Axle Swap Questions

CLNinja · 03-04-2008, 10:41 AM

ok so im looking to swap in axles and i found a D44a from a 98 5.9 locally

it has 3.73 gears and i currently have 3.55 gears

can i run 3.55 in the front and 3.73 in the rear temporarily? what if i remove the front driveshaft? i have a 242J

im gonna find an HP30 with 3.73 for the front

**5.9 ANDY** · 03-04-2008, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CLNinja

ok so im looking to swap in axles and i found a D44a from a 98 5.9 locally

it has 3.73 gears and i currently have 3.55 gears

can i run 3.55 in the front and 3.73 in the rear temporarily? what if i remove the front driveshaft? i have a 242J

im gonna find an HP30 with 3.73 for the front

yea, you can do it, ONLY ONLY ONLY do it if you remove the front drive shaft to eliminate ANY possibility of the front axle engaging.

yea you have a 242, but it is still possible to accidentaly engause the front.

o and BTW, i love my HP30, it is great.

CLNinja · 03-04-2008, 10:47 AM

is it harmful to do it for any extended amount of time if i remove the front shaft?

or will i be just fine and it wont harm a single thing if i remove the front shaft and run it for a few weeks or so

**5.9 ANDY** · 03-04-2008, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CLNinja

is it harmful to do it for any extended amount of time if i remove the front shaft?

or will i be just fine and it wont harm a single thing if i remove the front shaft and run it for a few weeks or so

it wont harm anything since you were smart and swaped in a 242.

everything will be fine, you wont hurt anything, no matter how long you run it for.

are you gona run U-joints up front?

CLNinja · 03-04-2008, 10:53 AM

the driveshaft? yeah i dont want CV on the driveshaft if thats what your asking

**5.9 ANDY** · 03-04-2008, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CLNinja

the driveshaft? yeah i dont want CV on the driveshaft if thats what your asking

no i mean axle shafts, are you going to run CV axle shafts or U-joint axle shafts.

i ask because, with the U-joints that i got btw, im shure there are ones with the same width,but for mine the hub with is narrower than my stock CV shafts, so i now have about .5" less width on my axles, its not that big of a deal realy, but it can mess with your brakes due to the rotor being closer or farther away from the caliper.

it could also mess with your back spaceing, not much, it still dose affect it by a little tiny bit.

CLNinja · 03-04-2008, 11:01 AM

oh ill most likely keep the CV joints on the axleshafts... im not gonna customize the axles really at this point... just swap em right over to get rid of the whinin and grindin diffs i have right now

**5.9 ANDY** · 03-04-2008, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CLNinja

oh ill most likely keep the CV joints on the axleshafts... im not gonna customize the axles really at this point... just swap em right over to get rid of the whinin and grindin diffs i have right now

ok, do you have the HP30 yet? if not, obviously get the newest one you can, or one from a cherokee that had ABS, that way you dont have to drill and tap holes for the retainer clips that hold the ABS wire.

**ArloGuthroJeep** · 03-04-2008, 11:04 AM

You'll be fine Matt. I ran that set up with 4.56 in the rear and 3.55 in the front (w/o the front shaft) for a couple weeks late last year...

CLNinja · 03-04-2008, 11:09 AM

awesome.... still wanna help me with these swaps Ryan? We would be swappin from my D35 Drum rear to a D44a Disc Rear and a D30 front to a HP30 front... both should be straight bolt ons

i dont have the HP30 yet... im still waiting for one to pop up on craigslist or colorado4x4... if i go to the yard... which cherokees have them?

**ArloGuthroJeep** · 03-04-2008, 11:18 AM

Of course I'll still help

You know you'll need to shorten your rear drive shaft though right? If you can get your front DS hooked up, you can always drive in 4wd PT and be FWD until you can get that taken care of.

CLNinja · 03-04-2008, 11:20 AM

haha yeah..

swap rear axle... drive with only front shaft to get rear shortened

put rear shaft on... drive with only rear shaft untill i swap the front axle

this will be fun lol

what do you think shortening the front shaft would cost me

i might be able to find a cheap spare rear shaft to put on while the good one is getting shortened

**ArloGuthroJeep** · 03-04-2008, 11:22 AM

I think my DS shortening cost me around $65 from Drive Shaft Doctors (In North Denver off of I25 next to the Grizzly Rose).

CLNinja · 03-04-2008, 11:28 AM

ive heard englewood driveshafts is good as well... ill call around

do you think $400 for a 98 5.9 D44a 3.73 Rear is a good price?

Sporer65 · 03-04-2008, 11:30 AM

Are you sure you have 3.55 gears? I know that you said you had them earlier, but I have never heard about the V8s having them. Did you get it off the build sheet or the tag on the diff?

Also, I'm jealous. I've been looking for a D44a to swap in and haven't found any for a good price yet.