Hey all,

I’m about to take a brake from my 8 month boycott on spending money on my Jeep. The reason for this hiatus was I was saving up to purchase my first home. Having been moved in for a few month I just received my first time home buyers tax credit (btw, a special thank you to all you tax payers out there for being forced to subsidize my living arrangements) and guess what its going towards ?

The answer would be reclaiming some get-up out of a red light. I want to beef up my gear ratio. I’m driving a Manual 6-speed on a set of 35’’s. As I recall from when I frequented these forums more often, the consensus was that a 4.88 gear ratio would be the best solution for my situation (though if there has been any shift of the subject, I’m all ears)

My question is, other than the gears, what all do I need on my parts list (besides a good mechanic, got that covered)? Am I going to need new splines? Anything else. Also, I was going to put on rear lockers while I was back there (why not?) and I had my heat set on some e-lockers, but im having trouble finding any that fit a 4.88, any recommendations? Given the extra electrical load its going to take to power that magnet, is there any considerations I should take there?

Also, if this is just a case of “Read the boards stupid!” I apologize, it has been a while, and a simple link to an informative post would be plenty sufficient. Thanks all!

 

I'm not entirely sure what your going to need, but I know that "what" is needed is dependent on what model you have/axles, so you may want to specify that.

 

The only aftermarket locker available for the JK D44 is the ARB. If you have a Dana 35 rear end, save your money and replace the entire axle with a 44.

4.88s with your 6-spd and 35s = exactly the right gear ratio.

You need two sets of R&Ps, two master overhaul kits, and your good mechanic to make it happen.

 

I think you might need a new carrier for the D30 as well.

 

...ARB the only locker available for D44? Um...no
There are options out there, from Detroits to selectable electromagnetic limited slip/locker, OX lockers
Refer to FAQ page for gear charts.

 

Its the 2008 4dr 'X' Model. So i believe thats Dana 44 in the back and Dana 35s in the front. Can you post a link to thise list of lockers mentioned in the above post?

 

D30 front / D44 rear

(some early 07's came with D35 rears. It has not been a front option for the JK)


For the lockers, go out to the locker vendors websites, or to northridge or 4wd or 4wheelparts or quadratec or wherever.

But, for selectables:

-ARB air locker - (the standard that all other selectables are compared to. Can't go wrong with it)
-Yukon Zip Locker (Air activation. New, not a lot of reviews. The specs sound good, and it's like $200 cheaper than the arb. Available for jk d30's in august I believe)
-Ox locker - (used to be cable activation only, I believe they have added air and electric activation as well. Do some searching, a lot of people are not happy with the cable reliability)
-Eaton Elocker - (electic activation. Dynatrac had some very very favorable things to say about this for the D30.)
-Auburn ected - (electric activation. May have some issues with disengaging on the trail?)

What did I miss?

 

ntinhuf, I think you about summed it up for selectables. Yeah...I recall Dynatrac mentioning the Eaton E-locker D30 was a solid build...the D44 had some issues, but 30 was good.

I run the Auburn ECTED LSD/Locker in my rear 44.
Tyler, do some searching on the mentioned units. There will always be pros and cons with each one. Weigh them and decide what suits your needs.

 

Overhaul kits huh, i notice the difference between the normal R&P kit and and the overhaul R&P kit is the addition of "Pinion and Carrier Bearings "

So this is something i'll need? I found the overhaul kit for the rear (For $100 more) but not for the front. I'll only be putting lockers on the rear, does that mean the Normal R&P kit will be fine for the front?

 

When you put new gears in, you need the extra hardware to get them all set up. This is either an install kit, or an overhaul kit.

The overhaul kit is more expensive because it has more parts - and is arguably the better way to go, as removing the bearings without damage is a concern.

An install kit is generally only used on very low mileage axles, and you have to hope that there was no damage to the 'used' bearings - either from the removal/reinstallation or from normal driving...