on April 25, 2010, 2:40 pm, kermit wrote:

I haven't gone yet to IRS, but leafs are ancient technology in my opinion.
Even dinosaurs used leafs....

on May 5, 2010, 4:02 pm, farna wrote:

My reasoning was a bit different. I had to build a new rear suspension anyway. My 63 Rambler Classic used a torque-tube rear axle and coil springs stock. Since I went to a more modern drivetrain (Jeep 4.0L/AW4 auto/OD trans -- still AMC, the 4.0L is based on the older Rambler/AMC/Jeep I-6 block, and many parts interchange) the torque-tube had to go. The tube is the main locating arm for the rear axle and the axle is made so that it has to have the tube, so the rear axle had to be replaced along with the suspension.

Ladder bars or "truck arms" are the easiest way to go, so I went to a local pick-n-pull yard (I'm retired USAF -- was in Gulfport, MS at the time) to look for and axle the right width. Spotted an 87 XJ6 with the axle intact. Hmm.... got to thinking... their flat rate for an axle assembly was $50. I knew they would probably want more, but pulled it and somehow managed to get the heavy thing on a wheelbarrow and up front. The guy at the desk said "wait a minute, that's not an 'axle assembly', that's tow half-shaft, four shocks, two calipers..." I stopped him there! No, it's a complete axle for a Jaguar. He said he'd have to get the boss! I explained my side, but also volunteered that it was a bit more than a plain live axle and he should get a bit more -- and that I knew how much those things cost to rebuild. So he asked if $100 was fair (double price). Sure thing! Well, bearings were bad in one side, one of the calipers was frozen and had to be replaced, neither of the rotors were any good, and the gearing was a dismal 2.88:1 (most common for 80s US XJ-6s, used a TH 400 trans) and had to be replaced. So $800 later I had a usable rear axle. My $100 core wasn't quite the bargain it seemed!!

Oh, by the way, www.jagbits.com is a good source for parts. Everything I had to order came from there.