Replacing Aw4 Bell Housing

[Dando]

Ok so while driving my 2wd 1990 4.0 MJ today I lost at least one ujoint cap and thus lost my driveshaft. It was discounted at the rear axle once i finally coasted off the highway. The engine died at some point while coasting, when I tried to restart it the starter spun freely, so I checked it and noticed that the bellhousing broke and let the starter drop off the truck. Any ideas why dropping a shaft would cause the bellhousing to break? I'm really concerned about why this happened, doesn't seem to make sense to me. But I am not that educated on the workings of everything.

 

Also I have an extra aw4 from a 93-94 XJ it is a 4wd though and it is missing the t/c so I can't easily swap the whole trans. Any problems with pulling the bellhousing from the extra trans and bolting it up to my existed 2wd bell housing?

[carnuck]

As long as the trans are the same AW4, no issues. Sounds like the driveshaft bounced and hit the bell.

[Strokermjcomanche]

Davies has a 2wd aw4 trans with a100k for 50 bucks just an option instead of replacing the bellhousing or maybe it would be a good donor trans

[Dando]

Thanks everybody, I actually already swapped a bellhousing over from an extra 4wd trans I had laying around. After all that work though the truck still will not move under it's own power. I think either the torque converter or the trans itself are bad and probably the reason everything broke in the first place. When draining the fluid it didn't smell off but it looked like engine oil when draining out. Naxja members seem to suggest that my trans itself is bad. I have decided to stop wasting my time with the 2wd. Hopefully the weather breaks soon and a warming trend starts, when that does happen I am gonna rip the trans/transfer etc all out of my 95 XJ and swap it all into the MJ. I hit a deer with the XJ the other day though so it's not in great shape right now either, gonna see if I can get it to track straight today so at least I have one vehicle to get me around in the meantime.

[carnuck]

When it rains, it pours, right? I need to change my trans too and I've been too sick to do it. Mine is cruising around with 1/2 ATF and 1/2 antifreeze.