Ford 8.8

[fuzzbal]

I was reading this swap a guy did and he said a rear axle from a '97 and up explorer will fit under a wrangler. He also said that ford puts them in mustangs and other trucks as well. My questions are is there certain year axles that i could swap out of an explorer? and is it only from an explorer, or could it be a mustang as well?

[Loosedog]

From what I have been told. Mustang axels are too small. Explorer axles are the one's you want. Some explorer axles come with limited slip already in them, so it's a better buy. Lots of write-ups about 8.8 axle swaps. Currently doing one in my YJ.

[Fifthpro]

Plus it will give you disc brakes in the rear. Much stronger than the Dana 35 (but is still a C Clip axle). Handles 35's with ease.......

[RescueJP]

F150 axle will work as well as expeditions

[Ricky Booby]

I put one in from a 97 explorer. The explorer is lik 60" wms to wms. It will be 5/8 narrower per side than a D35. But that isn't an issue. Like said above, most come with LSD, you can get 4.10s from the factory, with disc brakes. Nice upgrade for the rearend. A REALLY good site fro installation issue is stu-offroad.com He has measurements for the brackets, part numbers for ebrake cables, etc. Lots of good info on it. Also try Jeepsunlimited.com

I would go with a 97+. 96 and older have drum brakes. Stay away from the ranger axles, as they have drums as well. The mustang is narrower, and the full size axles are just that. Full size. The sport trac is independant all the way around starting like 2000 or so.

Hope that helps.

Bobby

[papsolddually]

right now there are 3 guys from my other board that have done the 8.8 swap just in the last 4 months or so. they are all happy with the swap end results also. seems to be a fairly easy swap if you are the least bit mechanically inclined. and i think they all took theirs from 97's in bone yards. they kinda seem to be laying around everywhere around here.

[Ricky Booby]

The hardest part really is setting up the bracketry for the TJ. But if you get a MORE kit, or something similar, it really isn't all that difficult.

[MetViper]

You want a 95+ (up until they put IRS in the Explorer, IDK what year that was), as they all have disc brakes. F-150s are too wide, I believe Mustangs are too narrow.

Some 8.8s can be had with LSD.

We put one under my buddy's TJ last year. We cut off the brackets from his D35 and welded them on the 8.8. You could fork over a bunch money and buy a set of brackets as well. I have an 8.8 under my XJ, but that swap was way easier due to leaf spring suspension.

The 8.8 is arguably stronger than a D44, are more plentiful in the correct length (~60") in the junkyards, and have a lot of aftermarket support.

[Big Green]

Why does everyone mention the disc brakes?

Fuzzbal, is this a daily driver with most of its time spent on the road? If so, then go with discs. Discs are great for road driving.

If it is to be a mostly trail vehicle then there is nothing wrong with drums. A lot of people prefer drums in the rear off road.

Figure out what you need and go from there. Another option is the Ford 9" too. I have one sitting in my garage that will go under my YJ one day. The 9" has more aftermarket support too. Again, figure out what you need/want and what your budget will allow, then go from there.

[Ricky Booby]

Why does everyone mention the disc brakes?

Fuzzbal, is this a daily driver with most of its time spent on the road? If so, then go with discs. Discs are great for road driving.

If it is to be a mostly trail vehicle then there is nothing wrong with drums. A lot of people prefer drums in the rear off road.

Disc brakes are just a perk. An 8.8 is still a considerable upgrade from a D35.