Dana front and rear thoughts.

[SGS714]

I have found a dana 44 front and dana 60 rear axels from a very low mileage 1986 jeep j20 3/4 ton pickup within 40mi of my home for $200. Is this something that will fit under my 71 IIa without much trouble or should I pass on them? I am willing to give up the inch of clearance.

[leafsprung]

if you are asking this question I would pass on them

[JimCT]

Why??

Why would you want to?

[I Leak Oil]

Even if you don't use them on your rover, for $200 I'd pick them up anyway. You could make some dough reselling them or save them for a future project.

[SGS714]

Why would you want to?

All my equipment works for me...be it basic transportation, towing, or recreational off-road use. Even my dogs need to earn their keep and they do hard labor...(3mo a year they average 100-200mi a week in upland cover for birds). Anyway I have heard many accounts that the axiles and diffs are the weak link of a Series. I do not care whether or not that they are factory or British issue. What I expect out of this truck is the ability to get miles off a hard road during hunting season and be able to make it back safe.

[mongoswede]

I picked up a set of Dana 44's out of a 1980 International Scout II. The front axle is a passenger side drop diff and the rear is a center drop. The front brakes are discs while the rears are drums. We looked at fitting the axles to my 88" land rover project but decided to save them for something else. Spring mount bolts on the front axle pass through the diff housing so that you are limited on position....this would require the spring mounts to be moved outboard on the frame by about 1.5 inches per side....not that big of a deal but a mod none the less. The rear would just be a matter of welding the spring perches into the proper location. That said it looked like one of the cross members would have to be modified in order to fit a center drive shaft...which means that a different transfer case would have to be used. I considered using a Dana 300...then I'd have to decide whether to keep the stock rover engine and transmission and adapt them to the new drive configuration...or should I just put in all new stuff. So in the end we just kept it stock because the $125 I spent for the axles was a deal. However it was quickly looking like $2000 worth of mods just drive those axles.

Are the Jeep axles you are looking at both passenger side drop? If so and the spacing is such that all you have to do is weld on new spring perches then I'd say go for it. I think the axles in the wagoneers were Dana 44's and might have both been Passenger drops also the axles from Land Cruiser FJ40,55,60, and I think 62's are all Passenger side drops. I think the Land cruiser axles are easier to fit and there is a thread in this forum with lots of good info on swapping them.

[SGS714]

So in the end we just kept it stock because the $125 I spent for the axles was a deal. However it was quickly looking like $2000 worth of mods just drive those axles.

I think the Land cruiser axles are easier to fit and there is a thread in this forum with lots of good info on swapping them.

Mongoswede, Thank you this is just the type of info I am looking for. As you could see in my other post...I just happened on these and know I will be doing some type of drive train upgrades to the truck. I am not looking for a simple drop/bolt in upgrade and don't mind at all doing the fabrication....just not beyond what makes sense for the goal in mind.
Here are the axles.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/jeep-j10-j20-dana-44-dana-60-axels-tires-wheels-/350372335376?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Vintage_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item5193d18f10

[mongoswede]

The front looks like it has enough spacing to work well with a rover allowing for enough room to just remount the spring mounts. The rear is a center drop which will require a lot of work to fit...you will at the least need to install a different transfer case to work with the center drop diff. You may need to modify your frame to clear the drive shaft and you will likely need some custom drive shafts made up.

[SafeAirOne]

If I may make a suggestion...

Why not just slap a Salisbury (Dana 60) rear axle in there and be done with it? The cost may be more at the outset, but if your time is worth anything, it'll be cheaper in the end.

[mongoswede]

If I may make a suggestion...

Why not just slap a Salisbury (Dana 60) rear axle in there and be done with it? The initial cost may be more at the outset, but if your time is worth anything, it'll be cheaper in the end.

any idea where to get one? The ones I found for sale were ridiculously expensive.

[JimCT]

confused

So if you are not happy with the LR why have one in the first place? Just curious.

[SGS714]

agitator

So if you are not happy with the LR why have one in the first place? Just curious.

I apologize if I have offended you is some way. You have not made a positive statement yet in your post on this thread. I do not recall ever saying I was not happy with the LR. As an owner of 3 Land Rover Products with only 2 drivers in the family and no other makes of transportation I am curious how you came to this conclusion. Actually I really don't care and prefer not reading another post from you on this topic.

[SafeAirOne]

any idea where to get one? The ones I found for sale were ridiculously expensive.

Good point...It's easy for me to presume that they're laying around the countryside, just waiting to be wisked away for pennies on the dollar, because I'm not in need of one.

[SGS714]

If I may make a suggestion...

Why not just slap a Salisbury (Dana 60) rear axle in there and be done with it? The cost may be more at the outset, but if your time is worth anything, it'll be cheaper in the end.

I agree but have not found one for less money then I paid for my truck. I do a search in eBay for Salisbury and then one for Dana to keep looking and hope to trip over something that works. I thought I had a Dana 60, but didn't realize they had center diff.

Are there any other makes or models out there that used the Dana 60 with passenger side drop diff or was this only a Rover thing?

Again, appreciate the thoughts.

[thixon]

SGS 714,

Most of us don't know much about you, so we don't know what you're capable of. If fab work is no problem for you, then go for it. At a minimum on any axle swap you'll be looking at fabbing/mounting new spring perches, dealing with axle positioning (can be a bear b/c of camber and castor issues), and dealing with drive shaft issues. You could make those axles work, but there are some easier options out there. There was an intersting post just recently on this board concerning Toyota FJ40 axles. Do a search for it. Alternatively, there are shaft upgrades to the rover axle that seem to work well for people (see www.seriestrek.com or www.greatbasinrovers.com). The Salisbury option is a good one. It will cost you more for the axle than the deal you have going for the dana's, but will be a faster swap (probably).

Good luck, and post up what/how you go about your fix!