ok if i put in a ford 8.8 rear axle with 4.88's in it, and run the front with the stock 4.11's with no front driveshaft connected, would that be ok or bad? im gonna be makin a long ass trip..3000 miles or so cross country....just curious if that would not be a smart thing to do!!

it will be fine.

what the heck would it matter if your front driveshaft isnt even connected???also did you plan on driving 3000 miles in 4wd?? its a good thing the guy who posted before me was nice..i say you hook up the driveshaft now and go wheelin. you will be fine for sure. also go on pavement and try for a 4 wheel burnout.

good luck! :flipoff2:

what the heck would it matter if your front driveshaft isnt even connected???also did you plan on driving 3000 miles in 4wd?? its a good thing the guy who posted before me was nice..i say you hook up the driveshaft now and go wheelin. you will be fine for sure. also go on pavement and try for a 4 wheel burnout.

good luck! :flipoff2:


That's why he said it was a newbie question, you turd. Of course he's dense.

It is a common question. Yes you will be fine. Nice to see one newbie being a dick to another.

what the heck would it matter if your front driveshaft isnt even connected???also did you plan on driving 3000 miles in 4wd?? its a good thing the guy who posted before me was nice..i say you hook up the driveshaft now and go wheelin. you will be fine for sure. also go on pavement and try for a 4 wheel burnout.

good luck! :flipoff2:


calm down newbie, yeah, you are a newbie yourself, that was a good question for someone that has never done it before. The guy is smart, driving 3000 mile and putting larger gears will save him some cash.

what the heck would it matter if your front driveshaft isnt even connected???also did you plan on driving 3000 miles in 4wd?? its a good thing the guy who posted before me was nice..i say you hook up the driveshaft now and go wheelin. you will be fine for sure. also go on pavement and try for a 4 wheel burnout.

good luck! :flipoff2: look fuckstick if i wanted a smart ass comment from a dumbass i would have asked for it!!:flipoff2: ive always heard that if u take the front drive shaft off for long drives, saves on gas?? anyways thanks guys for the imput!!

:flipoff2: ok.. if im so stupid and thats such a common comment, please enlighten me on how puting " larger gears" in the 8.8 and how in the hell that would save gas?
last time i checked lower gears meant more power to the wheels but i alwyas thought it worsened your gas mileage. can anyone tell me if im wrong? if i am im gonna lower my gears to 4.88's also, and what the hell ill disconect my front driveline because, well id get better mileage , right?

p.s- i think that pirate 4x4 should get a new jeep forum for those that are, well a little thick headed. i mean the kinda kids that fell down alot when they were young and lived next to a power plant? just a thought. that forum could just be for you 87texastj.:flipoff2: :flipoff2:

Well if it isn't in 4wd then the driveshaft won't be spinning, right? So what difference would it make?

The front driveshaft on a TJ allways spins when rolling (unless hubs have been installed).

The front driveshaft on a TJ allways spins when rolling (unless hubs have been installed).
True, true, but unless you engage the t-case the gears in there would just be idling. Now if you engage the gears you'd have a big problem.

4.88 gears rear + 4.11 gears front + tcase engage = :crybaby2:.

When I upgraded my rear to the 8.8 with 4.56 gears I left the drive shaft out so I couldn't detroy anything. I was just being overly carefull though. Plus I would have had to pull it again anyway when I re-geared the front, so I just left it out. Ran that way for 6 months as DD, until I could afford the regear.

True, true, but unless you engage the t-case the gears in there would just be idling. Now if you engage the gears you'd have a big problem.


You are correct. I was simply letting the guy above us know that it does indeed spin even in 2WD. You were probably smart to pull the front DL since you never know when someone will ask, "what's this lever do?"

take it off and go on your way.. donot put back on till you get the 4:88 in the front just to be safe

:flipoff2: ok.. if im so stupid and thats such a common comment, please enlighten me on how puting " larger gears" in the 8.8 and how in the hell that would save gas?
last time i checked lower gears meant more power to the wheels but i alwyas thought it worsened your gas mileage. can anyone tell me if im wrong? if i am im gonna lower my gears to 4.88's also, and what the hell ill disconect my front driveline because, well id get better mileage , right?



You are right about this one. Going from 4:11 to 4:88 will NOT save gas. It will put you at a higher RPM. Now if you start changing tire sizes this helps some, but then you also increase the rolling resistance which takes away most if not all the savings you just gained.

You are right about this one. Going from 4:11 to 4:88 will NOT save gas. It will put you at a higher RPM. Now if you start changing tire sizes this helps some, but then you also increase the rolling resistance which takes away most if not all the savings you just gained.

Yea, I thought by getting bigger tires I would get better milage, WRONG. even If I go down a hill in neutral my jeep still slows down:mad3:

I drove around for about 3 months with 4.10 gears in the front and 4.88's in the rear, just don't touch the T-case.

FYI my jeep with 4.10's and 33's will shift at 4500RPM to get into 3'rd
FYI my jeep with 4.88's and 33's will shift at 3200RPM to get into 3'rd

So whoever up there said a Higher numerical gear ratio will NOT save you gas...

finnaly some people who understood what the heck i was talking about. also now i know that a tj driveshaft spins evn when not engaged.which seems weird, im pretty sure cherokees dont do that..hmm.. although im still confused about bcyj's reply??

BC yj you are correct about that but at 60 what rpms are you turning with both of those gears. I am almost positive that its at least 200 rpm higher with the 4.88's and that is where you will lose the gas mileage

finnaly some people who understood what the heck i was talking about. also now i know that a tj driveshaft spins evn when not engaged.which seems weird, im pretty sure cherokees dont do that..hmm.. although im still confused about bcyj's reply??


All vehicles that have automatice hubs (no hub releases on the axle itself) will always spin the front drive shaft. That means all newer Jeeps from 80s to current, save the XJ that has a front vacuum disconnect axle.

All vehicles that have automatice hubs (no hub releases on the axle itself) will always spin the front drive shaft. That means all newer Jeeps from 80s to current, save the XJ that has a front vacuum disconnect axle.

Actually the YJ's have the vacuum disconnect. I don't recall seeing one on the XJ front axle unless it is on the older models that I have not payed close enough attention to.

OK, now i get you.... With 4.10's i would have to shift at a MUCH higher RPM in-order to get into the next gear, with 4.88's it was a much LOWER RPM. Your sitting on one side of the fence and I'm on the other, I've just realized what your saying! my bad, BUT im still saying 4.88'w will say you more gas than 4.10's!!

AX-5 + STD NP231 + 4.10 + 33" = Forward speed of 56.34MPH @ 2000RPM
AX-5 + STD NP231 + 4.88 + 33" = Forward speed of 47.33MPH @ 2000RPM

Handy site of the day for jeepers
http://www.manoian.net/jeep/gear_ratio_calculator.html

Which you are correct, I'm saying that if you run my settup with 4.10's you'll burn the gas getting up to that speed than you will at that speed, for trips around town, you'll burn more gas with 4.10's than 4.88's, but on the highway with 4.88's your be at a higher RPM range

4.10 shift points w/33's would be 2,500RPM, 4,200RPM, 4,400RPM, 3,500RPM
4.88 shift points w/33's would be 2,000RPM, 3,400RPM, 3,300RPM, 2,800RPM

All approximate shift points depending on my mood. Further, with 4.10's and my settup try getting it into fifth, highyways around my neck of the woods have small hills, Highways were 4'th all the way.