Rear 8.8 conversion

[Car RamRod]

alright boys, I fragged something in my dana 35 rear in my 86 manche.

 

I can get an exploder rear no problem, but I wanted to look over the writeup before buying anything, does anyone have a link to one of the articles on the swap?

 

also, what are the gear ratios that could be in my truck?

 

thanks

[Oizarod115]

what engine/tranny? i only know the 4.0 ratios so I'm no help with an 86.

[Car RamRod]

2.8l v6, 3 speed auto.

[Bounty Hunter]

I'd guess 3.55 or 3.73 but I really have no idea with the 2.8L v6.

 

Luckily Exploder rear ends are out there with the common MJ gear ratios. I put a 4.10 8.8 in the rear of my MJ and was sure the flange adapter was attached to the pinion flange when I bought it.

[JOMJ87]

It is prob 3.07 or 3.55 But if you look on the tag on the diff cover you will see it on there.

 

Cole

[88swampedmj]

or get some 4.10s :brows:

[Oizarod115]

the 2.8 is a fairly small engine it might have had a 4 somethign ratio

 

pete knows cause ive seen him type them out before. I'm pretty sure.

[DirtyComanche]

I think it's 3.73.

 

 

 

Anyways, it's a pretty straight foreward swap. There's a couple of links to write-ups in that FAQ that's lost in the general section.

 

 

Get the companion flage with the axle, and the u-bolts, and the springs plates. It makes life easier.

[Pete M]

It's very hard to give rules for 86 MJs. All sorts of craziness happened that year. You really need to check out the tag to make sure. All I know for certain is that the 3.07 ratio is only found behind 4.0L sticks.

[feerocknok]

Link to the swap (but all for TJ, which is the same swap, but the spring perches are located in a different place):

http://www.jedi.com/obiwan/jeep/ford88.html

http://members.cox.net/rough-riders/tec ... rd8_8.html

http://www.off-road.com/jeep/tech/axle/Ford8.8/97.html <-just notes really

[minydigger]

My 86 2.8 has 3.55's in it.

[Car RamRod]

I just counted the r&p, I have 46 on the ring and 13 on the pinion, so it's a 3.54 gearset. This might sound silly but can I get away with rear 3.55s and front 3.54s in the snow?

[Pete M]

3.54 paired with 3.55 is perfectly normal. It's only 0.3% off. There's usually a greater difference than that between your tires front to rear. :D

[Car RamRod]

3.54 paired with 3.55 is perfectly normal. It's only 0.3% off. There's usually a greater difference than that between your tires front to rear. :D

thats what I was thinking.

 

Figured I might as well say what the damage was: 7 busted teeth, in a group of 3 and 4. The pinion was a little chewed up as well. The worst thing is I have NO idea when this happened.

 

So I'm gonna try to grab a drum 8.8 and see what I can do spending as little as I can.

[Pete M]

I know what went wrong. You were running a Dana 35! I blew one up on the way to work one day and I was only running 30" tires. They just spontaneously explode like that.

 

There's nothing wrong with the drummed 8.8. It's just as strong as the disk version. Just make sure it's from an Explorer/Mountaineer.

[Car RamRod]

I know what went wrong. You were running a Dana 35! I blew one up on the way to work one day and I was only running 30" tires. They just spontaneously explode like that.

 

There's nothing wrong with the drummed 8.8. It's just as strong as the disk version. Just make sure it's from an Explorer/Mountaineer.

hah yea this thing is punier than the 7.5" 10 bolt that was in my brothers ls1 camaro, and that thing was a pos. I run 8.8s in my mustangs so I know their a good rear so I'm pretty comforatable putting one in, plus picking up the trac-lok can't hurt either.

 

I also discovered a broken leaf spring when I was taking 35 out today, what's the story on replacing these, are there any junkyard springs that bolt in and give me a little lift or anything?

 

thanks

[Oizarod115]

pete did a big write up about leaf springs...

 

you can use explorer leafs as well.. just mix and match the broken ones with explorer ones i would imagine.

 

ill see if i can find pete's thread on it and link it here in a minute.

 

 

EDIT: http://comancheclub.com/forums/viewtopi ... af+springs

 

that MIGHT be it... not sure..

[Pete M]

This one:

 

http://comancheclub.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1658

[Oizarod115]

This one:

 

http://comancheclub.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1658

 

yeah, what he said!

[Car RamRod]

I feel silly asking this, but I didnt actually see in that thread if you gained any lift. I saw that you thought you may have lost some, but nothing afterwards. Ironically, it's the top leaf that I broke, any ideas where I could get one?

[DirtyComanche]

I feel silly asking this, but I didnt actually see in that thread if you gained any lift. I saw that you thought you may have lost some, but nothing afterwards. Ironically, it's the top leaf that I broke, any ideas where I could get one?

 

 

 

JCwhittney or whatever-the-fawk they're called sells replacement stock packs. No idea if they are any good.

 

 

It's that or the junkyard.

 

 

Or order some nice alcans...

[Pete M]

The top leaf is MJ-specific so you'll have to find another. try car-part.com for junkyards.

[feerocknok]

Pete, what sort of length difference are there that stop someone from using the Explorer packs alone? One of the pictures on my computer looks like it's possible to redrill the shackle mount forward an inch or backwards and inch and a half and still be safe.

[JOMJ87]

you would have to be careful cause changing anything on the unibody change the structural integrity of it. You may weakin the area if you do that. Just a thought to keep in mind.

 

Cole

[Pete M]

The big reason for not using the entire Explorer pack alone is that it will lower even a 2wd MJ.

 

I don't understand why you would want to move the shackle mount location? That part is just fine. It's the location of the center pin in the pack that pushes the MJ axle forward in the MJ wheel well.