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Dana 30 axle mystery problem

A

asahagun

NAXJA Forum User
Location
North County San Diego
So recently I swapped in a high pinion dana 30 with 4.56 gears that I got for a steal at $150. Axle was in good shape and only needed one new bushing.

2001 xj, aw4, np231, and aussie in d30

The problem:

When I engage 4 wheel drive and apply throttle, the steering becomes erratic. The steering wheel pulls extremely hard to he right, and just wants to spin right, returning it left is a huge battle, it and becomes near undrivable.

Secondly after it does this bs, the 4x4 has trouble disengaging...

This problem only occurs when 4x4 is engaged. Steering in 2x is perfect!

Checked u joints, steering components, shafts are good.. I'm at a loss.

I never hand any of these problems with my LP dana 30 and aussie installed prior to the swap... Any and all insight would be appreciated..

Adam
 
are you on dry pavement?

i recall bending my crossmember, rendering my linkage useless, and couldnt get my tcase out of 4wd. when i was limping it to the gas station down the road (clean concrete slab to work on) all it wanted to do was pull right, extremely hard.
 
Are you absolutely certain you are running the same gearing in the front axle as the rear?
 
Positive of the gears, they are stamped...
Was testing the 4x4 engagement on dry pavement.. Yes I know this is a no-no but testing it at 5 mph should not damage anything, or cause these symptoms

Adam
 
Does the gear ratio in the rear axle match the front axle ? Are the u-joints any good ? BTW, don't use Part-Time 4x4 on dry pavement.
 
Sounds like different gear ratio to me :dunno:

Did you confirm ratio by turning the yoke or go by what was stamped?
 
what year is the new frt axle? is it a disconect axle?
 
It's not the gear ratio.. It was confirmed to be 4.56 via turning method as well..

Are the shafts from my stock Lp d30 too long, or non swappable for Dana 30 hp vacuum disco housing?
 
The pulling occurs on dry pavement, have you actually tried it off road yet? You may find that it works fine in 4wd appropriate settings and is therefore a non-issue.
 
you shouldn't be driving in 4 on dry pavement dude. thats probably it. I did that once 13 years ago test driving my first rig. Bad idea.

shafts are the same. you need to take it off road locally and try it out in 4.
 
Briefly shifting into part-time 4x4 on dry pavement while driving in a straight line shouldn't cause what you are describing (so long as all four tires are the same size/brand/model). I know this because where I live ( Canukistan ), the winter sometimes involves roads that are a mix of snow, ice, and dry pavement and I often leave it in 4x4 without issue.

That said, whenever I do work to my XJ's and feel the need to test 4x4, I do so on a loose surface first. That way, if your gears don't match then you won't implode a pile of stuff.
 
I have owned 2 TJs prior, all lifted and done up right. I always been able to shift into 4x and crawl at 1-5 mph to check engagement on pavement with no problems.. Seems unlikely that doing this would cause my steering to act like a gorilla is ripping my steering wheel out of my hands and pulling it to the right..

It's got to be something else..
Locker binding when load is placed on if somehow?
Axle shaft too long?
 
Something wrong with the Aussie possibly? If it's pulling hard right, it sounds like only the driver-side shaft is locking (is that possible?) and forcing the vehicle into a right turn.
 
Think about it for a moment....which way does the engine torque to when you rev the motor at a stand still?
Also why do 2 wheel rear drive vehicles always spin the right rear tire/axle?
 
Last edited:
Ok, so today my buddy and I pulled my dana 30 apart and everything was good.
Locker was working properly
Shafts were perfect
Housing was unbent
Steering components beautiful
No clearance issues.

My symptoms are still occurring on offroad for those of you suggesting my problem is due to engaging 4x on pavement. And just so this is clear I am by no means mechanically disinclined.

Tcase is solid
Maybe the spool in the Ford 9inch out back is somehow causing a bind, and compounding my issue up front..

Just so strange how there were no issues prior to swapping out both the axles. And everything was installed properly.
Who really knows, defiantly feels like a torque/binding issue, as is pulls super hard to the right going forward, and will make a left turn from center when going reverse.
 
I would never install a spool on a rig you drive on the street. Take a string and run it around the circumference of the tires and see if they are all the same diameter. If not it will pull one way or the other.
 
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