Feasability and cost of a Dana 44 rebuild

[NelsonATC]

I am a bit on the new side here, with some technical knowledge. Came across this Dana 44 to replace the AMC 20 on my 1980 CJ. Can anyone shed some light on what it would take as far as cost and time to rebuild this axle? just looking at the rear, although there are pictures of a front Dana 30 as well.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLanding.action?c=etitdcf.bh3xkdej&x=0&h=1&y=-re2gc1&localeid=en_US

[SlikRic]

Here ya go, start here:

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/search.php?searchid=5102055

Used the search at the top of the page

[Ford_Prefect]

From the photos there really is no way to know. It could be in perfect condition, just slap it in there and away you go. OR it could be rusted solid, in which case it would never get it working again. SO, sorry, but as near as I can tell from the photos we need a lot more info.

Are there gears, did the guy JUST pull the axle, or have they been laying there for a few years. When they were pulled were they kept indoors (garage or the like) or outside? If outside does it snow there?

ALSO Is your jeep a WIDE track or Narrow track, and the same for this D44. If yours is one and the axle is the other... obvious concerns there. If YOUR jeep is Narrow, and the AXLE is wide, then you can just move the perches, and you are fine, if YOUR jeep is wide, and the axle is Narrow then you can just forget it all right now.

What year is the axle, and what did it come off of? Does it even have the same bolt pattern as your jeep's wheels?


Please do not take this all the wrong way. I realize you are new, and maybe you did not know what info to get before you got on here, but now that you know please give us any and every detail about the axle and your jeep that is possible.

Another thing to know, if you upgrade your AMC-20 to once piece inner shafts then it will be as strong as a D-44 is stock. Just food for thought. In other words could you fix up your AMC 20 for the cost of buying this D-44?

Also, obviously, you will need to be sure that your existing front and the new rear have the same gear size. You may find it better, price wise, to just buy his front and sell your full set of axles outright. that is what I did, for me it was more cost effective to purchase the front axle than to get mine built up with the same gears as he already had. (Again, all dependent on who they were stored and in what condition they are really in.)

Good luck

[High5]

In my '71 cj5 I swapped a Dana 30 front from a '84 cj and a 44 rear from a Scout II. The spring perches mached and it was a pretty easy swap. I did have to replace the ring and pinion gears in the front to match the rear. The front and rear gear ratios must match. You can get a rebild kit (gaskets, bearings, seals) for a Dana 44 for about $65. A new ring and pinion set will be around $200. A set of solid axles for your Dana 20 will be around $500. If you are planning on running 35" or larger tires, I'd go with a dana 44 rear.

Cost wise, I'd look at the 44's front and rear. You can pickup a Scout front 44 for around $200 and lots of really cheap parts are available for them (steering knuckes, break parts, high steer kits).

[NelsonATC]

Thanks for the food for thought. Looking into my rear axle a bit further, I noticed that I have a one piece axle on the 20 already. What drove me to look for the D44 rear was that am getting a clanking noise when i turnoff the throttle. When I get back on it, the noise goes away. Someone told me that the spiders were probably shot and I should look into the D44.

[Pathkiller]

Just had my D44 rebuilt, everything new except the ring and pinion, which were still in good shape. Included a new Trac-Lok limited slip. Total price was $567. About half of that was labor, half was parts.

[CSP]

*If* the spiders are shot you have the perfect excuse to swap in a lunchbox locker like an Aussie.

Sounds pretty fishy to me to come to that conclusion without a physical inspection.