USA Standard ZK M35 master kit with Koyo carrier and pinion bearings, races, shims, seal, crush sleeve and ring gear bolts for AMC Model 35 rears.
A rear end that whines on deceleration, drips gear oil off the pinion yoke, or is coming apart for new gears or a locker is the job this kit is built for. The USA Standard Gear ZK M35 is a complete master overhaul kit for the AMC Model 35 rear axle under Jeep Wrangler YJ and TJ, Cherokee XJ, Comanche MJ and 1993-1998 Grand Cherokee ZJ, plus the AMC Hornet and other AMC cars. It carries Koyo bearings and races and the setup hardware so the whole axle is rebuilt in one pass.
The Model 35 is a light, semi-float rear axle. Four tapered roller bearings carry the gearset: two on the pinion and two on the carrier. The pinion bearings are preloaded by tightening the pinion nut against a crush sleeve, and a shim under the inner pinion race sets how deep the pinion sits in the ring gear. The carrier bearings are shimmed from the outside to set side preload and to move the ring gear toward or away from the pinion, which sets backlash. When any of those bearings wears, the preload goes away, the gear mesh walks, and the axle starts to sing.
This kit replaces all four bearings and races, the pinion seal, the crush sleeve and the pinion nut, and supplies a full shim kit, ring gear bolts, thread locker, marking compound with a brush and a cover gasket, plus oil baffles and slingers where the housing uses them.
Separate axle noise from transfer case, transmission and tire noise first. Our whine and clunk diagnosis guide explains how a road-speed noise differs from an engine-speed noise and lists differential backlash and the pinion yoke nut among the driveline checks. Then pull the cover, look at the ring gear contact pattern and the oil, and measure backlash with a dial indicator and magnetic base before teardown so you know where it started.
The listing covers the AMC Model 35 rear in Jeep Wrangler 1984-2006 (the YJ and TJ years that used it), Jeep Cherokee and Comanche 1986-1992, Grand Cherokee 1993-1998, Grand Wagoneer 1993 and AMC Hornet 1968-1987. Many of these vehicles were also built with a Dana 44 or Chrysler 8.25 rear, so read the axle tag or the casting before ordering. The 1999-and-up WJ Grand Cherokee Model 35 and the Model 35 IFS front use different USA Standard kits, so this one is not for those. If you are not sure, send us the year and VIN.
Yukon's published setup chart for the Model 35 lists a 0.045 inch OEM pinion shim, 12-15 inch-pounds of pinion bearing preload with new bearings, 0.006-0.011 inch backlash, and 55 ft-lb on both the ring gear bolts and the bearing caps. Set preload by rotating torque with an inch-pound torque wrench, never by impact gun, and never reuse the crush sleeve or pinion nut. Lock the ring gear bolts with the supplied thread locker. Check the pattern with the marking compound before final torque. If the spider gears are chipped or the cross shaft is worn, add a Model 35 spider gear kit while the carrier is out. Fill with the gear oil grade listed in your owner's manual, adding friction modifier only if the axle has a limited slip.
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Read the axle tag on the cover or the casting marks on the housing, or check the build sheet for your VIN. Many Wrangler, Cherokee and Grand Cherokee models were built with either axle, so confirm it before ordering. If in doubt, send us the year and VIN.
No. It contains bearings, races, the pinion seal, shims, crush sleeve, pinion nut, ring gear bolts, thread locker, marking compound and a gasket. Gears are bought separately, and this kit is what goes in with them.
No. The WJ uses a different Model 35 setup and a different master kit. This kit covers the 1993-1998 ZJ Grand Cherokee and the other listed vehicles.
The carrier and pinion bearings and races are Koyo.
You can use the old pinion shim as a starting point if you keep the same gearset, but bearing changes move the setup, so verify pinion depth and backlash with marking compound and a dial indicator. The kit includes a full shim assortment for that.
The bearings in an axle wear together. Replacing one and leaving the rest leaves worn preload in the others, and the noise usually returns. The full kit lets you set the axle up correctly once.
