well yes, the casting is also beefier than th classic casting as well.. forgot about that. It could be a reference to the extra heavy titan variation whereas the x and fronty one is the "standard" regular duty nissanized one.

for all we know this axle kicks ass on paper. I don't know how much stronger the early x axles are, but the only thing that bugs me is the special lug pattern on the new axles and wheels.

another thought is that the smaller drivetrain on the next gen X has less rolling resistance and overall weight to help keep the epa rating from dropping a mpg for the fleet average and all that.