OmgNoWai

Pulled this from one of my posts in a couple Jeep XJ FB Groups. Figured it could help a few people with their parts search.

Been on a couple Cherokee groups where people are looking for recommendations for rear disc swap info recently. I figured Id give a parts list of things that are required for doing it (in my opinion). Ill do my best to do a complete list. This will be for a KJ (Liberty - for future reference) rear disc swap on a Chrysler 8.25 axle. Most simplest I have found on an XJ (again, in my opinion). KJ = Liberty 2002 - 2007 years. JY = Junk Yard . AA = Advance Auto. Dont be surprised to see this post on multiple Cherokee groups. Some people may not be on all of them. Cheers!

1. KJ Rear Disc Backing Plates - Get from a JY or FaceList Ad. Get a good set because this sets a solid foundation for everything to attach to. Clean them really well. Paint them if you want. I did just to have a nice piece to start with. IF YOU CAN - grab the rubber brake line brackets. This part is the piece that the rubber line goes into the hard brake line. Theres a little wedge washer thats holding the end of the rubber line stable. Loosen the hard brake line nut and THEN remove the wedge piece. Leave the rubber line behind and take the little bracket. Its mounted to the axle with a bolt.
2. KJ Rear Disc Dust Shields - Get from a JY or Facelist Ad. Clean these really good as well.
3. KJ Rear Calipers - My recommendation is to get a set from a JY as cores. Turn these into an auto parts store and get new ones. JY calipers run anywhere from 15-25 bucks and can be worth that as cores if not more. I paid $45 per caliper and my cores took off the $35 core charge (also per caliper). On AA's website the part numbers for the calipers are Rear Left - 18-4755 and Rear Right 18-4755. Purchase online and USE COUPONS. Turn in cores when you arrive at the parts store and they'll refund your card the core charge. KEEP THE BANJO BOLTS OFF THE RUBBER BRAKE LINES.
4. KJ Rear Brake Pads - Use new ones. AA's part number is PMD981H. AA has recently been running promotions that if you buy two rotors and set of pads they'll give a big discount. If not AA always has online coupons. Order items in groups to maximize savings.
5. KJ Rear Rotors - Use new ones. Unless you work at a shop that can turn the ones you get from a junk yard just get new ones. Bite the bullet. You'll need two obviously. AA part number is YH145383. AA has recently been running promotions that if you buy two rotors and set of pads they'll give a big discount. If not AA always has online coupons. Order items in groups to maximize savings.
6. KJ Rear Parking Brake Shoes - Get new ones. AA's part number for this is S862. Again, pair this with another online order to maximize savings.
7. KJ Rear Parking Brake Hardware - AA part number is H7328. The only thing I would try to snag from the JY that this set doesn't have is the rubber piece that goes over the equalizer. That's the piece that the parking brake cable attaches to on the back side of the backing plate. It looks like a little crab claw. When the parking brake is pulled, the cable pulls the claw piece and separates the parking brake shoes and forces them into the inside of the rotor. The hardware kit didn't come with a new one of those. I don't think this is necessarily required but I wanted to have everything.
8. KJ Rear Brake Lines (Rubber) - AA part numbers are BHA621319 and BHA620930 for the respective sides. USE COUPONS!
9. Crown Automotive XJ Disc Swap Parking Cables - Yes, Crown Automotive makes direct swap parking cables for the XJ with disc brakes. Part numbers RT31040 for the 70.5 inch side and RT31041 for the 34.25 inch side. G2 also makes them. Theyre just re-branded Crowns. They attach to the little claw piece on the inside of the brake bracket mount and run all the way to the little box under the Jeep. In the little open box the one cable from the parking brake lever meets the two rear cables. These two Crown/G2 pieces replace the stock XJ cables that run from the box to the brakes themselves.
10. Grade 8 Bolts in size 3/16 x 1 1/4. You will need 8 of them. Grab corresponding nuts and some lock washers. These will replace your old 3/16 studs on your current axle. Take a small sledge hammer and hammer out the old ones. Theyll come out relatively easily with a few hits. Clean the holes with a bristle brush.
11. Lube Locker or Silicone Gasket Maker and new differential fluid - Make sure if your rear end has LSD that you either add friction modifier or whatever it is in there. Or just get diff oil that that has that stuff in in it already. Youll have to pull your axles and that requires removal of the diff cover, the pinion mate shaft, pinion mate shaft lockpin and C clips. Once the pinion mate shaft is out, push the axles in towards each other. The C clips should just fall out.
12. Longer Studs - Get a stud that is 1/2-20 and 1.95 inches in length. The knarl for the axle shaft is .625. Thats POINT 625. Place a towel on top of a piece of wood and hold the axle shaft face up. Meaning the threads should be facing you. You know where I'm going with this lol. With a sledge hammer smack the **** out of the studs. They will eventually come out. Wire brush the holes. Grab a larger socket (like a 32MM) and set it on the ground, place the axle shaft face down and center the hub on the socket. This time you'll be holding the splines that go into the diff. This will give space between the studs and the ground. Hammer the **** out of them until they're flush into the axle shaft.
13. MISC Items - Brake Cleaner ( a **** ton of it), shop towels, brake fluid, nitrile gloves if you want, anti seize.

Now would be a good time to replace your axle bearings and seals. You're going to have to remove your axles anyway so might as well. Have a good slide hammer.
Here is a link to a FSM for the KJ in PDF form - http://colorado4wheel.com/manuals/Jeep/KJ/2005JeepKJServiceManual.pdf
While this isn't a complete step by step, this should get you started. If I think of something else Ill edit. Feel free to ask questions. Good luck with your ****Box and Happy Jeeping.

xjallseasons

Thanks for the update. I never thought of installing discs in the rear. Does it provide better stopping power?

OmgNoWai

I dont think it provides better stopping power. I did it for ease of changing brakes in the rear. The drums on these things are awful and I wanted to have disc brakes all around.

xjallseasons

Man I put 33 BFG's on mine and my 33" fits in its stock location.

OmgNoWai

Glad to hear!

Have to update this thread! Gotta get some pics.

agreen

Very cool stuff you've done there. I've done just about all the same things to mine, including the KJ disc conversion. I'll go out on a limb and say that it improves braking power by being more consistent. I used to have to adjust my star wheels all the time. Nobody seems to make a decent hardware kit, so the levers never actually touched the star wheels. So eventually I'd be braking with only the front brakes and a very low pedal. Since the KJ discs, I don't adjust anything any more. It's great.

I kinda like the idea of the sherpa headliner. Does it seem to help cut down on noise inside?

riskybiz86

Really like the wheels you've went with. They look great!