Rear end swap and or motor swap
 

Have my first jeep 1996 grand Cherokee limited 5.2L. And come to find out engine was locked up so I just happened to see a 1995 grand Cherokee 5.2L with bad rear end today so I bought it. What rear axle are common on 95 and 96 interchangble or no? I know I probably should have done more research before buying but will just swap motor if rearends can't be.

As long as they are both the same model axle (D35 or D44a), they should be a bolt-in, as long as the ratio matches your FRONT axle. If not, you can swap the front axle as well.

I'm not sure which axle the early ZJ's had with the V8. Some had D35 and some had D44a. Either way, you can put a 44 in place of a 35 as long as you take the driveshaft too and visa-versa. The MOST IMPORTANT thing is both axles MUST be the same ratio. The D44a has an aluminum carrier case and is beefier than the D35.

As far as the engine is concerned, I think they are both the same except for possibly accessories. There were a lot of changes made around that time, but I'm not sure what was changed, if anything.

I would swap the motor to the 96. From my understanding the 95 has some oddball parts on it that are not being made one for sure is the fuel pump. I've heard you have to buy a 94 and a 96 assembly and build your own from the 2 setups. Also I have heard they can have electrical issues for whatever reason maybe obd2 stuff. Also it always seems there are plenty of 95 wranglers, cherokees and grand cherokees for sale (at least in my area it's that way).

Max