RockyMtn96XJ

I found what I consider a decent deal on a rear dana 44 with 3.73 gears. Its $300 for 2 rears, but he will sell them separate for $150 or something. I tried to google putting a JL D44 into an XJ and all that comes up is "JK D44 into XJ". I can hardly find anything on "JL D44", or how closely related the JK & JL axles are to each other and if its the same thing or not. Or close enough to not matter....

A lot of the results come up as D44 Advantek, but that's not what I found. I found some regular ole' D44 axles from a 2019 JL. At least that's how they're described in the for-sale ad.

Do I have a good deal on my hands I should jump on, or pass on it?

Thanks ya'll.

Rogue4x4

Don't know how they compare between the two, but neither one will just bolt in. You'll probably have to cut things off and weld on new perches and mounts in the correct positions.

RockyMtn96XJ

That was my only concern.... how much cutting, moving, & welding would it take. Aint nobody got time for dat right now..... I figured i would need to modify it to take leaf springs and move/add a new shock mount. At least.
I feel like I can wait a bit to find another axle that will go in a lot easier. Like something from an XJ or similar that used leaf springs to begin with.
My local JY has a couple XJs that should have 29 spline 8.25's (newer XJs, like 98+ or whatever the year is).
I'll figure something out.

XJChang

Just cut off all the existing brackets and weld spring perches.
Keep in mind they will be wider the stock rear axle, you'll need front wheel spacers or find another JL axle.
JL axles are 32 spline and are stronger than JK 44
I saw these axles for sale, they only have gears. You'll need to buy brakes, and axle shafts.

4.3L XJ

One other thing is that the JL axles are wider than the XJ. As stated you cut everything off the rear axle and weld on spring perches and get some U bolts and top plates. That would be the easy part. The front is another matter. You will have to cut everything off. If you do it carefully you can re use the coil buckets and probably the upper link mounts after you reposition them. Steering and track bar will be another matter that you will have to address as you go since you will not be able to buy prefabricated parts for that

RockyMtn96XJ

Oh yeah I did see that they are 32 spline.... so that got me a little excited and I decided to dig deeper. And wider is better right now. I have 8" Canyons with 31x10.50 and it looks a little narrow at the wheels when looking from behind.

I really hate my avatar picture. makes it look like its tilted forward with too much wheel well space in the rear. Parking lot at work is basically partially carved into a huge hill and is sloped for water run off.

Its funny you saw them for sale as well. Like, real funny. Not Ha-Ha funny, but funny because the odds are terrible for you seeing them unless your searching country wide for parts.

Rear doesnt sound too bad.... but from the sound of it I should find a more suitable D44 for the front. One that goes in easier than having to reposition link mounts, And then finding steering and track bar parts....??? I like to K.I.S.S. Keep it simple, stupid! It just sounds like there are easier options out there.

How many people run front and rear axles from different vehicles? Maybe a D44 rear from 1 jeep, then a front one from some other jeep?

Thanks for the info fellas!!!!!!!!!!

RockyMtn96XJ

I should mention that I do know how to MIG, use a cutting torch, etc.... All the basic stuff to do it right. But I would need to practice first because it's been A WHILE!!!!! this another reason I'd rather skip fabricating at this point.

XJChang

I spend way too much time on facebook classified groups, they were posted in Jeep XJ parts for sale or something like that.
On 31 inch tires your probably fine with stock axles, and by the time you're at a tire size that benefits from D44s the 3.73 gear ratio won't be sufficient. And to correct the axle width you'll probably need another JL axle. JK axles are 1" narrower, maybe that's fine. Overall, the labor won't be extremely hard there is a lot of information on Dana 44 swaps, I know there is Xj->JK steering available and plenty of bracketry.
I would pick one up anyway as 150 for a Dana 44 housing isnt bad these days. It's still going to be a pretty pricey swap though, Shafts, brakes, gears, Front axle, steering, brackets.
Just get one and start cutting and welding and overtime you might accumulate the rest of the pieces for the full front and rear swap

cruiser54

How about the different bolt pattern...wheels?

00t444e

What size tires do you plan on running.

RockyMtn96XJ

Bolt patterns, tire sizes.... Right now, my XJ is my DD, so going with big tires or different wheels right now isn't in the books for a little while although 3.73s would help me right now.
If I bought the axle housing to save and work on, I can see that taking a year due to my work schedule and 2 kids in elementary. This is a tough one even though $150 isn't bad, I almost feel like I should find a slightly easier axle to work with. The timing is just a little off for me to be able to get at it and get it finished fairly soon, then find another axle with 3.73 and call it good for a couple years at least.
Once I acquire another DD, then taking my time to work on the XJ would be more fruitful and efficient.

XJChang

Front and rear gears need to match so you need to find 2 axles with 3.73, or regear front.
31s are plenty capable, even with stock gears, spend the time and money on lockers and quality tires.
I wanted to go 33s/35s a while back but like it doesn't make sense for me to spend so much money when its my DD and i havnt had problems with 31s. I plan on putting d44s or something like that in eventually and 35s but Im going to run 31s with stock gears and lunchbox lockers until I have the opportunity to weld some axles up

00t444e

Waste of time and effort to put those axles in with 3.73 gears if you are only running 31s.

RockyMtn96XJ

I can save yall some time and say I know the mechanics and requirements behind everything to make it drive straight down the road like it should. No need for explanation on how to make it work. I'm just not the smartest jeep guy yet so I was wondering if any of the super experienced dudes thought its a decent idea and worth the time.

I agree its a waste of time after all the talk. Like 00t444e said, 3.73 isn't worth it. 4.10s or 4.11s is what I need for 31s to get back to a stock feel. And trust me I'd love to get back there. I'm an "acceleration" driver rather than a "top speed" driver. I'd also like some 4.10's in my Camaro while I'm at it.
I like the "new gears" idea better than different axles. As previously mentioned, its my DD so the need for this type of project isnt there yet. if it was an easy 1 for 1 swap then get down the road, I'd be all over it.