I have a 1998 Wrangler Sport I6 5speed Soft Top half door,I have my lift and tires/wheels choosen now im looking into lockers But how do I know what axles I have?I read that 98's had dana30 front and dana35 rear.
Also If i choose to add one aussie locker would it be better in the front or rear,in the rear it would drive like my 5.0 so live rear souldnt bother me but how would a live front respond?

The 98 TJ's come factory with a D30 front only.

The rear axle can be a D35 or a D44.

Easy way to tell the difference is ...

D35 has a rubber fill plug on the diff cover.

D35....


D44 has a metal fill plug on the diff cover.

D44....


Simple to tell the difference. Hope the pic's help this time.

once again many thankxz,I'll have a look.So im assuming the 35 is the weaker link but in my application I think it will be plenty strong enough,Now onto Lockers.What would you reccommend?

Yes the D35 is the weaker axle, and the D44 is preferred.

As for a locker in the front or the rear....It depends on what your rear axle is.

I would not suggest putting any money in a D35 unless you do the Super D35 kit. Which is good up to 35'' tires for the most part. The kit usauly runs about $600ish with a detroit locker and 30 spline shafts.

Also taking into consideration that you will be running 31's for awhile with the possibility of moving up to 33's. The Super 35 kit would work good for you. Not only will it straighten the weak points in the D35 axle, it gives you the bonus of a locker.

Now if you have the D44 that is a whole other story with lots of option of lockers.

First let us know what rear axle you have before we get to in dept on one axle or the other.


Betting you have a D35

I have a 2005 Wrangler X. Do they also come standard with Dana 35 in the rear? What about the front?

Thanks!

Same story with all TJ's. with what axles you have as stated above.

The only exception to what I stated above is the RUBICON TJ model which came with D44 front and rear axles.

So you have a D30 front and either a D35 or D44 rear. To determine your rear axle just look at the differential cover. Use pic's in above post for reference.

Okay, thank you.

I checked last night and I definitely have a mental fill plug. I guess this means that I have a Dana 44! Is there anything else that it could be or is this pretty much the sure-fire way?

I lost count on how many times I could've used a "mental fill plug"!

If you are looking at the REAR diff cover and it has a metel plug it is a D44.

I AM WITH YOU ON THAT BROTHER!!!!

Also, I have a metal "fill" plug in the front axle as well.. Does that mean I have a D44 in the front? The look identical..

Check out the pic:

NO. The front D30 Has a metal fill plug. Carefully read everything posted above.

OK.....here it is again.....

1997 to 2006 TJ/LJ wrangler,,,,,

Front axle is a D30 on ALL TJ's with the exception of the Rubicon model.


1997 to 2006 TJ/LJ wrangler,,,,

Rear axle may be a D35 or D44.

So unless you have a RUBICON model you have a D30 front axle.
RUBICON model TJ's produced from 2003 to 2006 have a D44 front and rear.