I’m currently in the process of slowly building the ultimate budget overlanding Jeep using a $350 Jeep Grand Cherokee as a starting point. At some point in the next five years I hope to drive from wherever I’m living in the U.S. all the way to the southern tip of Argentina in what will be at least a six month-long adventure. I figure I’m single, have very few obligations to others, and can wrench — if I’m ever going to do a ’round-the-world trip, I should do it sometime soon-ish. Okay, it won’t be happening that soon since I’m swamped trying to run this car website, but when the trip does go down, I hope to have the perfect machine for the job. That perfect machine is the Jeep ZJ. Many of you familiar with the ZJ probably just did a spit-take. “What the hell, dude. Those are plagued with awful transmissions, crappy rear axles, and all sorts of electrical gremlins. Go buy a Toyota 4Runner or something!” you’re yelling at your screen, your spouse peering over to see who the hell you’re talking to. The thing is, you’re right; 99.99 percent of ZJs did have these problems. But 0.01 percent didn’t, and mine falls into that minority. It’s one of the rare 1,400-ish that came with a stout Aisin-built five-speed manual, and it’s one of the very few base models that came with manual windows and locks. So the transmission and electrical system on my ZJ are rock-solid. That leaves the rear axle. 1993 to 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokees — that’s the first-gen “ZJ” models — could be had with two axles: A Dana 35 or a Dana 44A. The Dana 35 is a weak “C-clip” axle that often fails in such a way that the axle shaft — with wheel attached — slips out of the tube:
The Dana 44A has an aluminum center section that tends to deflect under load, causing the differential bearings (pinion and carrier bearings) to spin unevenly and eventually fail. Last year, I picked up a limited slip differential-equipped Dana 44A from a Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.9 to replace the Dana 35 in my overlanding ZJ (Again, the Dana 44A isn’t great, but it’s considered a strength upgrade over the 35). I figured I’d replace the Dana 44A’s carrier bearings (since they’re relatively easy to swap), then weld a truss between the axle tubes to limit deflection, and then just hope my pinion bearing holds up. I had concerns about this plan, because being stuck in South America somewhere with a bad axle isn’t great, especially since the Dana 44A’s aluminum housing is known to fail to the point that it cannot be repaired (the bearing spins in the housing, chewing up the aluminum, creating so much clearance that the bearing caps no longer squeeze the carrier bearings sufficiently, resulting in future premature failure). That’s why I was so thrilled to find this at the junkyard last weekend: This off-road rig — a 5.2-liter V8 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee ZJ — was someone’s baby. As you can see in the top photo, it was equipped with rock rails, a five-inch lift kit, and some 33-inch all-terrain tires on sweet 16-inch Wrangler Rubicon wheels. Sadly, the wheels and rock rails were gone by the time I spotted the Jeep, but one important thing wasn’t: the rear axle:
This rear axle is not the weak-sauce Dana 35, and it is not the bearing-killing Dana 44A. It is a bonafide Dana 44.
Many of you may have heard the name “Dana 44” before, because it’s the same axle found in every Jeep Wrangler Rubicon ever built (it’s also found in some non-Rubicon Wranglers, as well as in other Jeeps throughout the years). The Dana 44 is strong and aftermarket support is incredible; it’s a highly sought-after axle in the off-road community. You have to realize why I was so thrilled to see this: Fitting a Dana 44 into a ZJ is no small task. Only the Dana 35 and 44A are direct bolt-ins; the 44 requires one to cut all the existing brackets off the axle, then weld on new brackets that align with the Grand Cherokee’s control arm mounts. The fact that I found a Dana 44 with this already done, and with a strength-increasing truss to boot? Well, like I said: This is the motherlode.
There was a moment during my junkyard session when I got really, really excited. You see in the image above that plug in the front of the differential? That’s a sensor for a pneumatic locker. I looked in the cabin of the Jeep and found a little switch cutout on the center console; “This Jeep has a locker!” I exclaimed.
Unfortunately, I later realized there were no air lines going to the diff, and — upon banging off the cover — I saw that there was no locker present. Clearly, based on the little hole in the driver’s side bearing cap where a little hose would normally go, this axle did come from a Jeep Wrangler TJ Rubicon, but the locker has been removed and a standard 3.73-ratio Trac-Lok, clutch-based limited slip differential carrier put in its place. In this picture from Wrangler Forum you can see a pneumatic line going into that hole in a locker-equipped Dana 44:
Even though I don’t have a locking differential, I’m still pumped that I at least have a limited slip-diff to offer me more traction. Though what’s more important to me is just having a rock-solid Dana 44 axle assembly instead of a crappy Dana 35 or 44A. Hopefully the previous owner set up the gears correctly, hopefully all the bearings are in decent shape, and hopefully the axle isn’t bent from off-roading or warped from the truss-weld-job. If all my hopes are granted, then I will have the ultimate budget overlanding Jeep. It’s cheaper, bigger, and better-riding than the little leaf-sprung XJ Cherokee. It’s got more room than the TJ or TJ Unlimited Wrangler. It’s cheaper and lighter than a four-door JK or JL. It’s tougher than a Liberty or later Grand Cherokees. It’s a stick-shift, base-model, Dana 44-equipped Jeep ZJ, and it’s ready to drive around the world. Well, once I’m done building it. I also snagged a few other nice bits from someone’s former off-road project: These JKS sway bar disconnects. They allow one to quickly disconnect the sway bar without having to undo a bunch of bolts; this increases wheel articulation, which will give my Jeep more traction and stability over uneven terrain. These links are normally 150-ish bucks; I snagged the set for $20.
I also got all four coil springs — which would normally cost about $350 new (though you can get used ones for around $100 all day on Facebook Marketplace) — for $40. As for the gem of my haul, the Dana 44 axle: Those tend to cost about $300 if you’re lucky. Add a truss to that, and you’re pushing $500; I paid $150.
All that is to say: I saved hundreds of dollars at the junkyard this past weekend. I ended up with a beefy rear axle that will bolt right into my ZJ overlanding Jeep and fix its final achilles heel, I snagged some sway bar quick-disconnects that will give me added articulation, and I nabbed some coil springs that I may or may not use depending upon how loaded-down my ZJ ends up being once it’s all set up for the trip. This five-speed ZJ is going to be epic. As for why the ZJ was in the ‘yard, well, I’m gonna guess the answer has to do with that dreaded Chrysler automatic. “Tracy? All this shit is rusty and junky! You’re ecstatic that you ‘only’ paid $210 for this gnarled old ferrous oxide-coated industrial debris? The guy at the junkyard probably had a bigger boner than you did when you left!!” This is why people don’t like to hang out with chemists. Thank you for reminding me of the tough upbringing I had hearing things like this over and over again. (I went to Law School – it seemed the furthest away I could get from chemistry. It wasn’t far enough). I use this logic too…but the bank account still seems to shrink when I save. you need to do a 2JZ swap for obvious reasons. 2JZ ZJ One warm Sunday afternoon myself and my surveyors were heading back home from an extended two week survey operation. We were traveling down the autobahn at a steady 80 mph with my best friend in the lead vehicle when something amazing happened. His left rear axle seemed to be growing by inches. Steadily it inched outward until the entire wheel/axle assembly stood proud of the truck by a good 2 1/2 feet. I flashed my headlights furiously and laid on the horn, all to no avail. When my buddy Buck had an unfiltered Camel, a cup of coffee, and a stretch of autobahn he became totally oblivious. Finally the inevitable happened. The whole thing came apart and dropped the left rear of the truck to the pavement, making some very expensive gouges into Germany’s finest asphalt! Amazingly, Buck’s obliviousness worked for the best. He didn’t realize anything had happened and just steered to compensate. The end result was a long cold overnight stay alongside the ‘Bahn waiting for recovery. Inspection determined exactly what you described. No fault for anyone. The mechanics breathed a huge sigh of relief. Just another tale from a long career and 18 years in Germany! Yea well Libertys (Liberties?) are garbage, sooo…. That’s not saying much! Just don’t break my heart bagging on WK2s (early WKs are fair game though) Great finds for the ZJ. That axle upgrade is pretty substantial. My mechanic has recently started letting me use his sand blasting cabinet and the feeling of bringing a rusty part to like new is the best ever! You get 2 hours of orgasmic satisfaction and parts are protected as a nice side effect.
