Jeep Guy Needs 8.8 Axle Help

[SilverstoneXJ]

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Looking for a little 8.8 Axle 101. Since my wife managed to genade her Jeep Wrangler's Dana 35 rear axle yesterday, we decided to upgrade to a beefier unit. The Ford 8.8 is the axle we're looking at currently. I've heard that the 95+ Exploders are equipped with disc brakes, so that's a plus. My local stealership says that the 8th position of the VIN will be the year designator, and that 1995 would be 'S'... 1996 would be 'T'... and so on.

My first question is... when I find a 95+ Exploder in the salvage yard, where will I find the gear ratio either on the vehicle or on the axle itself? I'd want the 4.10 ratio for hers.

Secondly, I'm not sure if there were different axle options available, so does anyone have a pic of a 8.8, to help me make sure I snatch the right one?

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[boominXplorer]

any 8.8 from 95-01 is disc. The 4:10's were not popular till 97. I have found it not reliable to go by the vin. I use the door code on the drivers door. You want one that says D2 (4:10 L/S). If you get one from a V8 it will have hoops on the rear for traction bars. Where is the speed sensor in the jeep? 98+ was equipped with a VSS sensor in the diff

 

[jimbo74]

all ford explroers had the 8.8" rear axle... if its from an explroer, it has a stock spring under design and 31 spline axleshafts.... 95-01 had the rear disk brakes

the 8th digit of the vin is not the year, but the engine size......

the 10th digit is the model year

M=1991
N=1992
P=1993
R=1994
S=1995
T=1996
V=1997
W=1998
X-1999
and thats all my book says..... so 2000 up i have no clue about....


you cant find out the axle ratio by the vin, however the axles have their own designation... what rear axle the vehicle has is listed on the drivers door or door jamb, i forget which, on a big sticker with federal compliance info listed.... it is listed right under the axle code

4.10 limited slip explorer = D2
4.10 ratio open diff = 42

 

[Creager]

Axle codes on the inside door panel

41 - 3.27 non-limited slip (Explorer/Mountaineer)
45 - 3.55 non-limited slip (Explorer/Mountaineer)
46 - 3.73 non-limited slip (Explorer/Mountaineer)
42 - 4.10 non-limited slip (Explorer/Mountaineer)
D1 - 3.27 limited slip (Explorer/Mountaineer)
D4 - 3.73 limited slip (Explorer/Mountaineer)
D2 - 4.10 limited slip (Explorer/Mountaineer)

Any year explorer is what you want (3/4 ton), Ranger and Bronco II axles are 27 spline (1/2 ton, bascially a Dana35) i do believe some Bronco II's came with 31 spline? not sure about that.

1991-1992 are RABS (not sure how much difference thats going to make for you)


heres a picture comparing the 8.8 and d35 standard rotation

This is what the stock cover would look like

now we can see why you Jeep guys like our axles so much! haha kidding.

 

[KPT]

all ford explroers had the 8.8" rear axle... if its from an explroer, it has a stock spring under design and 31 spline axleshafts

I thought only disc brake equipped 8.8"s were 31 spline. Therefore 94 and earlier is 27 or whatever it is spline.

 

[Robb]

All Explorers are 31 spline.

And Creager, I have never heard of 8.8s being considered 3/4 ton. I believe they are considered 1/2 ton. Did 3/4 tons ever come with 8.8s?

 

[jimbo74]

some rangers had the 8.8 and they are rated as half ton trucks...


here is an interesting but similar twist.... toyota had a half ton and 1 ton model mini pickup trucks with srw and the 8" 2wd axle.... i went to the dealership to get some parts, and they asked if it was a 1/2, 3/4, or a 1 ton....... hmmmmmmm

robb is right though, there are no 3/4 ton ford 8.8s, they are 1/2 ton

 

[blackbeauty]

do jeeps come with 4.10's? if not you'll have to also change front to 4.10's. you probably know... that just want to help

 

[Ray Lobato]

There is not much more that I can add to this thread, except to welcome you to the site. Welcome! We have many Jeep owners here and we are always willing to help you guys out with your questions.

 

[SilverstoneXJ]

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Thanks guys for the info and help. The original plan was to find one with 4.10s and change up the front to match. But, we have a friend that has a 8.8 that we can pick up for $200. It has 3.07 gears, which matches up to her current front ones. We'll go ahead and throw this one in, and then we can swap out gearing at a later date. Not sure what it came out of yet, as long as it was from an Explorer we'll be fine. Any markings on the axle itself to help tell this? I guess we can count the splines. All we need to pick up are the calipers, and the adapter flange that M.O.R.E makes to mate the TJ driveshaft to the Ford rear. Thanks for the pics Creager... that really shows how much better the 8.8 actually is.

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[Creager]

All Explorers are 31 spline.

And Creager, I have never heard of 8.8s being considered 3/4 ton. I believe they are considered 1/2 ton. Did 3/4 tons ever come with 8.8s?

Yeah they're not, i dont know where i got that from.

i dunno i always thought it was like a combination of the bearing sizes and the spline count that considered it 1/2 ton, 3/4 ton, or 1 ton.

what considers it rating? im confused now haha

nissanboy has mentioned 35 spline 8.8's before. which would probably make it 3/4 ton.

 

[SilverstoneXJ]

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Went by and looked at the axle we're likely to get. I'm told it's out of a '96 Explorer. I didn't take a peak inside yet, but did get the tag info to hopefully find out more about it.

SN040T
3 08 88 9D23

Obviously, the '3 08' part is the ratio, and the '88' imeans 8.8 axle. Not sure what the '9D23' stands for. The '040T' was on the tag, and on a sticker circling the passenger side end of the axle.

What's everyone's thoughts?

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[Robb]

Was it disc'd?

3.08 is a SUPER RARE (and undesirable) Explorer 8.8 gear set. To be honest, I have only heard of a few of them ever, and ALL of them were 1st Gen Explorers.......................but I may be wrong about that.

Something there smells fishy................................but it may just be me.

edit: This is how rare that ratio is. 3 of 320.

 

[SilverstoneXJ]

Was it disc'd?

3.08 is a SUPER RARE (and undesirable) Explorer 8.8 gear set. To be honest, I have only heard of a few of them ever, and ALL of them were 1st Gen Explorers.......................but I may be wrong about that.

Something there smells fishy................................but it may just be me.

edit: This is how rare that ratio is. 3 of 320.

We're only considering it, because her TJ happens to have 3.07 ratio in the front, so it would let us get it back on the trail quicker by not having to regear the front right away. We'd regear down the road. Our first thought, was to get a 4.10 one and regear, until we fouind out a good friend had this one at his shop.

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[SilverstoneXJ]

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Can somebody who knows they have a 31 spline 8.8, tell me what they have printed on their axle tube sticker? Ours has '040T' on it.

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[SilverstoneXJ]

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Went over to the shop today, and dove into the 8.8 to see what the spline count was. Unfortunately, it only has 28, and the diameter of the shafts are skinnier than the D35 ones. So, obviously, this axle won't work for my wife and her foot.

We're now looking at a Scout D44 for the upgrade.

Thanks again guys for helping out. You Ford folks are alright. Even after I referred to the Explorer as 'Exploder'.

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[SilverstoneXJ]

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Update:

Picked up a 8.8 out of a '97 Explorer for $69. Open diff, 3.55 R&P (going to change that to 4.10s w/ Detroit) complete axle. Can't wait to get it installed. Gonna go back this weekend, and get one for my Cherokee as well.

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[bmxking5]

Dang! That is CHEAP. Nice find.

 

[PS94]

3 08 88 9D23

Ok, for those that don't know.....this is the tag on the diff...the 3 08 is the gear ratio....if it's L/S, it'll be 3L08, then the 88 is for 8.8....(75 for a 7.5)it's the same on ALL ford diffs, from about 80+..it's the tin tag everyone throws away when they do a fluid change.....

 

[SilverstoneXJ]

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Found info on decoding the diff tag of an 8.8...

And PS94... you are kidding about throwing away the tag, right? What if your rig ends up in a salvage yard, and I want the axle. This will tell me what I need to know. Hold on to 'em.

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