Dana 44 swap

[alex22]

I have a D35-c in my XJ and it is in need of a few parts and whineing at slow speeds. Instead of spending the money on a rebuild for this axel I am leaning towards the D44 swap. Which years will bolt right in to a 96? And what would you consider a "fair" price.

~Alex

[streetpirate]

any xj d44 bolts in, most run 4-500 ready to bolt in, so if you can find one cheaper you're golden

[old_man]

XJ D44s are found mostly on 88-89 XJ's with tow package, but you have to check as they are not an automatic option on either.

[WaXJ_Skier]

87s mostly very rare on 88s and 89s, look for an 87 with towing.

[JBweld]

Mine was an '87. Good luck.

Another, nearly bolt in option, is an 8.8 out of a Ford explorer. The later ones had disc brakes, some with limited slips, and are about the same strength as a dana 44. Search in mod tech should bring up lots of info.

-Jeremy

[IXNAYXJ]

Another, nearly bolt in option, is an 8.8 out of a Ford explorer. The later ones had disc brakes, some with limited slips, and are about the same strength as a dana 44. Search in mod tech should bring up lots of info.

-JeremyMake sure you get an 8.8 out of an Explorer. They're all disc brakes, 31 spline shafts, most come with limited slip and you can even find them in 4.10 gear ratio. They're narrow, but some spacers take care of that easily. The only other achilles heel is you can spin a tube under really hard use. Two minutes with a welder solves that problem, though.

-----Matt-----

[WaXJ_Skier]

Make sure you get an 8.8 out of an Explorer. They're all disc brakes

for 97 and later IIRC, 96 and older are drum.

[alex22]

Thanks for the info. If I can't find a D44 then I will go with the Ford 8.8.

~Alex

[xalexjx]

Look into the 1997 plus 8.25's ( the 97 and newers are 29 spline axles) I run 27 splines (alloys) with 33's locked and a heavy foot, and havent broke anything yet

[harwood39]

I have a 98 and it has the 8.25 with 29 splines. Run 31s and 32s. Very heavy foot. Some towing/pulling and nothing has broken yet.

[xalexjx]

you could run 33's with the stock 29 splines locked and not have any problems,

[IXNAYXJ]

You can run 38's on an 8.25. I knew a guy whose brtoher did it.

Should you? No.

I ran the crap out of my Lock-Rite'd 27 spline 8.25 for a long time with no failures. However, if you want to go deeper than 4.56 gears, look elsewhere.

-----Matt-----

[alex22]

I have been meaning to stop by Clayton Off Road Manufacturing and see what he has for invintory or what he would be able to get his hands on easily. I would like to use an axel that will be a direct swap in because this is my daily driver and I have not done much suspension work before, so the fewer things that can go wrong the better. At this point I am planing on building this for driving fast off road as opposed to rock crawling. Stronger parts with a softer suspension and a 4.6 stroker.

~Alex

[alex22]

(deleted my repost)

[xjdragrcr]

I drag race my 92 2wd xj every weekend. well....last night i finally broke my dana 30. Someone wants me to buy their Dana 44 out of a 97 xj. What will i need and how hard will it be. Please help....its my only car and i miss drivin it already. :) thnx

[Hawk]

I drag race my 92 2wd xj every weekend. well....last night i finally broke my dana 30. Someone wants me to buy their Dana 44 out of a 97 xj. What will i need and how hard will it be. Please help....its my only car and i miss drivin it already. :) thnx

Direct bolt in. An afternoon project for someone with the right tools. (sockets and 2 jacks)


As per the original thread, if you don't wheel your rig much, or don't plan on going to big with it, the 8.25 is a cheap and easy fix. I've got one with a lunchbox locker in it for sale for $250, and you can find them all around for $100, ready to go. Personally, I went with the 8.8 swap, because they're everywhere, and later models have disc brakes. I hear a lot of people say that the D44 is better because it has more aftermarket support, but the 8.8 has plenty of support, and how many locker choices do you really need? The biggest problem I had when I built mine, was finding a cover for the right price, then I found the riddler covers at mesa4x4.com
4.56, disc, ected, trussed.

[XJoshua]

What axle is in the gen II(98 era i believe) ram 1500s? How strong are those? Dont see many people mention them and they look fairly small to still allow good clearance. Also they are out of a truck so youd hope they have some strength.

[Wounded XJ]

Got my 44 out of a MJ. Needed to reweld some stuff, but it was a easy bolt in. $350 seems to be the going price in this area.

[alex22]

I'm going to get on the phone with the local junkyard network when i get a few minuts to spare and try for a 44. cause if you're gonna do it, may as well do it right. If not then I will go for the 8.25. I might run 31's when my tires ware out. Thanks again.

~Alex

[jbmoose]

What axle is in the gen II(98 era i believe) ram 1500s? How strong are those? Dont see many people mention them and they look fairly small to still allow good clearance. Also they are out of a truck so youd hope they have some strength. I think those are ChryCo 9.25, or maybe a 60.

[seanyb505]

I drag race my 92 2wd xj every weekend. well....last night i finally broke my dana 30. Someone wants me to buy their Dana 44 out of a 97 xj. What will i need and how hard will it be. Please help....its my only car and i miss drivin it already. :) thnx
lol been there...I broke the the u joint strap bolts off so I grabbed an entire axle with better gearing... you should be able to slap any xj axle in there for like $100.

[beakie]

not sure why this is here...

delete

[alex22]

Will there be a problem going from my D35c with ABS to a 44 without ABS or will the ABS sensors and reluctor fit onto the 44?

[WaXJ_Skier]

Will there be a problem going from my D35c with ABS to a 44 without ABS or will the ABS sensors and reluctor fit onto the 44?

pretty sure you're gonna lose the ABS unless you have some custom machining done.

[alex22]

This is my first vehicle with ABS so I am accustomed to driving without it. My main question is, will my ABS light be on and how will it affect the rest of my ABS system. Will I need a resistor to fool my computer?
I'll add that I don't know alot about how ABS functions as a system.

~Alex