Dana 35 Disc brake conversion

jeepmanalex · 06-17-2009, 03:49 PM

Hey guys a friend of mine suggested that I get the disc brakes off of a grand cherokee with the same dana 35 axle to get rid of my drum brakes on the rear of my TJ, is this possible? If so what potential problems could I be looking at?

quattrogato · 06-17-2009, 04:17 PM

I think you will find that the general opinion on this would be don't waste your time for 2 basic reasons - 1. You will not get any real improvement in braking performance by doing this and 2. You would be better of saving to either upgrade the D35 to increase its overall strength and durability, or better yet, just swap it out completely for a better axle.

Jay98TJ · 06-17-2009, 04:23 PM

I did it, DON'T do it. Spend your money and time on a disc D44 or 8.8!

mcg311TJ · 06-17-2009, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by quattrogato

I think you find that the general opinion on this would be don't waste your time for 2 basic reasons - 1. You will not get any real improvement in braking performance by doing this and 2. You would be better of saving to either upgrade the D35 to increase its overall strength and durability, or better yet, just swap it out completely for a better axle.

Great answer, and I agree x10

If you wan't an ugrade, get the vanco big brake kit

Gabe · 06-17-2009, 04:39 PM

I'd rather drive a D44 (or a S35) with old rusty drums than a D35 with shiny discs

jgorm · 06-17-2009, 04:49 PM

I did the tera disk swap and am totally stoked that i did. Drum brakes suck. Who wants to get under there every few 1000mi to readjust them? They trap dirt and water, then rust up so they jump when you hit the brakes. The E brake works way better too, because it doesn't wear out and need adjustment all the time.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gabe

I'd rather drive a D44 with old rusty drums than a D35 with shiny discs

Me too, but i looked for about 3 months for a D44 in san diego and didn't see anything for less that $1500. I figured i can throw a S35 arb in there for less $ than a d44 with way less work. (yes i'm lazy) Please not another d35/d44/s35 hijack.

Gabe · 06-17-2009, 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jgorm

I did the tera disk swap and am totally stoked that i did. Drum brakes suck. Who wants to get under there every few 1000mi to readjust them? They trap dirt and water, then rust up so they jump when you hit the brakes. The E brake works way better too, because it doesn't wear out and need adjustment all the time.

Me too, but i looked for about 3 months for a D44 in san diego and didn't see anything for less that $1500. I figured i can throw a S35 arb in there for less $ than a d44 with way less work. (yes i'm lazy) Please not another d35/d44/s35 hijack.

I couldn't afford a Tera kit at the time, so I pieced it together with JY parts. Saved myself $400 over Tera!!!! Do you have any idea how good that feels???

See edit in above post

moneypit2 · 06-17-2009, 05:17 PM

i just did the cherokee swap and it was the best thing i ever did i used power stop rotors and ebc green stuff pad and it stops like crazy and i didn't have poorly adjusted drums they just suck

**ozo101** · 06-17-2009, 08:33 PM

it can be done , and its easy, and if you ask me there is a big improvement, maintenance !!! truth is drum brakes suck balls, I refuse to run drum brakes!, come on guys we were supposed to have flying cars in the year 2000 remember but instead we are still running drum brakes in 2009 hehe, anyways you could probably get a set from a g-cherokee for arround 200.00 and the bolt rite in.

**mrblaine** · 06-17-2009, 08:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ozo101

anyways you could probably get a set from a g-cherokee for arround 200.00 and the bolt rite in.

Bolt right in? Did you use the axles from the Grand Cherokee 35?

moneypit2 · 06-17-2009, 09:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrblaine

Bolt right in? Did you use the axles from the Grand Cherokee 35?

i got my rear setup from a 97 grand cherokee backing plates calipers brake lines and e brake cables but i used my stock 35 axles

moneypit2 · 06-17-2009, 09:15 PM

here you go but make sure you get all the brake line off the donor axle or you could cut and re flare you existing ones http://www.links4jeeps.com/writeups/...ion/index.html

lupinsea · 06-18-2009, 10:32 AM

I did the ZJ disc swap as posted in the link above. Pretty easy and affordable vs. Tera or any other conversion.

Don't expect a huge improvement in stopping power. Mine improved a bit and firmed up the pedal, but I also blead the whole brake system after the swap and that might have been the difference.

A couple points:

1. It's not a waste of money if done for the right reasons. These included reduced maintenance, better clean out, and disc brakes never needing adjustment.

2. The ZJ brake mod can be swapped over to a D44 with the addition of a $5 bearing retainer plate from the Jeep dealership. Everything else lines up.

3. The ZJ brake mod also works with any S35 upgrade.

Honestly, apart from spending $250-300 for some easier maintenance / cleanout / ease of adjustment I don't see a down side to doing the swap, even onto a D35 axle. Especially since the ZJ brake swap will work with a future S35 or D44 upgrade.

**mrblaine** · 06-18-2009, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by moneypit2

i got my rear setup from a 97 grand cherokee backing plates calipers brake lines and e brake cables but i used my stock 35 axles

If you used your stock axles, then you had to press off the bearings and swap on the Rubi style disc brake bearing retainers. No?

**ozo101** · 06-18-2009, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrblaine

Bolt right in? Did you use the axles from the Grand Cherokee 35?

nope, but mine is also a d35 not a 44 why