cv joint

[Lostscot]

Hey guys,

I've got an offroading event to go to on Saturday but just discovered the state of my propshaft today...I'm gonna assume I should cancel.. or are the joints tough enough to hold out till I get it sorted. .. I know... it's a stupid question but have been so looking forward to it

Also is it a simple fix? Never done a cv joint before... looks like it could be trouble...? What about the option of a new propshaft of eBay... a direct swap without the faff.. or would it require balancing too?

[surfenstein]

Prop shaft u/j can be a pain to change. Mark the shaft and pinion flanges both ends preferably with a white marker, (make sure the prop goes back on exactly in the same position it came off. Also mark the sliding joint on the slider half and the shaft, just in case it slips off when you are messing with the u/j. Next remove the circlips from the bearing caps. (They are positioned on the inner face of the u/j you will have to scrape away all of the mud and grease to see them.) infact now would be a good time to clean the entire joint it makes it easier to remove and refit a new one. Once the joint is clean and the circlips are removed clamp the shaft in a vice near the joint to be removed, then get a copper hammer and a suitable brass drift and belt the shit out of the swivel flange of the u/j. You should see the caps start to move. Once the caps are out repeat this on the fixed half. Next clean the fixed and swivel half, get a little bit of lithium grease and finger it around the cleaned area where the caps were removed. Remove one of the bearing caps from the new u/j and finger a little bit of grease onto the bearing surfaces inside. Make sure that none of the needle bearings have fallen out and that none are dislodged otherwise the cap will not go back in. Repeat this process until all the bearing caps are lubricated with grease and all the needle roller bearings are lined up with none missing.Next slide the swivel inside the fixed flange and gently push a bearing cap in either side of the fixed flange just enough so that the bearings don't fall out. I like to use a g cramp or a big vice to pull the bearing caps together, once the caps are in just knock them into position with a brass drift until there is enough room for the circlips to go back on. The bearing caps should slide easily enough but if you are having to force the caps back on then there may be a problem with the bearings becoming dislodged. If this occurs do not force the cap on . Remove the cap and check the bearings. Repeat process for the swivel end.
grease the u/j when you have finished.


As for the pic if you can grab hold of the prop shaft and turn the shaft and you can see or feel more than a few mm of play then i would try greasing the u/j ( you will get a bit of play from the diff pinion) check for play again. If after greasing you can still feel a few mm of play then I would change the u/js, but if you want to chance it and one breaks then just remove the shaft and drive home in 4wd i.e if the rear u/j breaks you will still have drive to the front axle in 4wd.

[Lostscot]

awesome amount of info. A big thanks as i will be following it!

been in a car before where the propshaft dropped and pegged into the ground. lifted us up about 3feet in the air... turned the gear box into mess along with all sorts of carnage... so i'm going to be very cautious!

decided to buy a second hand propshaft from ebay. £115... which is probably what a garage would charge me to fix it... just swap the whole shaft out and then i can replace the uj at my own leisure. Think its probably the right way to do it and i learn to... and still be on the road as swapping the shaft is minutes rather than hours or days if it goes wrong.

I tried re greasing it, but there is too much play and it just pours out the side. there is more than a couple of mm play quite a bit more.. i can move it enough its scary

[Lostscot]

swap turned out to be super easy... i'll just order a new joint from roughtrax and either fleabay the shaft or keep it as a spare. ever so slightly different though.. the fat part of the new shaft is a wee bit shorter

waiting for my diff drop kit to arrive from the US.. assuming that's an easy job too.. just supporting it on a jack, and my panhard rod drop kit is waiting for some free time too as the back axle is over to the right by nearly an inch!!

don't suppose there is a history of L946 wow on here?

cheers

[Tokyo drift]

The diff drop kit won't fit as on the 3.0, the exhaust down pipe is to close as it is on a standard system, I had to have 1/2" spacer pieces made and at this, it's still very close!

The American 4runners petrol exhaust routs separately, which is where there kit is mainly aimed at.

Hope this helps.

[Lostscot]

The diff drop kit won't fit as on the 3.0

Hope this helps.

agh c@#p. well kinda helps cheers!

[Tokyo drift]

I would say fit free wheeling hubs, saves a bit of Diesel and most definitely cv gaiters!

Or have the downpipe lengthened but that's alot of hassle and the rest will need adjusted to fit!

[Lostscot]

I've got Warn hubs on the front, with a 2 inch sus and 2 inch body (around that anyway), but one of the boots still needs doing anyway

Managed to pick up a spare wheel from ebay last week... needs a tyre ofc but where do you guys keep it? all the mountings underneath are missing.. assuming it could fit a 33" anyway. The idea of mounting a swing gate seems like a P.I.T.A

[Lostscot]

Just wanted to say that was an awesome write up... The '2nd' hand shaft I bought snapped the other night... lucky I had all the parts at home.. so a recovery truck then 3hrs the next morning got me back on my way. So cheers!!