Bretthammy
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Kitsap County, WA
So I'm getting back to work on my 92 xj, awhile ago my rear drive shaft u-joint went out (surprised it took so long since I'm running 8in lift and no SYE). It's currently 2lo fwd only because my NP242 won't turn the front axle in any of the high range settings. I need to get it
So I have a used np231 that I intend on throwing in, which i will install an sye on before putting it under the xj (might have to swap input shafts as well). Now I will not be buying a custom drive shaft because i have no intention of keeping the 231 in there for long (d300 in the not too distant future). I also have an explorer 8.8 for the rear that will be going in at the same time.
Driveline will be 4.0l->aw4->np231sye->d-shaft->8.8
Now the dilemma...
I need a cheap d-shaft, i wanted to take my front and swap it to the rear, but I've heard this will be and issue with an 8in lift.
So I looked into square shafts, apparently a no no for street driven rear drive lines (its gonna be my short distance dd which should go no faster than 55, but needs to be capable of 55). I did hear some say that if you shim the square shaft for a very tight fit it may do ok around 50 (sounds very iffy)
I also looked at building my own slip joint shaft and scavenging the CV from my front, but decent length splined shafts alone run 60-120 bucks.
Now i'm down to a few options and wanted to hear the opinion of some other xj guys
I guess most of it comes down to "how much slip joint travel is needed for a leaf spring rear axle" my thought is that I probably only need a few inches
Option 1 - tear apart my front drive shaft, buy some d-shaft tubing and lengthen the shaft, this will retain the same amount of slip as a stock front d-shaft but will have added length to stop it from bottoming out at full droop. if i do this i was unsure if there would be enough travel in the stock slip joint.
Option 2 - install front d-shaft in rear and hope it has enough spline engagement not to shake violently.
Option 3 - find a junkyard d-shaft with a decent length slip joint (hopefully a long d-shaft I can shorten instead of lengthen) and modify it to fit. has anyone done something similar with junkyard shafts or have any idea on possible candidates for long slip joint/long d-shaft vehicles to search for at the JY?
Option 4 - talk to a custom d-shaft maker and see if they can make a shaft that will work with the np231 but is designed for when i install a d300 (I would think that with a long travel slip joint a difference of a few inches my be manageable)
Can anyone with knowledge or experience point me in the right direction?
Thanks guys!
So I have a used np231 that I intend on throwing in, which i will install an sye on before putting it under the xj (might have to swap input shafts as well). Now I will not be buying a custom drive shaft because i have no intention of keeping the 231 in there for long (d300 in the not too distant future). I also have an explorer 8.8 for the rear that will be going in at the same time.
Driveline will be 4.0l->aw4->np231sye->d-shaft->8.8
Now the dilemma...
I need a cheap d-shaft, i wanted to take my front and swap it to the rear, but I've heard this will be and issue with an 8in lift.
So I looked into square shafts, apparently a no no for street driven rear drive lines (its gonna be my short distance dd which should go no faster than 55, but needs to be capable of 55). I did hear some say that if you shim the square shaft for a very tight fit it may do ok around 50 (sounds very iffy)
I also looked at building my own slip joint shaft and scavenging the CV from my front, but decent length splined shafts alone run 60-120 bucks.
Now i'm down to a few options and wanted to hear the opinion of some other xj guys
I guess most of it comes down to "how much slip joint travel is needed for a leaf spring rear axle" my thought is that I probably only need a few inches
Option 1 - tear apart my front drive shaft, buy some d-shaft tubing and lengthen the shaft, this will retain the same amount of slip as a stock front d-shaft but will have added length to stop it from bottoming out at full droop. if i do this i was unsure if there would be enough travel in the stock slip joint.
Option 2 - install front d-shaft in rear and hope it has enough spline engagement not to shake violently.
Option 3 - find a junkyard d-shaft with a decent length slip joint (hopefully a long d-shaft I can shorten instead of lengthen) and modify it to fit. has anyone done something similar with junkyard shafts or have any idea on possible candidates for long slip joint/long d-shaft vehicles to search for at the JY?
Option 4 - talk to a custom d-shaft maker and see if they can make a shaft that will work with the np231 but is designed for when i install a d300 (I would think that with a long travel slip joint a difference of a few inches my be manageable)
Can anyone with knowledge or experience point me in the right direction?
Thanks guys!
