opinions wanted

dyer91

dyer91

Active Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2006
Location
Greensboro
vehicle info: 91 wrangler, 4.0, 3spd auto, np231 w/ 4to1 and 2wd low, 8.8 out of explorer w/ disk brakes & lokrite, hp30 w/ lokrite, chromolly shafts, rocky road outfitters over the top steering both running 4.56 gears, soa w/ rubicon express soa 1.5" springs and 1.5' raised shackles. running 36x12.5 super swamper tsls.
my problems are: 1) i cant hardly stop the thing while in 4 lo(its got an explorer master with wilwood proportioning valve adjusted all the way)
2)cant hardly turn the wheel in 4 lo(too afraid to put assist on it not sure if the knuckles are strong enough)
3) it has a death wobble at 25mph+ with or without the steering stabalizer(pretty sure thats the bias ply tires)
since i dont get much time to wheel i am thinking about making it more street friendly so i've got a couple senarios..
1)part out the d30, build a d44(gears/lokrite), put assist on it and then swap for some more streetable tires same size or so..this should get me better steering and better brakes but would need wheel adapters for the rear and new rims
2)use existing springs, go back sua, sell 36s get 33s trim as needed. i would have to put stockish type steering back on, get new shocks, relocate rear shock mounts & get the driveshafts shortened. going this route i may have to take out the 4to1 it may be too much low range. also would the re soa springs be ok spring under?
3)put assist on the d30(hope for the best), deal with the brakes, trade for some street friendly tires roughly same size
money is always a concern so i would have to sell things to do something else. i know it's long winded but when you stare at a jeep in your driveway for too long a mind will start to wander. thanks for any input
 
Junkyard hydroboost for the brakes and hydro assist the steering. I know a few people running the assist on D30's without breaking knuckles, but that doesn't mean it can't happen. I'd do it if I were having your problems. I feel you on the not wheeling enough to justify spending money on something that you really get little return out of though. My jeep is on weenie 33s just so I can drive it back and forth to work from time to time.
 
Sounds like you need an entire front end redo...not a rebuild, a redo.

A Dana 44 will be able to handle those larger tires A LOT easier than a D30. You won't be exploding unit bearings and ball joints all the time. Also you can put hydro assist onto a Dana 44 without having to worry about ripping your axle in half.

I've never known a Dana 30 to live happily with ~35x12.50 tires.

Part out your Dana 30, the $$ from the gears, locker and shafts will go a ways to help you with your next build.
 
dyer91 said:
1.5' raised shackles. 3) it has a death wobble at 25mph+ with or without the steering stabalizer(pretty sure thats the bias ply tires)
Click to expand...

Replace the longer shackles with stock ones, and try it out. Longer shackles on the front decrease your caster, which can cause death wobble. The toe can also be a cause of DW. You can run bias ply tires on a rig and not have death wobble. The rest of the set up just needs to be correct.

I am not sure what to say about your brakes. A dude I use to know a few years back had an early/mid 90's YJ with SOA on like 2-3" lift springs, 36" TSL's, 8.8 in the back, 4.88 gears, etc, and I thought it drove and stopped like a normal vehicle. In fact, it was the best driving Jeep I've ever driven. John Thomas did all the mods.
 
as far as your front end goes, i had a 92 wrangler, it would ride fine, then when it started the death wobble you basically had to stop. as long as you kept it under 55 you were golden. finally started poking around under there and found

1. a bad damper
2. a couple bad bushings
3. one really B.S. bolt someone put on the stabilizer bar, tightened it and was fine.

gotta say it now though.... sold it and kept my bronco :driver:
 
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