57 Capable?

Hey all,
I know this sounds like a somewhat rediculous question but comming from owning a built XJ i just wanted to know what my new jeep will have out of the box.

it is a 57 CJ-5 stock. 4cyl, 3spd, twinstick....
I haven't had it out yet due to the brake problems...but i am swapping a YJ setup into it in the next little bit.
What is my Wheel base? i know it is shorter than later models but how much shorter?

What about Width?
What size tires are best to run with this setup...i was wanting to run 31X11.50's.
My old XJ was 5" with 33's but it was much longer and wider. I understand i have to change my lines when i am wheelin on the rocks and such but is that about it?
anything to keep an eye out for? good or bad. did they offer some sort of LImited slip that i may have?

Sorry about all the questions but i figured that if i get them all out of the way now i will post less stupid ones later...just trying to get a feel for the CJ before i hit the trails

Tommy

 

lenght 80.5in it is about 13 in shorter then a YJ or TJ or CJ7 width 51in? wms to wms

 

Thanks... so When i am off camber the roll potential will be greater due to the short WB and narrow axles? I don't plan on lifting more than 2" unless i run like 33's but i am not sure what the engine can handle on the road tire size wise.

Tommy

 

yes better chance of rolling... other people will chime in about tire size.

 

I have a saginaw setup...is that a hard swap? I remember reading the writeup on the brake swap...i thought it was here but i may have been mistaken. Roll bar is one of my first upgrades...full 6pt cage.
Any thing else big or small that will help this Jeep...It will be my daily driver and wheeler so i need to keep it road worth. Did they make a LSD for those years? would a modern D44 LSD or locker fit into mine? THanks

Tommy

 

chime in here guys if im wrong, but there are a lot of options for aftermarket lockers and limited slips for that rear end. just make sure you have the right spline count when buying one

 

In a lot of places the little CJ will out do your XJ, mostly because of the size. Many more options when it comes to lines over the obstacles and on straight out dirt climbs it will suprise you since it is so light. Lack of a locker will hinder the rock crawling some, but read back a bit about the ability to pick more lines.

80 inch wheelbase, 5 feet wide, 6 feet tall. 2.5" springs, 1/2" shackle and 1" body lift is what I am running with 33's and its high enough but not too high. 31X11.50s will be good with stock suspension. Should be fairly stable at that height with that size tire too. My brother has slid to a stop while doing a 180 with 33's on stock height, and it just slid around, I've even cut the steering wheel as far as it would go in a parking lot with 33's on stock hgt and punched it (with a V-6) and it just turned around and went. A lot of the roll over problems people think about are because of the stupid machine that they put the CJ on, it was able to turn the steering wheel way faster than any human can.

I'd actually venture a bet that the CJ-5 on 31's is more stable than your XJ on 33's with 5" lift was/is. If you put them nose ot nose you'll see the XJ isnt THAT much wider.

As far as steering, GO POWER!! Dont waste your time with manual steering, once you get a locker in the front you'd wish you went power anyways.

Pretty much any locker or limited slip is available for the D44. Yours is a 19 spline, which can have some issues with any engine more than the V-6, but if you really want to get radical, do like I did and go 31 spline with a ARB or some other locker. In the front you can get a lock-rite for it, but the axles are WAY weak in the D27. The D30 has the same size axles as the rear D44 in the early CJ's had, i've put them side-by-side.

 

There was a LSD available on that model - the Dana-Spicer Power-lok. It's a really good LSD; strong, effective, rebuildable. You can even build it to be mild or agressive. Finding a used one is probably your least expensive route too.

Take a look at what's in your rear axle now. I expect the LSD was not so popular in the '50s, but in the '70s, it seems like just about every CJ that rolled of the lot had a LSD as factory equipment (though it was an inferior Trac-lok).