front ford dana 44 on cherokee???

[old_man]

I love people spouting dribble about a D44 being the same as a D30. Lots of us on here have upgraded to D44's and found an order of magnitude less axle breakage. D60's are great if you want to sink a ton of money and lose clearance.

 

[crystalcleanteam]

CAUTION!!!!!

Be confident about how they went about narrowing the axle, if they only narrowed the long side it wont work.. It's very common for ranger guys to narrow just the long side as it will work for them. But not for an xj it pushes the differential to the center, putting the pinion below the oil pan/header downpipe.

I've been there and bought a hp44 from a bronco that was narrowed for a ranger and found out the hard way. Once the long side has been cut you can't add length to it. Good luck re tubing it I called everyone including Currie etc and everyone said chuck it up to a loss and get another axle, unless you have a big press and alot of skills.

When narrowing the axle for a XJ it has to be narrowed on both sides so the pinion is in the right spot..

Hope that answered your question! Oh and everyone on the go 60 bandwagon users have a way of giving alot of advice with most people giving that advice without first hand experience.

 

[n1ywb]

Seriously I want to turn 33s, 35s at the most. Why would I run a D60? Too much coin, too much weight, too little clearance.

 

[MoparManiac]

yes it will work, but its not really worth it. The strength increase is minimal. If your going to do the work the install a better front end, get a D60.

Get off the interwebz.

D60 over a D44? Maybe.
Depends on the terrain, type of wheeling, tire size, and more imortantly...the driver. If the OP is on antything smaller then 35's the D60 makes do sense. The diff is massive and will drag on just abut everything.

I've been running my narrowed Ford HP D44 for a few years (35's) and the only carnage was a lost u-joint cap.

^Best response I've read so far.

lol 60, lol minimal strength increase, 37s on narrowed HP44 from 79 Bronco for 7 years and thousands of miles through Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Washington, Oregon, and Baja Mexico running on PFM and unicorn tears.

derpy derp derp

Nice XJ! I'm getting tired of buggy/chopped XJs. Nice to see a full bodied one running something larger than 33s/35s.

Are you running the Ford radius arms? How did you deal with the case wedges?

hpD30's are good for up to a 35ish tire. The serviceable bearings and hubs are nice on a 44, but d30 unit bearings have proven to be pretty durable. Not much difference in ball joint strengths, some 44s come with king pins. 44s have a bigger ring ans pinion. Your not going to break a properly set up d30 ring and pinion with stock shafts. The shaft, stub, and or u joint will go first. 30's and 44's use the same u joints and similar shaft diameters. cromo shafts and u joints are expensive. Money better spent towards a 60. Just my .02 cents and I have a narrowed hp dana 44 BTW

I've never seen so much misinformation in one post.

Stock shafts with full circle snap rings and 760s did this to my 4.88s about a year ago:

I wouldn't trust a stock D30 carrier ever again, they flex like a wet noodle. In the Northeast, it's more typical to break a gearset than an axleshaft since there is a lot more wheel speed needed to get over obstacles (think mud/moss covered rocks).

You don't want any of the D44s that have kingpins.

Also 44s weigh less than 60s

Not important if you're a crawler. More important if you're into go-fast.

Dana 60's are for lead footed hillbillies.

D60's are great if you want to sink a ton of money and lose clearance.

Or if you want to run a 38-42" tire.

Seriously I want to turn 33s, 35s at the most. Why would I run a D60? Too much coin, too much weight, too little clearance.

You wouldn't. I'd go with a D44 for 35s if you like the win pedal.

 

[90 waggy]

X2 on the d30 R+P. ive seen stock shafts with 260's strip ring gears up here so the shaft and u joint is not always the weak link. this was with ballistic diff cover BTW. IMHO you dont need a D60 for anything smaller than a 38" tire....D44 all the way. id love a D60 but i guess im just a hillbilly with a heavy foot :twak:

 

[xj9140]

I stand corrected. I'll shutup now

 

[WaXJ_Skier]

Not important if you're a crawler. More important if you're into go-fast.

Disagree, I prefer a lighter rig, it's better for flotation in the snow and better gas mileage too and from the trail. My rig currently weighs less than a stock XJ limited.

 

[MoparManiac]

Disagree, I prefer a lighter rig, it's better for flotation in the snow and better gas mileage too and from the trail. My rig currently weighs less than a stock XJ limited.

- That also depends on the tire width and a multitude of other things

- That only matters if he drives it to the trail

Not spouting down your points as they are definitely valid, but its on a case by case basis. For the most part, having more unsprung weight isn't the evil most people think it is if you're a crawler.

 

[WaXJ_Skier]

- That also depends on the tire width and a multitude of other things

- That only matters if he drives it to the trail

Not spouting down your points as they are definitely valid, but its on a case by case basis. For the most part, having more unsprung weight isn't the evil most people think it is if you're a crawler.

agreed it lowers your COG, I guess I assume if somebody is asking the question they are driving too and from the trail. Most people I know who trailer a rig know what they want or don't care because they can trailer it home when it breaks.

 

[MoparManiac]

agreed it lowers your COG, I guess I assume if somebody is asking the question they are driving too and from the trail. Most people I know who trailer a rig know what they want or don't care because they can trailer it home when it breaks.

Hah, and I always assume they trailer it now :gee:.

FWIW, I have a waggy width HP44 as well :thumbup:

D60/D70 going in the MJ.

 

[Begster]

D60/D70 going in the MJ.

Ya, that's because you and the rest of the NAC are lead footed hillbilies.

 

[WaXJ_Skier]

D60/D70 going in the MJ.

throw in a diesel and you got yourself a tow rig for the XJ.

 

[Begster]

throw in a diesel and you got yourself a tow rig for the XJ.

Funny you should say that,

He already does have such a thing, his CTD.

 

[MoparManiac]

Ya, that's because you and the rest of the NAC are lead footed hillbilies.

Says the one who hasn't wheel in...how long has it been now?



Man you leave yourself wide open for those!

throw in a diesel and you got yourself a tow rig for the XJ.

See below:

Funny you should say that,

He already does have such a thing, his CTD.

Ya, 5.9/NV4500/241HD/D60/D80

Don't mind Bills junk on the trailer...

 

[foxwar71]

Ya, that's because you and the rest of the NAC are lead footed hillbilies.

.!..!.



DANA 60 DANA 60 DANA 60 DANA 60!!!!!

 

[WaXJ_Skier]

Ya, 5.9/NV4500/241HD/D60/D80

Now put all that in the MJ.

 

[ECKSJAY]

Nice XJ! I'm getting tired of buggy/chopped XJs. Nice to see a full bodied one running something larger than 33s/35s.

Are you running the Ford radius arms? How did you deal with the case wedges?

Looking at it again, I'll retract the year on my axle. I know it didn't have the cast mounts on it and the PO (guy who built it) said he cut the wedges off, cut the welds on the knuckles, and pounded them off. It is a ball joint setup with disk brakes, 297/760 ujoints and 1/2" tubes... Outers are still factory Ford to keep things simple. RE arms and custom bellypan/crossmember provide placement. There was no such thing as an RE longarm for the XJ when this was built.