smtippin

I'm sure this has been beat to death, but I can't find the threads, so I'll beat the dead horse.

I've got a 96 xj with the dana 35 limited slip rear axle. I'd like to upgrade, but need to know what my options are. I'm limited to the local junk yard, so please give me a rundown of upgraded rear axles in order from strongest to weakest (include model years) and the amount of work required to do the swap.

Thanks and sorry for the millionth repost.
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claygrassmann

dana 44 from a cherokee is a bolt on, ford 88 all you gotta do is reweld the wpring perches, thats as far as i kno

smtippin

What vehicles and years can I pull a Ford 8.8 from? I'll hunt down that photo so I can visually confirm when I'm at the JY.

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99XJDad

The 8.8 came in 96 and up Explorers for sure. Not sure of the others. The differential housing looks like a square with rounded edges.

smtippin

I found an 8.25 on a late 80s XJ. Would this be an improvement on my Dana 35 and by how much? Is this a direct bolt on?

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okcjeeper

The 8.25 off a 97 or newer XJ would be a direct bolt on and would provide the 29 spline axle shafts.

What is your plans for tire size and wheelin for the jeep? I have a D35 LS axle I am going to stick with it. I know many on here will say they are crap but if you aren't rock crawling or doing extreme offroading or adding larger then33" tires IMHO they are fine.

If you want stronger D44 off another XJ 87-89 i think will bolt right up or like I said the 8.25 from the 97 or newer XJ's.

90xjmark

direct bolt in .........yes. as long as you have the same gears

BuckB91XJ

A Chrysler 8.25 is an upgrade from your D Turdy 5. So long as it is out of another XJ, it is a drirect bolt into your XJ. We took the 8.25 out of my 91 and put it into my son's 87. It was a direct bolt in.

91 Laredo

+1

I did the same in my 91 I had. I bought a 8.25 from a 96 and swapped it in and everything was bolt in. Make sure you get the U-bolts and plates as the Dana is smaller and wont work. Need to match gears too, the guy sold me is 30 front for $20 extra. Brake parts are a direct swap too as the 8.25's were wasted and I was too much of a tight wad to buy new so I tore down my Dana for wheels cylinders and shoes.

My current 94 has a factory 8.25. The difference between the older and newer versions (97 +) are different splined axles. The newer ones are stronger. I think the pinion is a different length as I tried to run my 3" kit without any t-case mods or shims and the driveshaft would bind. Something to keep in mind.

I was running 33" BFG muds and the track lock in my 91 and never had axle breakage issues.

Here is a link that will give you a rundown on the different axle options

http://naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=101345

smtippin

The axle is off of a pre 97 xj. I don't know about the gearing of the axle and honestly I don't know the first thing about gearing. As far as plans for wheeling, i'm not sure, but what I do know is that I'm the type of fella who often bites off more than he can chew. Yes, the D35 is probably enough, but if I can get an upgreade cheap, why hold myself back?

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smtippin

Can you give me the "gearing for dummies" introduction? I don't know a thing about gearing. I also don't know what my gearing is or what the other Axle's gearing is. How do I make sure the swap would work?

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91 Laredo

Generally if its out of an auto its 3.55, a manual 3.07 and a 4cyl I believe is 4.10?

Depending on price it can be a cost effective upgrade. I paid $220 for front and rear axles with a rear limited slip and better gears than what I had since it was out of an auto.

BuckB91XJ

Piece of chalk is all you need. mark a line at the edge of one of the brake drums. mark a line on one of the ears on the pinion yoke. Turn pinion yoke counting how many turns equals one full trun of the brake drim. 3 and a half turns to one = 3.55. 4 turns to one = 4.10. 3 turns to one equals 3.07. etc. The diff cover tag should also tell what gears are in it if they are still the stock ones. You never know, that is why I do the chalk test.

smtippin

My 96 with a D35 has a manual trans. Are bigger gears better and can you simply upgrade or is it more involved? What about spline count?

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BuckB91XJ

Lower or (numerically higher) gears are better if you're planning ahead for a lift and bigger tires. You will want lower gears to counter-act your bigger tires so your motor continues to operate in it's normal power band.