new carriers?

im thinkin about changin my gearing in the front on my dana 30 on a 91 cherokee. the gears are 3.73 right now and im going to get 4.56 and i was wondering if i would have to get new carriers for the pinion? will a drop pitman arm help the extreme play in my wheel and would it help if i got a new tie rod too or not?

Shomsky462 said:

im thinkin about changin my gearing in the front on my dana 30 on a 91 cherokee. the gears are 3.73 right now and im going to get 4.56 and i was wondering if i would have to get new carriers for the pinion? will a drop pitman arm help the extreme play in my wheel and would it help if i got a new tie rod too or not?

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You do know that you will have to regear the back too, right? Yes, you will need a new carrier, unless you get a Detroit locker or similar, in which case you will not need a carrier. The extreme play in your steering is most likely because some of the bushings in your steering are old and worn out. Check them and see if they are ok. If they are broken or worn, you will most likely be able to just get the bushing. There would be no reason to get an entire tie rod unless it is bent.

what about lock rights? do they come with new carriers?

uhh yeah i know i have to regear the back too i was just asking about the front but if you want to tell me if i need new carriers for a chrysler 8.25 then do i? cause there is already a limited slip in the rear so do you think that i can avoid a new lockrite in the rear or do you think that if i get those 4.56 gears ill need a new one? and about the steering, my steering wheel is like way upside down so i cant make really sharp turns to the right and i just greased all the zerk crap. do you think it has something to do with the 4.5 inch lift and 1.5" spacers and shackles? would a dropped pitman arm get rid off this?

If you are SURE you have 3.73:1 gears in the front... YOU WILL NOT NEED A FRONT CARRIER to regear to 4.56:1. The reason I ask if you are sure is that 3.73 is a very uncommon axle ratio for an 1987 or newer XJ. "most" 4.0L automatic shift came with 3.55:1 (4.0L manual shift came with 3.07:1) and "most" 2.5L came with 4.10:1.

There are two carrier offsets for the Dana model 30: 3.55:1 and down, and 3.73:1 and up. This holds true for the factory open carrier or aftermarket limited slips or full carrier lockers: Two different part #s for the different offsets.

Drop in lockers (EZ, Lock Rite, NoSlip, Aussie) don't care what the ratio/offset is.


Also the rear 8.25 carrier will be OK for the 4.56:1 swap as well (but no gears available to go deeper than 4.56:1)

You could retain the factory 8.25 limited slip, but if you decide you eventually want a locker for that carrier, you only have one choice: Powertrax No Slip. The earler 8.25s had 27 splines on the axle shafts/carrier side gears but in 97 or so they were upgraded to 29 splines. 2 splines doesn't sound like much, but it is a significant increase in strength.

I wheeled a season on 33" with an open carrier 27 spline 8.25"... had no issues :dunno: but If I were going to the bother of regearing, I'd have upgraded to 29 splines (find a pair of shafts & open carrier or the whole axle assy at a junkyard and be able to use the less expensive Lock Rite locker)

What gearing was available?
3.07 - used with 4.0L engine / manual transmission
3.31 - only available on older (pre87?) 2 door XJ's with "Fuel Economy" package
3.55 - used with 4.0L engine / automatic transmission
3.73 - found in some XJ's with the towing package
4.10 - used with 2.5L engine usually, and older XJ's with the "Off-Highway Vehicle" package.


i got that off some cherokee site and i have a 4.0 automatic with overdrive so it has the towing package so what are the gears 3.55 or 3.73? i dont get it im so confused!?!?!?!? ahhh!!!

I would suspect your 91 4.0/AW4 auto has 3.55:1 gears...

Before the AMC 4.0 straight 6 came out in 1987, the weaker 2.8l GM V-6 used some odd axle gearing.

Does the diff cover have a tag on there? If so, it should have the ratio on there. If ya really want to know "for sure"... pull the cover off and look at the ring rear. Often the ratio or tooth count is stamped on it. If not, count the teeth on the ring & pinion gears. Divide the ring rear # by the pinion # for your real ratio. Now do the other diff so you know "for sure" that you have a matched pair.

well i have the towing package they are talkin about. the one with 3.73 and i dont really want to take the diff covers off and it doesnt have a tag on it. the rear does it has a small tag and it says 35 on it but its a chrysler 8.25 so i dont know. my stepdad used to own it but i bought it from him and he says that they are 3.73 so i dont know. Do you know of anyone that is runnin 35's on 4.5" lift with 1.5" spacers and shackles? i know ill have to do a lot of trimming but even with trimmin do you think they will rub after that? are wheel spacers a god idea? and do mud flaps make your car legal if the tiresd come out of the fenders too much?