Front: 1.16-inch spline, Ring-gear diameter: 7.2inches, Recommended Maximum Tire Size: 35 inches.

Right now (stock) I have a Dana 30 in the front. It's a low-pinion axle. It is the only Dana 30 that uses a crush sleeve for pinion bearing preload. This is slightly undesirable because trail contact with the yoke could throw it out of adjustment. Some of the ZJ and WJ axle shafts have CV joints instead of the common Spicer style axles with U-joints. They can be upgraded. This Dana 30 doesn't have a disconnect axle so we feel the housing is stronger. We'd opt for a selectable locker and if you want alloy shafts you'll have to convert to a locking hub outer. Available gear ratios range from 3.07 to 4.88. The big WJ brakes will bolt onto the TJ, XJ, and ZJ housings.

Rear: 1.18-inch spline, Ring-gear diameter: 7.52 inches, Recommended Maximum Tire Size: 33 inches.

The Dana 35 rear axle replaced the AMC20 in Jeeps with the introduction of the Wrangler. It certainly wasn't an upgrade with smaller shafts and ring hear. The '85- '89 versions are non-C-clip. Later models have C-clips. There is no significant strength difference, and some lockers are interchangeable between the two Dana 35s. However, the axleshafts are different. The tubes of the 35 are small and we feel the assembly can benefit from some kind of axle truss. Installing a full-floater kit in a bent Dana 35 will result in hogged-out locking hubs, oil leaks, and possible shaft breakage. A bent housing can also cause locker failure. Ratios from 2.73 to 4.88 are available.

-JP Magazine November 2001


It is going to be very difficult to find a used D44 for a TJ - until the Rubicon they weren't available as an option in the U.S., so you would have to find a custom one that somebody is selling…..good luck.

The u-joints in the TJ D30s and most (all?) D44s are the same (297's). That is normally the weak point in both axles, so the expense of going to a D44 probably isn't worth it, at least IMHO. With one exception, every D30 I've seen break has been the driver's side at the u-joint. The other one incident was a passenger side shaft itself. A custom D44 shaft broke on a run yesterday, also at the u-joint.

Another option is to pick up a XJ Dana 30. They are a high-pinion design and the ring and pinion is stronger. The later models use the 297 u-joints, but be sure to find one without the vacuum disconnect. The driveshaft may need to be shortened, but with your 3” teraflex lift and 1” body lift it may not be necessary.


 
axles.txt · Last modified: 2010/06/16 13:42 by 127.0.0.1
[unknown button type]
 
Except where otherwise noted, content on this wiki is licensed under the following license: CC Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International
Recent changes RSS feed Donate Powered by PHP Valid XHTML 1.0 Valid CSS Driven by DokuWiki