Dana 30 Jeep JL M186

[workky]

Ok, I have a 21 Jeep JL sport. I have a Dana 30 in the front and a Dana 44 LSD in the rear. I’m running 35’s and more than likely will never go any bigger. I do have a spartan lunch box locker in the front.
I drive The majority of the time on highway. I do see action on forest service roads and some mild offroading. Mostly at Beasley knob it involves steep accents and descents. On the uphills I do have use 4 wheel drive. This the hardest 4 wheel drive time my Jeep gets. I dont do rock climbing . I don’t risk tearing it up as it is a daily driver.

is the Dana M186 ok for this configuration?
I may be regearing at some point and don’t wanna throw money in the axle if it sucks and won’t last for what I do. Like I said I don’t do anything crazy, just some steep climbs.


Beasley knob

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[Philly_]

I would say don't worry about it. I have been running the Dana 30 up front in my 2010 JKU with 35's for about 8 years with no issues. Most of my off road driving is pretty similar to what was in your video.

If you start to go a bit more extreme, you can always beef up the Dana 30 with new sleeves and c gussets and it should take you anywhere you want to go.

 

[workky]

I would say don't worry about it. I have been running the Dana 30 up front in my 2010 JKU with 35's for about 8 years with no issues. Most of my off road driving is pretty similar to what was in your video.

If you start to go a bit more extreme, you can always beef up the Dana 30 with new sleeves and c gussets and it should take you anywhere you want to go.

Does the locker in the front put more stress on everything?
or is it good enough

 

[workky]

The terrain is steeper that it looks in the video.

 

[The Last Cowboy]

You should have no issues. If you want to go crazy and still not lay out near as much cash as you would with a D44/M210 set up, consider these.

https://www.rcvperformance.com/ultimate-dana-30-axle-cv-set-for-jeep-wrangler-jl-w-fad.html

 

[Philly_]

I have open diffs in my Jeep so I can't speak from experience on the locker adding stress, but I would imagine you are fine. I did a lot of reading a while back on whether it was worth it to find a junkyard Dana 44 to swap in, and couldn't justify it. A beefed up Dana 30 is more cost effective and can handle a lot more than people give it credit for.

Also, to add more detail on my perspective, I have not strengthened my Dana 30 at all.

 

[workky]

What’s the weak point on the m186?
Axles? Tube?

 

[The Last Cowboy]

FAD joint is the weakest part in my opinion. The M186 is considerably beefier than the D30 that was in the JK.

 

[AlgUSF]

FAD joint is the weakest part in my opinion. The M186 is considerably beefier than the D30 that was in the JK.

But to do a FAD delete properly, don't you need to replace the axle shaft(s)? A lot of arguments are that by the time you regear and replace the axle shafts wouldn't be a similar upgrade to go to a D44 takeoff?

I'm in the same boat as the OP, I'd like to do a FAD delete and regear my Jeep (once FCA/Stellantis is off the hook).

Edit: I answered my own question: The Dana Spicer kit provides a connector which beefs up the axle separation so a new axle shaft is not necessary.

 

[workky]

Is the fad the weak link because of multiple shafts? I assume so, I reckon. I also assume the fad delete option is like driving around with your hubs locked? For lack of better analogy

 

[word302]

Is the fad the weak link because of multiple shafts? I assume so, I reckon. I also assume the fad delete option is like driving around with your hubs locked? For lack of better analogy

It’s not the shafts that are weaker, it’s the housing. If you do some searching you’ll see people are breaking the housing where the FAD motor connects. There’s a big cutout in the axle tube so not ideal. The 44/210 sufferers from the same problem.

 

[sstuner]

Workky, go to agree with the above statement the the location of the FAD is the weakest point on the front axles tube on all JLs. Seen and read about many fellow JL owners breaking them there.

 

[AcesandEights]

If you're still wondering OP, if the others haven't made you feel comfortable with the D30, I'll chime in too and say the terrain you're doing and the tires you're running shouldn't be a problem at all for you. Just one more voice saying, don't worry about it, just drive it and enjoy.

 

[Stuckinthesand]

I’m not on a locker on the front but other than that same setup running 35”s. I do rock crawling 6-8 times a year and have had no issues with this setup.

 

[CarbonSteel]

If considering a FAD delete, be aware of this:

https://www.adamsdriveshaftoffroad....veshaft-oem-flange-style-extreme-duty-series/

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