I know that 1" doesn't sound like a big difference, but by switching from 9" to 10" you gain almost
16 square inches of braking surface on the drums and 17.5 square inches of brake pad.
Plus a lot more surface area on the drums to dissipate heat.




This is a bolt on upgrade with factory parts, no cutting, welding, grinding etc.
Everything functions according to factory spec's and as it was designed to.
It costs around $100 more then the complete overhaul your rear brakes probably need anyway.

You will need to remove the rear axles for this upgrade.
I would strongly suggest you replace the seals when you do.

There's no problem getting the factory rims on over the 10" drums.



The wheel cylinders for the 10" brakes are very close in volume to the 9" so you don't need
to modify the master cylinder or the brake lines.

There are several good posts on how to R&R the half-shafts and how to replace your rear brakes,
so all I'm going to give you here is a parts list and some notes.

I have not tried this mod on a vehicle equipped with anti-lock brakes
or on any other transaxle besides the 29 spline 8.25" Corporate.




The parts used in this upgrade are from a 1998 Dodge Dakota with the 5.2 L and 5 speed,
and a 1988 Dakota with a 6 cylinder.
Be sure you specify 10" brakes.




The 10" backing plates (#9) are available from the dealership, it costs about $90 for the pair.
It bolts right up to the 8.25 "corporate" rear end used on the '96 XJ.
(I do not know if this will work on the Dana.)



There is a 5 th hole in the backing plate. It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to drill out the flange and add that 5 th stud.
Use blue thread locker on the bolts.

The brake shoes, wheel cylinders and all the hardware are from the '97-'99 Dakota.
The springs, adjusters, etc for the brake are available complete in 2 kits.

The parking brake arms are no longer available for the '97-'99s and I couldn't find a '97-'99 with 10" brakes for a donor.
I did find an '88 with 10" drums and I used the arms (#10) and the struts (#27) from that.



The smaller strut in the picture is what is supposed to go on the '97-'99 brake.
I've never seen the '97-'99 arm, so I'm not sure it's right.
The larger strut is from the '88 and it worked perfectly with the '88 arm.
I can't swear all the parts from an '88 brake will be interchangeable or work with the '97-'99 backer plate.



All the parts assemble exactly as they would in your original 9" brakes.



The 5 lug drum is a 10x2.5" from a 1988 Dakota with a 6 cylinder.
I'm not sure what other drums will fit, but I didn't have any trouble finding them for the '88 Dakota.

Good luck!

m