I need axel help asap :(

[SeniorGustas]

HEY! so long story short, my cars wheel berrings (or what i thought was wheel berrings) have been making noise ever sense i go my jeep, so i hadnt thought much of it because i want to swap for dana 44 anyway but this last week it had gotten much much worse. So i still didnt do anything, but last night i was going maybe 20 miles and hour and my car stopped accelerating and just kinda sounded as if it was reving. So i pulled over and stopped and when i put it in first gear and tried to accelerate i got the same noise and my speedometer climbed to the speed i would be moving at. i need to get a new axel asap i found one on craigslist hes only asking for $50 and he says its a dana 35 out of a 1989 cherokee (i have a 1987) he said theres nothing wrong with it and he just upgraded his axels. He believes the gearing is 4:10 but is unsure. I thought mine was 3:55 but im also unsure. I had the tow package on my jeep (trailer hitch and such) not sure about his i will ask. My real question is will i be able to mount his axel straight up with out any problems or what??! and will this cure my problem?? i really appreciate the help. :out:

[SeniorGustas]

i believe my gears slipped not sure though ultimetly dont believe my wheel berrings would cause my back tires not to spin

[4.3LXJ]

Standard or auto tranny Adam?

[SeniorGustas]

my jeep is a 4 speed manuel

[4.3LXJ]

Assuming nothing broke, like a pinion or shaft, you probably have a clutch that is completely worn out. To help confirm that, jack up the rear and see if the wheels will move in gear.

[SeniorGustas]

i thought it could be the clutch but i just replaced that... it still drives just fine in four wheel drive and shifts perfectly when i drive with my front tires

[SeniorGustas]

you mean lift it up and make them spin with my hand??

[4.3LXJ]

Well, if it moves in 4WD then forget it. You might want to pull the cover off the diff and look inside then

[SeniorGustas]

Yeah i drove it home last night and in 4wd and to work today. my front tires are really loving the pavement.. ive never worked in a diff. im still in high school and this has been my first project.. so it has to be something with the axel or drive line right? so if it is the axel wouldnt throwing a new dana 35 in it solve what ever it is that is wrong? i was hoping to throw this dana 35 from craigslist in and fix the one that was in mine and put that back on craigslist.

[4.3LXJ]

D35s are not worth much. So don't pay much for it. Second, make sure it is a 3.07 ratio, or you won't be able to use 4WD due to different axle ratios. The auto tranny version has a 3.55 ratio

[SeniorGustas]

when i open up the diff how will i be able to tell if something is wrong?

[4.3LXJ]

Check the teeth on the ring and pinion. It will be obvious if something is wrong. Before you do that, put it in gear and jack up one wheel and try to spin it. If it does, something is broken in it.

[cantab27]

Post pics when she's open mate......

[SeniorGustas]

okay im going to go open her up now. i found two axels on craig a d30 and a d35 with 4:10 asking $150 offered $100 good deal or no? thanks for all the help.

[4.3LXJ]

Yes, good deal

[SeniorGustas]

awesome is it worth my while just to get them anyway?

[SeniorGustas]

whats the differnce in the gearing going to do? im running 33s on the stock gear (what ever a 1987 I4 2.5L 4 speed man has) now with 3 inchs of lift. and if i swap to the 4:10 will it still be able to pull them??

[4.3LXJ]

Didn't know you have an I4. You already have the 4.10 gear ratio. So you would only need the rear axle. Better check it before spending the money though

[SeniorGustas]

So i learned alot last night. I took the diff cover off and the gears look perfect (will up load pictures when i get home) so i put the car in N and had my buddy spin the drive line with his hand while i watched the gears spin. the moved just fine with out fight, but there was a bit of a thud coming from the passengers side, after some careful investigation i noticed the inside of my back passenger side tire was covered in oil. So i took my wheel off disassembled the drum to find that my wheeling bearing had exploded and was in tons of peices. with some careful prying i was able to pull that side axel out to find the the gears on the end were not connecting with the gears in the diff because the was a gap where the wheel berring once was. So at this point all the berrings are out but the thin outer shell from the wheel berring is still stuck inside. i found that a wheel berring kit (both sides) was $200.. after some searching on CL i found a dana 35 and a dana 30 out of a 89 cheroke on craig for $200 asked if hed take a $100 he said yes and it was a deal. He believe that theyre 4:10 but isnt positive. im hoping so. LAst night i pulled my drive line, shocks, and wheels. Tonight after work im hoping to upload the pics. bleed my brakes and drop the axel from the leaf. Id like to get the other one up tongiht as well and get back on the road tomorrow. im currently stuck driving my sisters lime green slug bug to work home and the auto parts while she is in CO.. hahahah. Post pictures tonight thanks for all the help.

[KH96XJ]

If you are lucky they axles you are getting will have the tag on one of the diff cover bolts with the gear set installed. If not, open it up and count the teeth on the ring and divide by the number of teeth on the pinion and you will have the ratio. After you get them you should open them up anyway to inspect them and change the gear oil.

[4.3LXJ]

You can get wheel bearings for about $40 and rent a slide hammer to extract the bearing race.

[SeniorGustas]

My local place only sold the kit. came with the seal and bearing fo rboth sides. but i already have the axel at my house. I tried to open it last night.. it does not have the tag. The bolts are torques heads.... so i pulled mine out last night and the head on my torques broke off. Harbor Freight tools. i have a life time warrenty so ill get them replaced tonight. Would there be anything wrong with just throwing in the axel then checking if my 4wheel drive works? i was planning on refilling the fluid through the little plug on the back of the diff (no idea what its called) but sense its already off i thought i would just lay her on her side and empty her that way then set her back up right and fill it up through the same hole? he said that the had never been regeared and it was out of an automatic 4cyl. wouldnt they both be 4.10? someone has definitly opened the diff before though because it was painted bright neon orange... :( and they did a really bad job with the sealer its all over the place. And i believe that they put the sealer under the nuts on the diff too. i think thats why they broke my torques.. On my stock axel they came over fairly easy after 25 years of rust and dirt.

[4.3LXJ]

You don't want to do 4WD until you verify the ratio. If it is not 4.10, it will do some strange stuff and might break something unless in a low traction situation

[SeniorGustas]

You don't want to do 4WD until you verify the ratio. If it is not 4.10, it will do some strange stuff and might break something unless in a low traction situation

After the axel swap i rolled back down my driveway put it in 4wd and drove back up no bad noises or anything but i did seem like the tires were fighting eachother. As if the front were spinning faster then my rear tires were. havent done anything in 4 after that. its been in 2. i posted a new thread about changing the front gears! if you know anything about it i would appreciate some advice. Thanks for your help!

[4.3LXJ]

Adam, changing gears is something yo need to learn about and get the tools for the job. It would be easier, faster and cheaper to match your ratio with a front end with the same gears

[SeniorGustas]

figured thats what i was going to hear but was hoping it wasnt. haha looks like i got plans for my next break of school! haha its okay they closed every possible spot to wheel in my area >:( i have both axels with matching gearing. So if theyre lower then 4:10 any ideas on what they may be. came out of a i4 auto. no idea if theyve been swapped before. I have reason to belive the rear is locked.. I had my jeep up on jack stands after the swap and spun the drive line with my hand to see both tires spinning. might be losing it but only one was to spin before. guy has no idea about these axels because he bought them already on a lifted jeep that he chopped for parts.

[4.3LXJ]

The best thing to do is start looking at the tags on them