Upgrading the 8.8 axle

[CodePoet]

I dont' know how widespread of a problem it is but I do know it happens. I'd say alot of people just miss it. The truck i'm refering to once was Taxxman's 2nd gen up here in indy. He did wheel it hard, but is not one of the guys to flog the hell out of his truck. It does not happen to all 8.8's by any means, but it is a known issue. If your upgrading the axle then why not do alittle preventative maintence? I'm lazy though...i'd wait for the problem to arise, if it EVER does then fix it.

 

[Rick]

It only happens to the Jeepers Not sure if it really does happen to them more, or if its just a rumor that has grown out of proportion on the Jeep sites.

They have to bash the Explorers for something. It has to be disappointing to have to replace so much of a Jeep to keep up with what an Explorer has stock

 

[RockRanger]

A jeeper that is swapping in an 8.8 for the most part is a Yj that is sprung over probably runnin 4.56-5.13 gears and a low range t case. Take the 200+ ft lbs of torque a stock 4.0 in a yj puts out combined with the lower gears they are sending a good pit of torque to the ground. Then toss the Soft springs in that create a ton of axle wrap. So then they toss an axle wrap bar on the axle to stop the wrap. So now when they step on the gas the bar stops te wrap but transfers all the wrapping forces to the pins. They can only take so much shock load before the brake and you are a pround owner of a spun 8.8" rear axle. That is what is hloding me back from installing an axle wrap bar on the rear of my truck.

 

[Rick]

That is what is hloding me back from installing an axle wrap bar on the rear of my truck.

Just weld the tubes to the housing around the full diameter of the tubes. No more problems...

 

[rookieshooter]

Some people weld 3 spots along the tube about 1/2' long spaced evenly where the tube meets the carrier. When I did my struss I had it checked for straightness. If one was to weld completly around the tube. You can bet that it must be checked for straightness. This is an easy process to do.

just added. If you can put the axel housing in a jig and start welding around the tube or even in 3 different spots. And then put a dial indicator at the end of the tube at brake end. You would see the tube start moving as heat is applied. It may go back down or whatever. An expert at this can do it without too much disstortion. Yes the tube won't spin but you can have bearing and axel stress if not checked for straighness.

 

[james t]

Ah, the Jeeper spun 8.8 legend. Yes, it happens on rare occasion, but has been blown WAY out of proportion by the Jeep forums. You know how the internet is... if something happens twice then it happens all the time.

If you want to weld it up at home, then this is how we did sureshot40sw's 8.8-

Weld it all the way around each tube, 3/4" long stitches, going from side to side and wait at least 5 minutes between each side to side run. In other words-

[leftside tube]*bzzzzzzzz [rightside tube]*bzzzzzzzzz
wait 5 minutes

[leftside tube]*bzzzzzzzz [rightside tube]*bzzzzzzzzz
wait 5 minutes

*You should not make your weld longer than about 4 seconds.

Keep doing the above in a criss cross pattern all the way around the tube like you would tightening lug nuts. Take your time, wait inbetween every pair of welds and you will not warp a tube. Remember, you need to backstep every weld a little. It takes a long time to do this, so get some beer and plan on hanging out in the garage all day. Its not scientific, but if you do it like above you do not have to worry about a tube pulling on you.

 

[98 sport]

My friend put his on a set of jackstands started welding while I spun it at the same time and didn't stop till he was all the way around. That was 4 years ago on his 9sec. quarter mile mustang. No problems to date.