X-Factor... JK axle swap into my XJ
 

Hey guys, new member here! hi to all!!
So i though id start a build thread about my truck. Its a 2001 XJ i picked up a few months ago, and i immediately started doing research on what direction i would like to go with this build. so the idea i have in my head is to build a expedition vehicle!! something light weight but yet capable. so after taking a closer look at the truck, there were a few obvious things that needed to be addressed. the suspension was all worn out and the axles were no better. brake pad to brake pad they were done!!! not even worth throwing a dime at them!!! So this is what i came up with... A JK D30 and a D44.. i know some may say that its not much of a upgrade, and others might say that for all the work theres better choices out there. but i got them for $500 and i couldn't rebuild the ones i have for that price and the work doesn't scare me!! So why not have a little fun?!?!

Some of the pros:

-almost new axles, no need to rebuild.
-6" wider than stock overall
-HP D30 the stock D30 is a LP
-bigger brakes all around. 12" and 12.5" rotors i think
-D44 with disc brakes for the rear, stock is a D35 with drums

there are some other internal benefits but I'm no mechanic so I'm not gonna try and sound like i know what I'm talking about.. on another note the D30 is known to have its issues, but i think with a few gussets and trusses i might be able to avoid those. remember I'm trying to build a expedition vehicle, not a hard core rock crawler, probably gonna only run 33s.

The Build:
-2001 XJ Sport
-Rough Country 4.5" Long Arm Lift
-JK D30 Front
-Jk D44 Rear
-JK 17" Wheels
-33" Tires
-Bushwhacker Flat Style Fender Flares
-Front and Rear Bumpers
-Winch
-Head Lights

and the list goes on and on and on.....

so here she is!!! feel free to comment!! or if you have any questions about the swap

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the mock up
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ready to go in
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stuffed no springs!!
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few things left to do in the front
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but for now on to the back!!

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made some u bolt eliminators

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but after i was done... i decided im gonna make new upper plates with bump stops off the side.. these are the stock ones drilled out for 9/16 hardware


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gonna reuse the D35 lower shock mounts. move them up and out as far as i can. not sure but might need new shocks to make this happen. the ones that came with my kit are 16" fully collapsed, i have 21" from mounting point to mounting point if i relocate the lower mount. not sure if 5" of up travell is gonna be enough...



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Wow that's interesting. The front end does look really good though. Ready to see how it turns out!

The front is bolt in except for the coil buckets correct?

upper and lower control arms will bolt in "but!!" upon install i noticed that the lower control arm mounts on the JK are 90 degrees to the axle tube, the XJ mounts are angled in.. this was very noticable from the front. the control arm mounts did not look happy!! so this is what i did, there are three welds on the lower control arm mount. one on each side and one on the top. i cut the inside weld and the top weld, cut a little material away from the inside, bolted up the lower arms, they pulled the bracket to where they needed to be and i tacked them in place... after this was done everthing looked great!!! from the photo below you can see the angle lower control arm mount.. before they looked bound up. you will also need to move the coil buckets, swaybar mounts, and track bar mount... i found it to be easier to just cut off the old XJ ones and reuse them.
the quick answer.. yes all four arms will bolt in

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did these up today!! got em up as high and out as possible

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YAY! about time someone is doing this. i think there are a very large number of people on this forum that should have a knowledge of this build. 5 THUMBS UP!!!! . looking foward to this build. keep it coming. what gears you running?

Very nice! How hard are you going to wheel on it?

this is sick

Verry nice! Ive been thinking of steeling the axles out of my dads 2012 rubi! :devil:

so his idea he has in his head is to " build a expedition vehicle!!"

he stated this in his first paragraph and i think also a little later on.
:)

very nice. i will say the JK axles are very well built. the steering and knuckles are beefy, its a hp 30, brakes are huge and the rear is a 44, most likely with a limited slip...people regularly run 35s on these axles without a problem, only thing is stock gearing is 3.21, unless its a tow package or rubicon with 3.73s.

only thing i would do different is go with an OTK steering, just to get that little bit of clearance and angle back.

where did you get the set for $500? thats a steal!

What happened to this rig? Did you finish getting the suspension and axles in?