Chassis clearance

80 series axles are HUUUGE, very heavy, don't have a great diff ratio (4.10, not many mods available unless you go directly to Aus or US... The CV's are weeeeeak and not the same as other Yota's... and not that many upgrades for them either... + the leccy lockers can be a PITA...

70 series = Reasonably light for what they are, nice width, tons of upgrades for them, including chromoly CV's, swish axle oil seals, ARB's, detroits, spools, R&P's, Solid crush colors, rebuild kits, Creeper flanges to do away with the crappy weak FWH's, Hi-Steer kits.. .and so the list goes on... + they have an awesome diff ratio as std (4.88)... + we are the UK's TG distributor which means we have all the goodies on the shelf...

Need any more reasons

RB

Many of my 4x4 buddies use Nissan Patrol Y60 and Y61 axles. They are wide, yes. But much stronger that most Toyota axles.

I'd say the CV's are probably stronger than the 80 series Yota's... but still not an ideal match, + spares are thin on the ground... If we were in Aus, then maybe...

Over the years I really have struggled to find anything that is more suitable than a set of 70 series axles...

But, yes they are getting thin on the ground, which is why we started fabricating casings and using Hi-Lux as donors, and using custom 300M shafts on the buggies... That's ok for a one off buggy, but for a Jimny your best off holding out for some 70's...

RB

I think a lot of the bad reputation of 80 series CVs comes from the patterned ones sold in the UK - they are complete rubbish, or worn out OE ones. New OE ones seem to be OK, but there are replacements from Lomgfield in the US which seem, to all intents to be indestructible.

I would contend that a set of 80 axles plus Longfields is still cheaper than 70 and a pair of ARBs.

The electric actuaries for the lockers are very often seized when you buy them - or become so soon after. This is largely because most 80 owners never use them! They are easy to strip down and rebuild - and then work fine, so long as you do use them!

Si

if you are using the lockers and driving it hard YOU WILL blow genuine Yota CV's to bits easy... been ther done that... Chromo shafts and CV's only if you have lockers and drive it hard.

Diff ratio? width? weight?

OK,
Ratio - I'm not convinced that in my cas it makes much difference. In the previous truck with the same tyres, my diffs were 3.54:1. I'm running a twin transfer box with an auto and it never felt too highly geared, even in high range. The lower ratio of the 80 diffs might be good though.

Width - the rims I have, have no offset where the original Jimny rims had a bit. They have added 150mm to the overall width of the vehicle but due to the rim offset it's still narrower than my Land Rover. It actually looks pretty proportional with the lift.

Weight - undoubtedly they are heavier but how much? Time will tell if this makes much difference.

After all, Nick & James did pretty well with such inferior axles?

Si