[oleyellar]

Carlo,
Do not center the Pinion in car. Put the wheels in the wheel wells where they belong. YES the drive shaft runs at an angle. That is the sole purpose for u-joints. Do a search on the net for driveline angles, 4X4's have the biggest problems, But, by all means center the axle housing in the chassis and move on. The drive line will be fine with the u-joints handling the offset of the transmission output shaft to the pinion.