This is my 90 xj and my dream list, any advice

So I have a 1990 Jeep Cherokee Pioneer it has a 4.0 high output block with the renix intake setup. Shes on her 2nd aw4 transmission and 231 transfercase. Have the dana 30 up front and dana 35 in the rear. All i have is a small lift which is some slightly beefy rancho coil springs and some blocks in the rear. I have an pacesetter header with a flowmaster super 44 muffler. My plan for her is to be my daily driver but be able to go for some offroading adventures when ever I please. I'm not going rock crawling crazy with this one (or at least not yet) but I do want to be able to accomplish alot. I don't want to do any fender trimming if I can help it. I plan on going with a complete 3 inch lift. Heres my wish list for her.

-swap the dana 35 out for an dana 44
-a complete 3inch lift
-SYE kit
-maybe a s Stroker kit for my 4.0 (someday)
-KC fog lights
-An Borgeson heavy duty steering shaft
-An new steering stabilizer
-Optima battery
-an throttle body spacer (maybe)
-an adjustable trackbar
-some skid plates
-Heavy duty transmission crossmember
-Some sway bar disconnects
-cool air intake (maybe)
-beef up the body support
-beef up my dana 30

And I'm sure there's more I can't think of or that will come up later. So thats my plans may take awhile due to I'm also trying to get my 63 chevy truck running but I can't wait. So If you have any opinions or advice please post. I want all the feedback I can get good or bad so I can make this a good xj. Thanks

Heres my jeep.


and here's my broken transfercase. This happened going down I80 at 70mph.

31's should fit fine with stock or 4.5" back spaced 15X8 wheels.

i would also do:
zj tie rod
upgrade to dual diaphram brake booster/master
all you need is a 30$ tenneco steering stabilzer, nothing fancy/expensive is needed.
beef up the d30, as in shafts with the larger ujoints?
i run an optima battery thats atleast 7 years old, but ive not heard good things about the new ones.
no need for a TB spacer.
upgrade to a 2 or 3 row radiator. are you still running the closed cooling system with the reserve/expansion bottle? if so, upgrade the bottle and cap.

Yeah I was thinking of upgrading shafts with larger ujoints. I am still running the closed system. I just replaced the radiator last spring though. And whats the bad news about the new optima batteries?

the bad news is they started making them in mexico, with lowered standards. i run a newer one, maybe its not as good as they used to be, but i like mine, cleans up nicely,.

on a 90', low 3", chances are you wont NEED a sye... might want to relocate those funds elsewhere after a succesfull test drive vibe free. a 3.5" kit, is quite more than .5, and will require one most likely.

If you cannot find or afford a Dana 44, the 8.25 from a later cherokee is also worth swapping and cheaper.
If your 90 came with ABS, it already has 297 u-joints in the Dana 30. Good luck.

my 31's on the eco. steelies rub the swaybar and lca... I'd look for some with at the most 4" backspacing it gets annoying not being able to do a u turn on a 2 lane anymore

No I don't have abs.

You can modify your front axle shafts for full circle clips to gain some good strength from them.

Forget the Borgeson, you won't need it. They are well built, and I ran one on my FS Bronco with 44s, but you shouldn't need it for the XJ.

As said, skip the TB spacer for MPI FI engines, put the money towards an APN header and free flowing CAT and muffler--you will pick up more that way.

Okay so I will forget the tb spacer and well I have no cat so I don't think I'll have to worry about that and I already have an pacesetter header which hasnt been too bad. Is the apn header better?

the apn header is cheaper.

For a mild build with no heavy engine mods, the Pacesetter will be fine.

You don't need a SYE on a 90 with a 3" lift. Better off without one. I never had driveline vibes on my 90 with a 3-4" lift until I installed a t-case with no slip yoke, and two Tom Woods driveshafts. Just be prepared to plug the output on the t-case if you loose your rear driveshaft.

Fred

oh, and you seem to still have the front airdam, might want to fix that pronto.

Alright sweet, :yeah I already have the pacesetter anyways, seems too be good so far, alright I will the forget the sye for now

What caused that to come apart like that?

I'm not too sure how it happened. I had fluid in it so I don't know what made it do so. Maybe it was just damaged inside to began with? I would like to know so I can avoid this from happening again

Alright so if I go looking for a dana 44 to though in it, will my dana 30 be fine to keep or will i need to find another to match the gearing, I'm a noob when it comes to gearing and all that. All I know is the dana 44 only came in 87 to 89 cherokees and again my cherokee is a 1990 4.0 aw4 np231 dana 30 and 35.

Consider swapping in a ford 8.8 if you're any good at fab work and have some spare time. I went through 3 optima red tops before I ditched my last one. I've had a Walmart battery for 3 years now that a lot better but that's my personal experience.

I thought about the ford 8.8 but I have not much fab experience and absolutely no welding experience. Thats why I was thinking of a dana 44, just bolt it in. And really well maybe I'll stay away from optimas. I have a wal mart battery now actually but this is the third one in two years for me.