So I recently decided to drop my plans for my 2x4 to 4x4 conversion on my 98 ram and use the 79 ford f250 Dana 60s for my Durango. I plan on doing leaf springs to keep it simple the only thing that has me stumped is steering since my 01 has rack and pinion. Can I pull the pump and gear box off a 97-99 Dak or Dur and just bolt it in or did they get rid of the old bolt holes when they went over to rack and pinion? I plan on notching the crossmember in the front to clear the axle and I'm planning to get about 4 inches lift over all. I wont know till I get it together but i would assume the rear axle mounter under the leafs will give me around 2"-3" and i can make up the rest of the rear with a longer shackle. Axles have 4.10s in them and rear has a detroit I have 36 TSL IROKs on the way.

 

I can't really answer most of your questions, but you'd probably find help quicker if you asked the guys in the Dakota section since they tend to do lifts and axle swaps more often.

That said you should be able to flip the axle so it's under the spring for a couple inches of lift.

 

Ok thanks for the heads up.

 

there is a guy in the dakota section (idk if hes still around or not but its worth looking into) by the name varsis who did a SAS on his 2nd gen dak (same front end as our trucks), you should look up his thread and maybe get in touch w/ him if you have any specific questions.