Jeep XJ suspension under a 1st Gen Tacoma

Why would I even think about doing something like this. Well I have a 1990 Jeep XJ that has an 8" Iron Rock Offroad Critical Path long arm kit under it. The XJ was awesome with this kit under it, but after years of abuse the jeep has so many issues that it has been sitting for years now. So I either put a bunch of time and effort into getting my XJ going again or I move my expensive parts to my 1998 Tacoma xtra cab 3.4 5sp.

It's not just a long arm lift kit either. I put a lot of work into the axles under it. I first gutted the axles and replaced everything on them, seals, bearings, brakes, and covered them in por15 then top coated them. The rear is a dana 35, has upgraded axle shafts, a custom made axle truss, and an Eaton electronic locker in there. The front is a HP dana 30 with upgraded axle shafts, upgraded Ujoints, high solid steel stearing components, a custom made axle truss and a Detroit Trutrac. I also upgraded the weak split shaft aluminum fork with a full steel one. I probably have 8K into the lift kit and axles and they work absolutely amazing on the XJ, why wouldn't they work great on the Tacoma is what I have been thinking about. I also have beadlock rims already for the XJ axles.

I know that the XJ lift kit isn't designed for the Tacoma and that I will have to make some custom parts for it to work. I'll have to get the geometry correct for the kit to work with the Tacoma correctly as well. The rear is just leaf springs so that should be pretty easy to adapt to the Tacoma. I'll be upgrading the mounts for the leaf springs and shocks anyway. I'm looking at the 3 link front as just a long arm kit that I will have to make some custom parts to adapt it to the Tacoma.

Main reason I am considering this is that I already own all of the parts for the XJ, so the total cost for this conversion would be relatively cheap. I also know that it may be labor intensive and require fabrication skills. Trussing the XJ axles, stiffening the XJ unibody, adding unibody crossmembers, removing the XJ stock link locations, modifying the XJ axle mounts, removing the stock XJ mounts and adding new ones all required good fabrication skills as well. Is there any reason this would be a bad idea to try that I can't think of?

 

It's not worth it IMO to move it over. Will be easier to get the xj up and running

 

02hilux,

why do you think that? The XJ has rotted floors, pretty much needs a new motor or engine rebuild, needs a new gas tank, needs all new interior thanks to mice and it sitting for awhile, I don't even know where the keys are.

If I decided to fix the XJ it would be easier to get another one and move all the parts over, but then I'd be doing tons of fabrication to get the new to me XJ up to par with my current XJ. I'd be doing tons of unibody modifications, probably as much effort as it would be to get this system to fit my Tacoma.

 

Have you ever seen anyone swap dana 30/35s to a Toyota? There's a reason why you don't, they're not as strong as the stock Toyota running gear. You do you though, I'll watch to see the progress.

 

bhigbee,

These are far from stock Dana 30/35s. Not only have both housings been trusted, the internal shafts are upgraded to much stronger ones as well as the ujoints in the front. Detroit trutrac in the front and an elocker in the rear. They should be at least as strong as Dana 44s if not stronger.

Again the only reason why I'm even considering this is because I have all the stuff and it's already paid for.

 

I realize that but I still wouldn't spend the time, money or energy to swap them in. Personally I'd think you'd be better off selling them and building a dana 44 or Toyota axle for the front. But as I said before you do you. Don't let me deter you from your plans. I don't have any skin in the game just be sure to post what you do and how it works for you so we can all learn.

 

I would not swap a Dana 35 or 30 into a Tacoma regardless how built they are, there are people running 40"+ tires on stock Toyota rear axles, a built 35 can't handle that. I would do one of 3 things:
Pick up a cheap xj body and swap everything over that that and have fun bashing it off trees.

Put a cage in the xj as is and embarrass everyone on the trail regardless of how rusty the floor is.

Scavenge as much as you can suspension wise off that kit, and sell the axles to a jeeper for $$$ and build a new front axle for a Tacoma.

To put it in perspective, this xj I wheel with is setup kind of like the one you describe, has a full cage on 35" sticky SXS tires and regularly embarrasses built trucks and buggies.


Do not swap those axles into a Tacoma no matter what you do.

 

Sorry to revive a thread but,
My local junkyard has a good xj front axle i can get relatively cheap and my question is would it be fine in my tacoma with 31" tires.
I dont go trail riding or crawling in this truck, i just use it for a work truck.
I want to do a sas swap on it as it needs a whole new front end and i could do this swap and sell my 6" fabtech drop bracket lift kit to make money back.
my other reason to do this is that i got stuck in a small washout in my back acreage and had to be pulled out.
Also would it hold up to tdi power? as that is what i will swap in after my v6 goes boom.

Just wondering here as i dont have much money to spend on this.

 

How much do you think it will cost to do a basic solid axle swap if you don't have much to spend?

 

I would only do the swap because I already own the axles. If I had to purchase an axle I'd put a better axle under it.

 

I am thinking about $500 total since my junkyard gives me stuff at a loss most of the time since they like me.
I am only considering this axle since it is the only axle avaliable to me easily.
I can sell my old fagtech drop bracket 6" lift to come out of this making money.

Also i totaled my truck yesterday by backing up into someone.
Broke a tooth in steering rack and bent frame.

So i am working on getting a different frame and i am going to a solid axle to get rid of my broken steering rack.

Car only needs fender and headlight.

 

If you can do it for $500 good for you, but my guess is it will cost you a lot more. This will require a lot of custom work, choping and welding. I certainly wouldn't put the stock short arms from the XJ on the Tacoma. Leaf springs will probably be the cheaper easier way to go, but still require some sort of cost. You'll have to modify the Dana 30 axle and your frame for this SAS swap. Good luck! Start a build thread if you do this.

 

$500 is going to be a drop in the bucket. Think about what you're going to need for steering, brakes, suspension, wheels, tires(possibly), gears, and all the other little things. I'm guessing that the dana 30 is a five lug so you'll have to figure out something there.

 

wheel adapters junkyard leafs 1/4 plate leaf hangers and mounts homemade driveshaft, etc...

 

You still need a steering box, pitman arm, drag link, tie rod, matching gears, etc. Not to mention what the donor axle needs, brakes, bearings, brake lines, etc. I'm not saying you shouldn't do it but I really doubt $500 is realistic. If you can good on you, but I think there's more to it than just slapping an axle under it.

 

Yeah thats true and it is now lower on my priority list as i fixed my truck yesterday.

Turns out i bent the front eyelet of my passenger side leaf spring at a 45 degree angle when i hit the car at less than 5mph!
My steering rack is fine and the frame seems to be mostly okay
the bent spring made the truck sit crooked so my steering wheel was turned when going straight to compensate for it.
The truck drives better than ever now with a straight wheel (it was crooked when we bought the truck).

As it turns out ford e-150 leafs are a bolt in 3.5 inch lift for our trucks, but you have to already have 3 inch blocks or the wheel will be to far forward in the wheel well.
My rear wheels are now perfectly centered in my wheel wells since the alignment pin on the pack is 1/2 inch forward than the 2.5 lift springs i had.

You have to install the springs backwards and heat the front spring brackets cherry red and bend the outer peice of it out about 1/8 inch and then it bolts in.
I found at my local yard a brand new set of fomoco leafs in their warehouse that i got for $250 they are original ford parts and are truely from the mid 90s, painted part numbers and original motorcraft stickers too.

I am posting this here as a better upgrade than the Expensive OME springs as it made my truck ride so much better and made it have the load capicity of a 90s ford van or truck.

F150 leafs dont bolt in as they are too long only the e150 springs work.

I really hope this helps someone here to better their truck, as i wouldent go back to ome/dakkar springs if they paid me to do it.
It is really that much better.

 

I have a 2014 Tacoma crew cab 6MT, who on here has done this flash to a 2nd gen with a 6MT? Looking for reviews, was it worth it?

 

Umm... buddy you got not only the wrong thread but also the wrong part of the forum too.

 

Yep, my mistake, that was meant for a tuning thread. I can't post on that thread till I have 50 posts though.