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1 ton regrets

jonzer12

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Canada
Anyone regret going 1 tons? I was going to make the move a couple years ago but ended up selling the axles before I swapped them in. Now I kind of the bug to hop on the 1 tons and 40's bandwagon all over again.

I have your typical XJ on 35's with highly polished 30/8.8 combo. For trail riding it performs well and is reliable. I drive it a good 30-60 minutes to go wheeling and I drive it to work a couple times a month to keep things lubed up. I like the option to throw a boat on the roof and wheel into lakes most guys won't go. The cops leave me alone for the most part.

I would like the option to wheel with some old friends who moved on to buggies. I already have a strongbox and a built D300 and psc steering so I just need to add the axles and tires.

Anyone made the jump and regretted it? No longer streetable, draws cop attention or 4.0 even more of a dog? Trail riding not as much fun? I tend to wheel a fair amount of tight wooded trails.
 
Anyone regret going 1 tons? I was going to make the move a couple years ago but ended up selling the axles before I swapped them in. Now I kind of the bug to hop on the 1 tons and 40's bandwagon all over again.

I have your typical XJ on 35's with highly polished 30/8.8 combo. For trail riding it performs well and is reliable. I drive it a good 30-60 minutes to go wheeling and I drive it to work a couple times a month to keep things lubed up. I like the option to throw a boat on the roof and wheel into lakes most guys won't go. The cops leave me alone for the most part.

I would like the option to wheel with some old friends who moved on to buggies. I already have a strongbox and a built D300 and psc steering so I just need to add the axles and tires.

Anyone made the jump and regretted it? No longer streetable, draws cop attention or 4.0 even more of a dog? Trail riding not as much fun? I tend to wheel a fair amount of tight wooded trails.

My jeep drives great with 1 ton-ish axles, but the stock 4.0 is really having a hard time pushing the big tires around. I'm running 5.13 gears with a stock 4.0/aw4/231. It works, but not very well. The plan is to install the LS1/4l60e/4sp atlas that I have.

The biggest thing that is going to effect your drive-ability is how you set it up, if you go full hydro with no sway bars and soft suspension you're going to hate it on the street.
 
In my opinion, XJ's aren't cut out for tons. Sure, it's been done many times and done well but the shear amount of extra work that has to go into an XJ unibody to make it hold up isn't worth the effort when you could buy a cheap YJ or TJ to build with little effort.
 
My MJ on 40s is not much fun on the street...yes, it can do it. If you have any plans to drive it regularly, then don't go to tons. My MJ sees about 300 miles a year now. Might as well be a buggy.
 
In my opinion, XJ's aren't cut out for tons. Sure, it's been done many times and done well but the shear amount of extra work that has to go into an XJ unibody to make it hold up isn't worth the effort when you could buy a cheap YJ or TJ to build with little effort.

Agree completely

By the time you make all the mods that are necessary its no longer an XJ and you would have been way further along if you had started with a wrangler tub and frame or a buggy project
 
I completely regreted my d44 and 9in so I would probably regret one tons as well. Got like 6mpg and was completely useless if I needed to drive it to work if my truck or wife's car broke. I sold it and now have a completely stock xj. Will get 3.5in lift on 31's if I ever do anything with it. Not to mention repairs are significantly more expensive and going to the auto parts store and ordering a part was out of the question it was always custom orders.
 
I completely regreted my d44 and 9in so I would probably regret one tons as well. Got like 6mpg and was completely useless if I needed to drive it to work if my truck or wife's car broke. I sold it and now have a completely stock xj. Will get 3.5in lift on 31's if I ever do anything with it. Not to mention repairs are significantly more expensive and going to the auto parts store and ordering a part was out of the question it was always custom orders.

What gears and tire size was on that XJ? That mileage was pretty low.
 
4:88 gears, 35's on steel beadlocks, but you gotta take the axle shafts into consideration as they were 35 spline 32mm Moser shafts and a bigger main shaft in the np231. All of that extra mass in the drivetrain sucks fuel mileage up too.
 
4:88 gears, 35's on steel beadlocks, but you gotta take the axle shafts into consideration as they were 35 spline 32mm Moser shafts and a bigger main shaft in the np231. All of that extra mass in the drivetrain sucks fuel mileage up too.

I'm running a front 609 with 35 spline shafts, but with locking hubs and a 14 bolt in the rear. I'm pretty sure the carrier and shafts on the 14b are heavier than the 35 spline shafts in your 9". Not to mention the 37" tires and beadlock vs the 35's you're running. I have a feeling thier might be something up with your Jeep, maybe it's time for a new O2 sensor?
 
There's shouldn't be any drive-ability issues if it's built right, it's just so much more weight that likes to rip the sheet metal body apart.
 
I'm running a front 609 with 35 spline shafts, but with locking hubs and a 14 bolt in the rear. I'm pretty sure the carrier and shafts on the 14b are heavier than the 35 spline shafts in your 9". Not to mention the 37" tires and beadlock vs the 35's you're running. I have a feeling thier might be something up with your Jeep, maybe it's time for a new O2 sensor?

There were other factors that went into it, all my friends sold their rigs, every Wheeling spot we used to go to got shut down. So those things and my needs for the vehicle changing we're reasons that I wanted to go back to a d30/8.25 or d30/8.8 combo. Not to mention the cost of repairs going up due to the modifications. I simply didn't drive it enough to put the time into troubleshooting the issue, the gears may also have not been enough to get it moving. It turned into a garage orniment and I really only wheeled it a handful of times. My current xj will just be a hunting/camping rig that can be used as a secondary vehicle if need be. I think you need to look really hard at how much the swap is going to affect how you currently use the jeep.
 
I think my biggest fear is that by the time I add tons and tires and I will really start to hate the 4.0. A new jeep is not in the cards and I already have plated the frame etc and I have a bender so I have no chassis concerns.
The 4.0 is already a dog and I struggle on some muddy hill climbs. I guess
I am just wondering if any 1 ton XJ guys miss their 1/4 ton setup and why.
Maybe its just a case of learning to put the wrenches down and just go wheeling. I seem to average 10 nights in the garage for every day on the trail...
 
I think my biggest fear is that by the time I add tons and tires and I will really start to hate the 4.0. A new jeep is not in the cards and I already have plated the frame etc and I have a bender so I have no chassis concerns.
The 4.0 is already a dog and I struggle on some muddy hill climbs. I guess
I am just wondering if any 1 ton XJ guys miss their 1/4 ton setup and why.
Maybe its just a case of learning to put the wrenches down and just go wheeling. I seem to average 10 nights in the garage for every day on the trail... can't leave well enough alone.
 
I seem to average 10 nights in the garage for every day on the trail...

You'll still spend almost as much if not the same amount of time in the garage...the bigger axles we're more suited for the weight of my wheels and tires but I would still pop locking hubs often if I got any wheel hop, and the driveshaft I ended up having to replace after I smashed it on a rock. The parts just ended up being more expensive.
 
If you think your 30 and 8.8 aren't getting it done, look for something in between.

You can find JK Rubi take offs WAY cheaper than going with 1 tons, they fit better, are still pretty light, and will handle 35's or 37's all day long.
 
The only real negative is the stock 190 hp 4.0 won't motivate the xj up big hills very quick it does fine in low range in trail it's just big grades like the mountain passes we have here in Colorado that suck without a trailer with a stock 4.0 . My buddy's actually did much better climbing the passes like Vail pass and Eisenhower I could hardly do 40 on 40s and he did 55mph on 42 Iroks the only big difference back then was he had standard transmission first an ax15 then an nv4500 it's apparent the auto aw4 loses a lot more power than the stick and showed on the hills. An old wrangler preferably a TJ since it has the thicker 3/16th frame vs the 11g YJ frame would be a better start of course it needs a 17 inches of wheelbase added over the shit 94 it starts out as which is useless for anything steeper than a driveway .
 
On blinged out stock axles, everything, minus chromo shafts. Still on short arms. Rode 37s for a short time.

I wheeled very gingerly. Never locked the tires in one direction and did full throttle. Never Bounced on any ledges. I managed to get by but every time I was just waiting for an explosion to occur. To me it's a cost thing. A lot of people I wheel with just forked out some hard cash for RCVs and the works for their dana 30s/dana 44. I'd rather invest that money into axles with bigger R&Ps and bearings (super duty axles).

I've planned to stay on 37s, 3 link, coils, and rear leaf suspension. I already have a fair amount of unibody reinforcement. I hope to top it all off with a hybrid cage. Hoping this keeps me in the streetable class of rigs. Not exactly interested in a YJ/TJ build. If I get a scratch for something wild it would be a tube chasis with a willys tub.
 
On blinged out stock axles, everything, minus chromo shafts. Still on short arms. Rode 37s for a short time.

I wheeled very gingerly. Never locked the tires in one direction and did full throttle. Never Bounced on any ledges. I managed to get by but every time I was just waiting for an explosion to occur. To me it's a cost thing. A lot of people I wheel with just forked out some hard cash for RCVs and the works for their dana 30s/dana 44. I'd rather invest that money into axles with bigger R&Ps and bearings (super duty axles).

I've planned to stay on 37s, 3 link, coils, and rear leaf suspension. I already have a fair amount of unibody reinforcement. I hope to top it all off with a hybrid cage. Hoping this keeps me in the streetable class of rigs. Not exactly interested in a YJ/TJ build. If I get a scratch for something wild it would be a tube chasis with a willys tub.

I had blinged out stock axles, I managed to break both front and rear ring gears on 33's just doing a climb where all 4 tires were trying to climb at once, didn't bounce, just gave it full throttle in 4 lo trying to get them to climb and I heard a pop.

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I had blinged out stock axles, I managed to break both front and rear ring gears on 33's just doing a climb where all 4 tires were trying to climb at once, didn't bounce, just gave it full throttle in 4 lo trying to get them to climb and I heard a pop.



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I must be lucky or my tires didn’t have good traction. Either way I am willing to go forward with the swap with the challenges an XJ can present.


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