Preparing for a D35 Break

I posted this over at JeepsUnlimited and heard crickets so I thought I would move it over to the pros and see if I get any hits.

I just picked up a '00 XJ and the previous owner put in a Yukon Super 35 kit w/ Ox locker and 4.88s in the rear. It sits on 35"s.

I'm not new to 4 wheel drives or Cherokee's, but I'm not an expert at how much a Dana 35 can handle. I drive light, no heavy throttling at all, especially over rocks. I wheel in the Pacific Northwest where its a few stump crawls, bunch of ruts, little rock.

I'm freaked out somewhat because I'm expecting to break it and be left stranded on the trail. Yes, the solution is to go to an 8.8 or a D44, but money's tight since I just bought this rig and so it will take awhile till I can dump another $2k in to a rear end. So ... what I need is advice on what I can carry to help myself through any bad situations if I get on the trail.

1. Are there any practices I can take on the trail to reduce the chance I'll break it?

2. With a Super 35 kit, since the axles are tough, isn't there a higher likelihood a C-ring snaps under pressure, or the R&P breaks off a few teeth now (especially with the smaller gears)?

3. To go along with #2 above, should I carry spare C-rings? Are they unique for the Super 35 axles, or do the super kits use standard size grooves in the axles so the stock C-clips still work?

4. If you are on the trail and the axle slides out, what do you do? I mean, I'd hate to invest in spare axle shafts & a spare carrier in the event everything goes to hell .. Better to save that money towards a new axle right? But, with a C-clip setup, the entire axle will fall out meaning I can't drive it off the trail. If I'm in a remote area, what do I do?


Thanks for any advice you guys have. It'll take me another year until I have the money for another axle (wife pregnant, due in 3 months, saving $ will be slow), but I want to keep wheeling throughout =)

Can you post a pic of the diff? That year XJ usually has the C8.25.

Sorry, I just realized my signature and everything is out of date.

My new rig is a 2000 XJ w/ the 4.0. I'm writing up a new sig with more details.

mako my day said:

Can you post a pic of the diff? That year XJ usually has the C8.25.

Click to expand...

ALL ABS XJ's have Dana35's..

I'm sure you could sell it, and buy a 8.25 or an 8.8 then regear it for the same price.

Signature is finally updated.

Rear has an Ox Locker. I doubt I could get an 8.8 with a selectable locker built for that price. From what I've seen around here, 8.8s that are not strippped run for $250.

Axle $250
Gears $200
Install Kit $100
New Rotors & Pads (assuming calipers are still good) $120
M.O.R.E Axle Swap Kit w/ shipping $280
I-suck-at-welding-find-someone-to-pay-to-do-it-fund $60
Driveshaft Modification (Flange) $50
M.O.R.E E-Brake Cable w/ shipping $140
Ox/Elocker/Other Selectable Locker $900
======================TOTAL: $2100

The above doesn't include the possibility that the calipers that I get with the thing is shot, any brake line adapters, new bears/seals on the axle, 1/2 gallon of gear oil. etc. Realistically, even if I could do the welding myself and fabricate my own pads, I would still likely end up above $2k with a complete rear-end build.

I *highly* doubt someone would pay $2000 for my Dana 35 rear end, even though it has a Super 35 & Ox Locker. Have you seen people pay that?

I would just wheel it, stay off the skinny peddle lots of wronglers run larger than 35's on dana35's and call me stupid for swapping in my 8.8


on a side note I would start collecting parts for an 8.8 swap, if you are patient you can find a good deal, you dont need the More axle swap kit or the ebrake cables both can be fabricated or adapted to work.

You may be worrying about it too much,depending how you wheel it will probably be fine.

A D35 isn't worth upgrading because there are so many better axles available for cheap but since yours is already built I would just run it.

Chances are you could unload the D35 to wrangler guy and have the funds to get an 8 1/4 or an 8.8. The 29 spline 8 1/4 is plenty strong for 35's and can be had for chump change. Buy a full case locker and sturdy diff cover and you are solid.

You can pull an 8.8 with good brakes and rotors at pick n pull for $150, buy perches for $40, and run a lunchbox locker for $300. With gears and install kit you'd be under a grand, and you could sell your 35 to a wrangler guy for that.

So, what about this:


http://portland.craigslist.org/clc/pts/3677670980.html

Wow that's a "built" D35. Pretty sure the shafts, locker, R&P aren't going to break.

From my vast youtube research it appears to me the critical moment in ending a D35's life is when it starts bouncing. Rearend unloads, revs go up, rearend comes down and you gain 500% traction and boom.

Also, are you sure it has C-clips? I don't know but does a Super-35 kit have C-clip eliminator something?

I wheeled a stock D35 (27-spline non-clip) with the factory posi (which works great by the way) for about 6 months on 33s. No issues. I just didn't gun-it when in doubt. If I couldn't go up something smoothly I'd let off, back down and try again.

The Super 35 kit from Superior has a C-clip eliminator, but the previous owner elected to go with the Yukon kit. From my limited searches, I could not find a c-clip eliminator version for my year XJ? But, I might have stopped too early in my digging. It's possible though. From what I've read, Yukon & Superior have only had a few dozen shafts come back broken in comparison to the thousands they have sold. The 4340 shafts are tough as hell and supposedly stronger than the 8.8 stock shafts.
The R&P is weak due to the size and now that I have 4.88s the teeth are the supposed weak point. But, a tooth breaking off isn't going to prevent me from driving home, I mean, I may get some clunking from the rear end, but I should be ok to get off the trail and call a tow truck and then replace the R&P when I get home.
I *am* worried about a C-clip breaking and since I'm new to these axles, I still haven't answered the most basic question which is "are the c-clips for aftermarket axle kits on the D35 still the stock size ones or do I need to get c-clips that are made for the aftermarket kit?". Either way, once i figure that out I was planning on buying a couple clips and keeping them in the rig in case something happens so I can do a trail repair.

Long term I'll get a different axle. I really want to just pay one of the high end shops to build me a $3000 axle for the rear end and go all out, but it's going to take me 18 months to get to that point. So, what I'd like to do is just get a couple spare parts for now and baby it a little.

Like i said earlier I wouldnt worry about it just wheel smart.. i had 33's and a d35 for a while and i intentionally tried to break it the last weekend i went out and failed (broke a Ujoint) then swapped in my 50 dollar 8.8 :wave:

im no expert... but the list of quality parts makes it sound like someone put some serious money into that 35. your problem wont come from axle shaft breakage or something of the sort. the D35 is a noodle... low gearing and big tires is a lot of stress, get it hopping, and your looking at ring gear deflection.

keep it on all 4, keep the free spin down. drive it like... its a D35? :dunno:

Just about the only think you have to worry about really is bending an axle tube, if that happens it'll be time to swap it out!

I had that same setup in my Cherokee when I bought it. Dana super 35 with an Ox. I ran it on 33s and 35s for 1 1/2 years with no issues. But I bought an 8.8 for it and swapped when I had enough parts. Its nice to not have to worry now.

I think you'll be fine with what's been done to the axle and the type of wheeling that you described that you do.