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dana 35 axle upgrade
- Thread starter tj rider
- Start date
scat
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Santa Clarita, Cali
I was considering that, went with a dana 44 and I haven't been disappointed. Have you done a price comparison?
yossarian19
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Grass Valley, CA
Don't sweat the TJ thing, nobody is perfect...
Go D44 or 29 spline 8.25. The 8.25 is going to be more common but they are all leaf sprung, so you gotta weld in some coil buckets etc. Of course, same with a D44 - unless you go D44a but thats a turd bucket of an axle to work to swap in...
As long as you have to weld in mounts & bracketry, have you considered an 8.8 from a Ford Explorer? Already come with discs, some of them...
Go D44 or 29 spline 8.25. The 8.25 is going to be more common but they are all leaf sprung, so you gotta weld in some coil buckets etc. Of course, same with a D44 - unless you go D44a but thats a turd bucket of an axle to work to swap in...
As long as you have to weld in mounts & bracketry, have you considered an 8.8 from a Ford Explorer? Already come with discs, some of them...
-96JeepSpeed-
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Tweaker Valley CA. (Spring Valley)
I got my D44 for 180 at the JY. Some TJs came with D44s, grab one from a another TJ. Dont waste you time and money of a D35. Swapping a 8.25 would be a waste of time also, The work to bolt a 8.25 in would be pointless, sence TJs did not come with them i belive.
veedubshafer
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Palmerton PA
8.8 FTW
jeeperjohn
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Temecula, CA
If you want your D35 to last you will need to significantly strengthen the housing. The D35 is known to flex enough to grind up the R&P and even thrash the carrier bearings. A strong diff cover will help this but you should also look at having some webbing welded to the inside and/or outside of the case and then install a strong carrier like an OX or detroit. Then you'll need to sleeve the axle tubes............Or you could just put in an 8.25, Ford 8.8 or D44 and be done with it.
yossarian19
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Grass Valley, CA
Disagree. The 8.25 is a stout axle and should handle most anything a D44 can without breakage. You can add a variety of covers, an ARB, a Lock-Rite or an Aussie and go all the way to 4.88 gears. Not quite as strong as a D44 but likely to be more available and cheaper.
By the time you've done the work to make the D35 a contender, you could have swapped something else in faster & cheaper. The only advantage to this axle is the wide range of lockers available for it.
The ford 8.8 also has a ton of lockers available for it. Given your full range of choices, the 8.8 is probably your best bet. Already available with LSD diffs & 3.73 or 4.10 gears, disc brakes from factory... just snatch one up, clean it, weld in the mounts and swap it in later.
HaleYes
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Clay County, IL
