Will these '96 gears work in my '90 Dana 30 axle?

I have a 90 XJ with original Dana 30 front at a 3.07 ratio. The rear 35c was very noisy at 170K mi, and so I swapped in a low miles 35c from a '96 XJ with a 3.55 ratio that I found for cheap. Works great.

SO, I want to make the ratios match again, even though I don't do much 4 wheeling; the boat ramp and occasional snow is all. Someone locally is selling 3.55 ring, pinion, and open carrier out of a 96 XJ Dana 30 front axle, in good shape (he says it's high pinion, reverse cut):

http://b.im.craigslist.org/QS/Hp/eEhtaF9VAurtQNlvQtwGDYtxO7g5.jpg[\img]

Would it fit into my '90 axle with my current shafts? I'm a moderately competent home mechanic (done all my own work for 25 years), but have never taken apart an axle. A pain, or pretty doable? Again I won't be putting lots of 4wd miles on this front axle...

Thanks for any advice, pointers to webpages, books, etc.!

Mark

it should fit your 90, but.....get the calipers, and rotors. I know that the calipers are different. I swapped a 96 D30 in my 91 and the calipers didn't fit.
alignment holes to the knuckle would allow them to fit up.

nice upgrade though. Remember to keep track of off year parts so when you go to buy stuff for it, you don't tell them "yeah i got a 90 cherokee..."I mean you do, but it'll cause headaches sometimes.

Thanks, red91. But it sounds like you're thinking I'm planning an axle swap, when all I'm looking to do is re-gear my existing axle. I'm wondering if the gears from the '96 will work in the '90 axle, leaving everything else, including the '90 housing, bearings, seals, shafts, hubs and rotors, in there.

MarkC said:

Thanks, red91. But it sounds like you're thinking I'm planning an axle swap, when all I'm looking to do is re-gear my existing axle. I'm wondering if the gears from the '96 will work in the '90 axle, leaving everything else, including the '90 housing, bearings, seals, shafts, hubs and rotors, in there.

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if yours is a disco front axle, I don't think so.

The '96 ring and pinion will work just fine on your '90 as will the carrier from it. You could use your original carrier if you wanted to as well since the carrier break is 3.54 and down. Set up the gears right and you should be good to go.

red91inWA said:

if yours is a disco front axle, I don't think so.

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sorry...I have NO IDEA why I was thinking axles... :doh:

Ace is right the only thing that changed in the HP D30 was from a 260x to a 297X/760X axle joint in think in 1995, and on 1993 Grands. The Auto vs. Standard break set up is only difference I know of.