Mod recommendations??

[apeXJudge824]

hey everyone, im new to the forum but not new to jeeps! names Louis btw.

just picked up a sweeeet blast from the pas 87 2door cherokee which is running like a top beside a minor valve cover oil leak.

looking to make this into a pretty legit trail rig, looking to travel cross country with it and visit as many off road parks as possible just looking for some input on what mods you guys think will be best.

First off, defiantly going to be swapping axles.
was looking at dana 44 front (4.88 or 5.13gears) locked maybe..
and for the rear, ford 8.8 swap also with 4.88 or 5.13s locked
which would be the easy route when it comes to mounting these axles
but has anyone ever done GM axles? or am i :crazy: i only ask cause this local axle guy of mine has some sweet 14 bolts totally redone with 5.13s and disc brake conversion for 1500. no lockers.
Still feeling the 44front and 8.8 rear tho. Also if this is strickly going to be my trail rig.. should i waste the money locking the diffs or should i just do the old weld trick for constant 4x4.. would save me like 1400 roughly

Second, lift kit.
Originally thinking 8.5inches and trying to squeeze in 39s with some serious fender trimming.. However, instead of trying to look cool i figured i probably should make it more functional.. :sign0181:
Now, im thinking 6.5inch lift with 37s. mainly just worried about functionallity for what i come across with the numerous places i plan on visiting. 6.5inches seems more reasonable rather than 8.5 or squeezing 9.

well thats all i have to ask for now. thanks for reading such a long post if you do read it haha
Thanks for any information. oh and i wanna get the axles sorted out first so i can figured out where to go with my lift kit mounting from there! thanks guys appreciate it!

[bluedragon436]

I would def. say go with the D44 up front and the 8.8 in the rear.. But that is because there is so many parts out there for them, not to mention kits that make them fairly close to ready to install units with a little bit of welding work... As far as the lift, I would stick with the 6.5" lift myself personally... but that is just because the higher you go, the easier it is for you to roll you rig over while wheeling... Just my $.02!!

[Mudderoy]

hey everyone, im new to the forum but not new to jeeps! names Louis btw.

just picked up a sweeeet blast from the pas 87 2door cherokee which is running like a top beside a minor valve cover oil leak.

looking to make this into a pretty legit trail rig, looking to travel cross country with it and visit as many off road parks as possible just looking for some input on what mods you guys think will be best.

First off, defiantly going to be swapping axles.
was looking at dana 44 front (4.88 or 5.13gears) locked maybe..
and for the rear, ford 8.8 swap also with 4.88 or 5.13s locked
which would be the easy route when it comes to mounting these axles
but has anyone ever done GM axles? or am i :crazy: i only ask cause this local axle guy of mine has some sweet 14 bolts totally redone with 5.13s and disc brake conversion for 1500. no lockers.
Still feeling the 44front and 8.8 rear tho. Also if this is strickly going to be my trail rig.. should i waste the money locking the diffs or should i just do the old weld trick for constant 4x4.. would save me like 1400 roughly

Second, lift kit.
Originally thinking 8.5inches and trying to squeeze in 39s with some serious fender trimming.. However, instead of trying to look cool i figured i probably should make it more functional.. :sign0181:
Now, im thinking 6.5inch lift with 37s. mainly just worried about functionallity for what i come across with the numerous places i plan on visiting. 6.5inches seems more reasonable rather than 8.5 or squeezing 9.

well thats all i have to ask for now. thanks for reading such a long post if you do read it haha
Thanks for any information. oh and i wanna get the axles sorted out first so i can figured out where to go with my lift kit mounting from there! thanks guys appreciate it!

:welcome: I'm still pretty new to the XJ 4x4 scene, but I'll tell you what I think anyway. Everyone says height is bad because it changes the center of gravity. I agree, the higher the CG the fewer degrees of off axis you can do before you roll. You can offset that though with weight. Frame stiffeners, sliders, armor down low. So if you can calculate your center of gravity you'd know just how high you could go. 8.5" might be doable in this light.

[4.3LXJ]

The GM axles won't work because the pumpkin for the front is on the right side. If you go full width axles, then the Ford 9" rear/D44 front is the hot ticket there. Lots of aftermarket support for that. As far as mounting, the rear is easy with a spring pad relocation and you will need a slip yoke eliminator and double cardan driveline for that height. 6.5" is fine, above that you will need steering upgrades like a high steer or something similar. To get an 8.5" lift road worthy takes some skills and money. As far as mounting the front, there are weld on kits available to make that happen. Again, you will need driveline or pinion yoke changes for any D44. The only D44 that works well stock width is from the FSJ Wagoneer. Make sure it is passenger side drop on the tcase. Grab the 44 rear while you are at it.

[apeXJudge824]

Thanks for the info so far guys :cheerleader:

So far my plan is to keep this baby a trailer toy and not road worthy, i think i could make it much more capable vehicle with out having to worry about silly road things like sway bars and all that bs, as well as emissions in nj cause i wanna open the old AMC motor up a bit with out swaping for a stroker.

I understand the GM, didnt do much research on the swap if it was even possible so thats out really.
I am looking to get the stance pretty wide however, so what i really dont know is dana 44 front axles as far as lke jeep and ford, if theyre the same or different.. which are wider and blah blah.
What the widest i can get for dana 44 front and ford 9 or 8.8rears

And?? are the 9 and 8.8 considered close to the same as far as mounting.. like can i buy a ford 8.8 XJ mounting kit thatll work on a 9.. but im sure they probably have XJ ford 9 mounting kits

[4.3LXJ]

Well, if yoiu are going to do that, then you might want to consider a three link front, Iron Rock Off road makes one, and weld on the upper link mount on the passenger side. That will make that much easier. You will need a good aftermarket track bar, Iron Man Andy is the guy for that. Tom Woods for the drive lines and custom tie rod and drag link. The spring pads for the rear are available from several companies that have fabricator parts along with shock brackets for the shocks of your choice.

[apeXJudge824]

A big 10-4 on that sir, looks like i just need to do a little more rrsearch on the exact specs i need. I love the iron man track bar but what about a full 1ton over the knuckle steering kit? any difference or any better? also was looking at possibly adding hydraulic steer assist from PSC unless the stock pump can handle some good old 37s

[4.3LXJ]

Yes high steer is a good thing over 6" of lift. You need to do some more reading. I have posted a couple of links from my stuff on building long arm suspensions from scratch with track bar included as well as my overall build. You will also find in the same section stuff on setting driveline angles and a few other goodies you might put on the list. I have not swapped axles yet, but I will. I have half the stuff I need for that and am just stuck in a slow economy right now. Hopefully this winter.

http://www.xjtalk.com/showthread.php?t=8169&highlight=build

http://www.xjtalk.com/showthread.php?t=4716&highlight=build

I think you will find some ideas and information you need here as well as ideas. One thing is that if you go high steer, you need to relocate the axle end of the track bar if you plan to drive it over 35mph. Just a couple more brackets you need. The stuff I made will go head to head with Andy's stuff. But if you go through all this, he will do custom work for you so bear that in mind in your plans.

I have an AGR box with their pump. Much better steering so far. I pan also to have a hydraulic assist on the 38s

[apeXJudge824]

Wow your rig is incredible. wish i had some serious knowledge like that. But thank you for your write up links. will definitely be doing more research on what i need for my swaps i have in mind. for now, looks like i have some rust in the floor boards i need to be taking care of before the axle swaps

[4.3LXJ]

Wow your rig is incredible. wish i had some serious knowledge like that. But thank you for your write up links. will definitely be doing more research on what i need for my swaps i have in mind. for now, looks like i have some rust in the floor boards i need to be taking care of before the axle swaps

Thanks man. While you do your research, bear in mind a project like yours will grow more than you are thinking now. You will look at it and say, hey I'd like to also do... So the first thing I would recommend is do some basics like stiffen the frame. There are kits for this. Get that out of the way and then you can start the other stuff.

[apeXJudge824]

Yeah right on man. Hear you on that. Ive actually already ripped out the interior in prep to get rid of all the floor board rust and probably throw some 1/8inch sheet on top of that inside the cab to keep things anchored down well and of course solid coats of paint to keep any rusty from coming back. Maybe ill do a little write up to show my progress as i get going into that venture. :popcorn: