an ORB→NPT solution that still clears the fins), I could use the help. McMaster-Carr doesn’t seem to have a direct match.

 

[Optimus🤖]

I hope PPE is out of stock because they are finally redesigning the cover so the fill port is not below the fill level.
One of the larger engineering "whoops" I have seen in a while. I am sure Banks knows this as well, and hopefully will capitalize on it with a better design (especially if PPE is not fixing it.).

The exact question we asked my buddy Steven at PPE today. He had an in depth conversation with @DTX2023Tremor about it.

The shipping area. Yes, this is where your PPE gets packaged .

The testing area. Right now they're working on something for the Chevy Colorado (can't tell y'all though ).

In the short video, Steven is taking about software modules that PPE was working on for reflashing vehicles. They decided not to go to market with them.

The second short video is Steven explaining that they will work with a customer who offers their truck for a new product. This is where they film most their videos.

Anyone who has questions, concerns or wants to purchase a product, contact Steven. I'm hoping to have them become a member of the forum.

@Rodd187, what did you think of Steven's service?

 

[The Evil Twin]

The exact question we asked my buddy Steven at PPE today. He had an in depth conversation with @DTX2023Tremor about it.

View attachment 254807View attachment 254808

The shipping area. Yes, this is where your PPE gets packaged .

View attachment 254809

The testing area. Right now they're working on something for the Chevy Colorado (can't tell y'all though ).

View attachment 254810

In the short video, Steven is taking about software modules that PPE was working on for reflashing vehicles. They decided not to go to market with them

View attachment 254811

The second short video is Steven explaining that they will work with a customer who offers their truck for a new product. This is where they film most their videos.

View attachment 254812

Anyone who has questions, concerns or wants to purchase a product, contact Steven. I'm hoping to have them become a member of the forum.

View attachment 254819

@Rodd187, what did think of Steven's service?

Oh sweet!
Did he happen to say when the diff covers are expected to be back in stock?

 

[Optimus🤖]

Oh sweet!
Did he happen to say when the diff covers are expected to be back in stock?

He did not. I can reach out and get back to you.

 

[Toxophilite]

@Optimus🤖 What was his answer about the fill port location being below the fill level? Did he say whether or not they are addressing this with a new design?

 

[DTX2023Tremor]

@Optimus🤖 What was his answer about the fill port location being below the fill level? Did he say whether or not they are addressing this with a new design?

Let's say the response I got didn't inspire much confidence in a solution. I had to explain the issue a couple of times and that the 23+ has the Sterling while older models have the Dana axle. He acknowledged he understood the issue with having to use the sensor port to final fill, but then gave some weird explanation about needing to make the designs work across different models.

He did not give a clear answer on if a redesign was even in the works, so no indication on when a revised one would be available. He did say that when they do release product revisions that they do take care of people who purchased the original one, suggesting that an exchange could be possible. However, given his role at the company, he may not be in the best position to know what is being done about the design flaw and the company's response plan. This would be a better discussion with the owner of the company.

If we think about the realities, they probably had a large inventory made that would be a pretty substantial loss if they were to scrap them. In reflection on our discussion, he talked about the extensive testing that do for all products, so it is baffling that the design flaw wouldn't have been caught when installed on the test vehicle. Maybe they didn't add a line on their QC checklist to confirm the amount of fluid that was added.

However much it frustrates us, there is a solution for the design issue, and let's face it, it is a very infrequent issue that would be delt with given how often that fluid is changed. So while we're a vocal group who wants it done right the first time, I don't think they see it is as being as big of an issue on their end to address.

If another large competitor (Banks, SPE) were to release a cover then they might need to move to resolve this or have inventory that doesn't sell at all. Banks has already said that they're not going to make a diff cover for the Sterling axle and I haven't seen anything from SPE.