2.5 2Wd To 4Wd Budget Conversion Plans

[motorbikejedi]

Well first off It has been awhile since I posted, or done anything with my truck for that matter. I have a 1987 jeep comanche 2wd 2.5 liter 127xxx miles with a 4 speed transmission. I have posted about this a few times, but now I have my OWN garage I may be able to actually proceed with all of my plans for this truck.

I am in the planning stage right now so please correct me if you see any gaps or problems with my plan

My master plan

 

Convert my comanche from 2wd to 4wd

What I have

1994 jeep cherokee 4.0 ho 4wd

parts planning on using (other than miscilanious parts)

-transfer case I was told its a 231, which I didnt know would work on a 2.5 trans but apparently it does.

-set of axles

once I figure out which axle exactly are on this jeep I will go from there, I have been told the gearing from the cherokee axles will make my jeep slow as a molasses. So possibly trade these two axles for a front axle from a 2.5 to match the rear. Any reccomendations for what axles should be used in my 2.5 would be appreciated.

-front drive shaft

-3" zone lift

This should work even with the cherokee lift in the back, If i put the add a leaf lift in the rear, even being shorter, It should give me a higher payload rating, added stiffness. This will be ok because I don't need lift out of the rear, I will have to pull out the rear axle and cut and move the mounts from over to under the leaf spring, which will be about 4 inches or so of lift to match the 3 inch lift in the front.

-mis parts include

doors

lights for spares,

interior items

What I need

-transmission, I found someone with an ax5 for sale, Then I would need a clutch most likely for it. Does anyone know about the slave cylinder, Will my four speed slave cyl work with the ax5?

-rear driveshaft, Either cut mine or extend the cherokee or find a comanche shaft.

- new stabalizer bar or extend stock one for lift.

 

This is all i need in my twisted head If anyone thinks of added parts that will be needed, I am trying to see how inexpensivly I can do this, I will worry about bigger tires and new parts when I am done with the conversion. I am sure I will end up doing front end work when the axle is out and I find bad parts but I roughly figure.

I wil start tearing into the cherokee this week hopefully, if work gives me a little break.

thanks for looking and as much input as you have as this will be a new experience for me

 

[Geonovast]

I'll tackle what I can, as parts of your post were a bit confusing.

 

Yes, 231s were used behind the 2.5, but the one you have from a 94 4.0 will not bolt to a 2.5's transmission. The 231 you have will be a 23 spline input, the AX-4/5 has a 21 spline output... you can use your T-case, but you'll need to swap the input shaft for a long 21 spline.

 

Going SOA on your rear axle is going to net you closer to 6 inches above what you have now. ANY rear lift out of an XJ will be essentially worthless to you. If you're planning to go on the cheap, SOA is not a realistic option.

 

Your rear should be geared 3.55. Finding a D30 to match that will be easy, as it's the most common gearing in our axles. A 4.0/auto or 2.5/4 speed will have 3.55.

 

The AX-4 and AX-5, with the exception of the AX-4 not having 5th gear, are identical transmissions. Your clutch will work with any AX-5, and your slave will work with any internal slave AX-5. What year is the AX-5? Now's a good time to upgrade to an external slave.

 

Best bet for your rear driveshaft(not axle, please be careful with those, I had to read that section three times before I figured out what you meant) is to have yours shortened. It's much cheaper than extending the XJ's shaft, and finding a factory MJ one will be near impossible.

[motorbikejedi]

Ok, I have not worked on transfer cases at all other than removing and installing, is it a difficult proceedure to replace the spline shaft? I will find out what year the transmission is and look into an external slave cylinder. That is good to know, I will have to look for markings on the cherokee front axle, That is a 94 4.0 auto, So your saying that may be the axle I need! I just brought my truck home from my parents house, started great after sitting for 6 months other than having to be jumped. As for the truck being SUA, are comanches all stock SUA even with 4wd? Sorry about the confusing post, I tend to ramble on on this kind of stuff and start mixing up words for some reason! Thanks for the help, I am looking forward to looking up the axles and tearing them off. As for the lift I will wait on that, I like the low to ground look anyways, I should have enough clearance for most of the mild off roading I plan to do.

 

Thanks for the input

[Mountain Dude]

Replacing the input shaft is fairly straight forward but long process. You have to split the t-case to get the planetary set out and the only hard part of pulling the planetary is removing the input shaft snap ring which is located under a cover on the front of the front case half. I had one that was glued on there so bad, I destroyed the cover getting it off. Fortunately it was a donor unit that I was stealing the 6 gear planetary from (Chev S-10 NP231C).

[Geonovast]

Yes, all Comanches rolled out of the factory SUA. going SOA nets a lot of lift, so unless you're looking at spending a ton of money to match the front properly, it's not the best bet.

 

There are AAL kits, pack replacement kits(I believe anyway, I don't think Hellcreek were the only ones, but I may be mistaken), and shackle options if you want just a slight bump.

 

Front suspension is no different between XJ/MJ and 2wd/4wd. Swapping front axles will be a breeze, just make sure all the brake hardware stays with the axle. Many different generations for brakes, and your 2wd calipers will not work with the D30's brakes.