Been reading about everyones U joint failure issues, & now I m worried a little. Im at 117k, NEVER any issues. Should I have my mech take a look? what are signs I should expect in failure? I have not had any steeing issues, popping noises, or sluggish movement with turning. I have followed just about all of disco mikes advice with maintenance, but this is u joint issue is somthing i just stumbled on in the forums

03 Disco SE

 

It costs about $80 bucks for the U joints and center ball kit to rebuild your front prop.Very cheap compared to a new tranny and or transfer case.If your at all mechanically inclined you can diy in about 2hrs. Well worth the time and money.

 

To expand: the problem is that the factory propshafts are "lifetime" lubricated, with no zerk fittings to regrease them.

Alas, "lifetime" means the lifetime of the *driveshaft*, not the lifetime of your truck, and if that joint fails, it's pretty catastrophic.

 

Yes, it is definitely something you want your mechanic to check out. As him/her (ladies can be mechanics too) to check if the u-joints in the double joint where the driveshaft connects to the transfer case have grease fittings. If not, have the mechanic rebuild it. If it does, have them grease it up every time you get your oil changed.

 

If you don't want to rebuild the shaft you might consider a Tom Woods driveshaft. I just put one in a few weeks ago. I bought one with the premium spline it gives it more compression and extension. Also the longer splines might also help reduce vibration. It was $380. Came in 2 days after placing the order.

Willie

 

So I just did this today, it was about a 4 on the 1-10 scale for wrenching if a "1" is changing spark plugs. The hardest part was removing the cardon bearing from the joint, that sucker broke my slide hammer and I had to rent another.

But here is the interesting part, according to receipts I have from the PO my front drive shaft is 2 years old and OEM. Well there was moisture in the spider caps, and they were quite dry of grease by comparison. So for the $80 it took to rebuild the shaft I'm sure it was worth it.

Long story short, do like the above have said, have it checked, get it upgraded or buy a serviceable version. I have a nice sized crack in my transmission that I had to weld as a result of this thing coming lose.

 

Lets clear up one thing mentioned a couple times on this thread, "NO", you don't go have it checked by your mechanic, who probably can't rebuild it any way.
They all fail at some point and you don't want to wait till they do, it can cost you a new tranny as well.
Crawl under, with a flash light, and count how many grease fitting you have on the front drive shaft. Should have 3 grease fittings and 1 plug, if you don't, you will want to make plans on having it rebuilt or replaced with a new Tom Woods shaft,NEXT WEEK.
You either pay $200 or so to get new greasaible U-Joints and a Centering Ball, buy a reman for $300 plus, buy a New Tom Woods Shaft for $350, a new Rover shaft for just under $800 and or a tranny for $4000 or so.
Just know they will fail.

 

4 grease fittings if you replace the front spider as well, two on the transmission side, one on the tube and one on the front spider. At least for a D 2 anyway.

Spiders were $29.99 x 3 - $90 (Napa replacements for 1993 Volvo 240)
Cardon joint was $49.99 (Napa PUJ617)
Drive Shaft balance - $10

Grand total this weekend was $160 w/ tax

Also want to clear something up from the tech article on this, the Napa spiders do have the zerk in the spider itself as assumed by the writer. No fitting or clearance issues at all. With the driveshaft in the correct position I can get to all four zerks at once.

 

I realize this is a dead issue, but when checking the front prop myself I found that the u joint going into the transfer case is wiggling around and looks as if a divot has been dug into the shaft inside the joint where they lock together. Also I can turn the shaft by hand about 20 degrees. Is this the same issue that this thread is referring to? I see a zerk fitting on the shaft towards the t case. Does this mean that the shaft has been rebuilt before? It's a 94 Disco I.

 

the disco 1 may be different but it sounds like your u joint is worn out take off the driveshaft and have a good look at it...