A year or so ago I broke my rear Dana 35 goofing off at Diablo Dropoff. It looked like this:
I thought that was the perfect time to work in a Dana 60, my wallet didn't agree. I came across a sweet deal on a set of axles off a 2005 Rubicon and snatched them up for a swap. It turned out to be about a three hour job for two people and it was close to a complete bolt-in.
The Rubicon axles use the same coil buckets, shock and track bar mounts and are the same width as the TJ axles. The main differences are the u-joint yokes being a different size, the rear brake block is different and the "pumpkins" are longer (and of course rear disc brakes)
Pretty simple job, remove the old axles, bolt up the new ones. I used the stock rear drive shaft as-is and adapted it to the Rubicon D44 using a 1310/1330 combo u-joint (Spicer part# 5-134X) . I did this with no SYE and it works fine. It's a little bit of a tight fit with not a lot of play left in the driveshaft and should be easier with an SYE.
Get a skateboard, awesome axle swap tool:
A couple of words of advice, this is a great time to install an SYE and get a new rear drive shaft. Also, rent or buy a u-joint tool or be prepared to do the BFH and socket routine to get the old joint out. That sucker was stuck and took quite a bit of time to get it out, could've saved some time with right tool.
I had read about problems with the brake lines and e-brake cables and proportioning valves and all sorts of horror stories but had no issues there. I took the brake line/breather block off the D35 and it bolted right up to the Rubi D44 tube and hard lines. The e-brake cable routed and fit just like the originals, adjusted better than stock and holds with no problems. I also used the stock brake metering block under the hood, made no changes to the stock brake system. Another advice moment, this is also a really good time to get extended brake lines if you don't already have them. I used Crown silicone core, kevlar/braided steel outer lines and flushed the system with synthetic fluid, $99 a set on eBay.
The Dana 35 brake block installed on the Rubicon axle:
I don't have adjustable LCA's, just extended lower arms that came with the lift. For now they work ok, adjustable LCAs and a better set of UCAs are in the future but the driveline angle isn't that bad (but the budget is pretty bad, so have to wait for those).
On the Rubicon factory model the air pumps are located on the top rear of the trans skid plate, not the best location. I installed the air pumps under the driver's seat and wired them into a switch panel mounted on the dash where the ash tray was located so I now have six switch slots there (I'll do another write-up for that).
The front drive shaft was way too long because of the extra length of the axle pumpkin. I pulled the front drive shaft off and had it shortened at San Diego Driveline, @90 out the door, cut, balanced, painted and a cool new decal.
EDIT: The front drive shaft also needs the 1310/1330 combo u-joint to mate the factory drive shaft to the Rubi D44. Be sure to pick up a spare combo u-joint. If you do an SYE along with or after the axle swap you can order the new driveshaft with the larger 1330 yoke and use a straight 1330 u-joint.
On a side note. Stock axle was 3:73's, the axle I was using had 4:88's, now I have 4:10's so I got to sample a pretty good gear range. I'd be curious to try 4:56's but not doing a swap to satisfy my curiosity but it seems like 4:56 would be a good "all-around" setup.
It was pretty much a dog with the stock gearing and 35's. With the 4:88's, it would git!!! I could easily spin the 35's, freeways and hills were all fast lane. RPM range at freeway speed was in the 3 to 3.5k range. Only thing that I had to get used to was that it "leaped" off the line in first gear (when I used it, which was not often), it really wanted to take off. The 4:10's are more sedate. It doesn't feel like it just wants to go, like now, go, but it's a lot better than stock and I can stay in fifth gear on almost all hills.
The lockers have performed very well and come on and cut off almost instantly. If you want an affordable way to upgrade your axles and gears and get lockers in the mix a Rubicon axle swap should be considered.
Finally, there's a lot of controversy about the Rubicon Dana 44's not being "real" Dana 44's, and there is some truth to that, they are actually a hybrid axle made up of Dana 44, 35 and 30 parts, but, they are stronger than stock for the most part and for a trail rig running 33's or smaller they work great. They should be on the thinking about it list...
It's up under there, a Dana 44 with lockers and disc brakes
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