so i have a 1986 toyota 4 runner that already has the trail gear 3 inch sas kit in it, and a toyota axle but im thinking of swapping over to a dana 44, any thoughts on witch 44 to use and what steering? i already have a dana 44 out of a 1980s chevy pickup
first gen 4 runner full size axle swap
- Thread starter Bakosak
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Why a full-size? Are you planning on being heavy on the skinny pedal or put a v8 in? Or 40'+ tires? You'll have to change a lot more then you'd want as the rear axle would need changed as well and you may have to convert to leaf springs, not 100% sure on it though. An you'd need different brake MC.
With a 44 front you can only got to 4.88 gears for matching. And change spring perches. The nice thing about the Toyotas is you can change front and rear 8" diff's. But we do need more info, what tire size, what engine (in case it's been swapped), and are you going to Dana/Toyota axle combo or both Dana's?
- Thread starter
- #5
im on all leafs already, ive seen a few builds with just a 44 up front and a yota axle in the rear
Here's a quote from pirate on the Dana verses Toyota
"the cost difference is going to be negligible. If you think that you may want a 44 later, do it now, it'll be cheaper in the long run, because Toy spring hangers will only match up to a csutom width 44, which is very expensive. Use a wagoneer D44, it is only 1" wider than toy IFS, which is good, if anything. I run 5.38's in the front and 5.29's in th rear, there is enough slack in the drivetrain for that small of a difference. You'll ahve to outboard your frame for the shackle hangers, not a big deal at all, I can send you pics of mine if you would like. The 44 is much stronger and worth doing, I only wanted to do mine once so I went with the 44, I have a custom chevy housing though( it's been narrowed adn ahd the pinion angle turned up 7 degrees), but my hangers are stock width for that axle, so when I go to full width axles, I just have to unblot my current axle and roll the new one underneath my truck. I can speak from experience that custom axles are expensive. I had to have everythign custom made, tie rod, drag link, both axle shafts, it adds up, if you use the wagoneer axle, you can use wagoneer tie rod and drag link and wagoneer axles, all of which can be found at a local junk yard. You'll have to cut and grind the passenger side of the housing to get a spring perch on it, but it's not a big deal, it's done all of the time by jeepers doing spring over conversions. With all of this said, do the 44. Pm me for pics or any more info. ErikB has a website that I found very helpful when I did mine. Jeremy"

Here's the link to the thread
Toyota SAS vs Dana 44 SAS - Pirate4x4.Com : 4x4 and Off-Road Forum

"the cost difference is going to be negligible. If you think that you may want a 44 later, do it now, it'll be cheaper in the long run, because Toy spring hangers will only match up to a csutom width 44, which is very expensive. Use a wagoneer D44, it is only 1" wider than toy IFS, which is good, if anything. I run 5.38's in the front and 5.29's in th rear, there is enough slack in the drivetrain for that small of a difference. You'll ahve to outboard your frame for the shackle hangers, not a big deal at all, I can send you pics of mine if you would like. The 44 is much stronger and worth doing, I only wanted to do mine once so I went with the 44, I have a custom chevy housing though( it's been narrowed adn ahd the pinion angle turned up 7 degrees), but my hangers are stock width for that axle, so when I go to full width axles, I just have to unblot my current axle and roll the new one underneath my truck. I can speak from experience that custom axles are expensive. I had to have everythign custom made, tie rod, drag link, both axle shafts, it adds up, if you use the wagoneer axle, you can use wagoneer tie rod and drag link and wagoneer axles, all of which can be found at a local junk yard. You'll have to cut and grind the passenger side of the housing to get a spring perch on it, but it's not a big deal, it's done all of the time by jeepers doing spring over conversions. With all of this said, do the 44. Pm me for pics or any more info. ErikB has a website that I found very helpful when I did mine. Jeremy"

Here's the link to the thread
Toyota SAS vs Dana 44 SAS - Pirate4x4.Com : 4x4 and Off-Road Forum

- Thread starter
- #7
dana up front yota in the rear for now, i have a 22re and will be going up to 35s
Note that thread is from fourteen years ago - "even these "SUPER" birfields haven't been proven yet.”
I’d say that in the meantime the situation with Longfields and RCVs have changed that situation quite a bit. I’m not sure that the D44 still has the benefits over the Toyota axle that it once did and the Toyota axle has the advantages of not customizing everything.
IMHO you don't need D44'd if you're only running 35's. Tons of people where I live run 36's and don't have problems. Some of the axle are completely stock as well.
