I was pretty sure I was hearing chirping that might’ve been the front driveshaft failing. I found a few shops that say they can deal with it - they have good reviews. They’re both about a hour away. They said about $180 for the front, not sure about the rear. I was told to lift the truck so one front tire is off the ground to be able to rotate the driveshaft for removal. I thought I’d get the special socket from AB and use it on the impact to make this easier hopefully. I’d chock the front tires with the parking brake up and shifted into Neutral from what I understand - and I’d do the opposite (lift from the rear, chock front tires, get one back tire off the ground) to remove the rear driveshaft. Is that all correct?

I figured both can be removed at the same time, but I’m not sure if I can run the engine or even shift out of neutral until both driveshafts are reinstalled. I wanted to run the engine to test it after installing the timing chain and all that. Bad idea? Will something misalign and make it difficult to reinstall or cause damage if it’s shifted out of neutral and/or the engine is running before both are reinstalled? They said it won’t take long to do it, so maybe I can bring it out to them in the morning and pick it up by the evening before I leave the county they’re in - I have to go out there anyway sometimes, but I’m not there that often.

I was told they need to replace all the u joints with ones that have a grease gun fitting, replace the centering ball (with the ball bearings and spring?) and possibly balance the driveshafts (front and/or rear)? I’m just not sure if they’re going to see the driveshafts that came out of this truck and say they’re totally different than anything they’ve ever seen…

Any guidance is appreciated.

Thank you

 

You can still shift gears with the shafts remove but obviously you won't go anywhere. To remove the shafts, just pop the tcase in neutral and lift one tire on the axle you're pulling to freely spin the shaft. Use a wheel chock or something to prevent the tire in the air from spinning as your undo the bolts on the shaft. No need for any special sockets. Just a 9/16th wrench and socket on an extension will do the trick. I use a chrome non-impact socket so there's enough clearance and a 6inch extension on a small 3/8 impact. Easy job but don't forget to chock your tires!

For the new joints, just ask them for greaseable ujoints and if they can, a greaseable centering ball. The shafts are nothing special and they'll be able to handle that request no problem.

 

Thank you, if I’m removing the front driveshaft, I’ll chock the rear tires (in front and in back of the tires) and I’ll also need to chock the front tire that’s still on the ground or do you mean just have the front tire that’s in the air only slightly off the ground so it can still be chocked as well as the one that’s on the ground, so a total of 8 chocks?

Also, do you know if it’s important to have them balance the driveshaft?

 

You don't need that many chocks. Just chock front/rear the tire opposite of the one in the air on the grounded axle. For example if you're lift the front passenger side tire to remove the front shaft, chock the driver rear tire. For the tire in the air; you're just securing it so you can break the nuts loose on the shaft. So you'll just need one chock to hold the wheel as you break the nuts and remove. This really is only needed if you're using hand tools so if you're under there with an impact, you likely won't need to do this. Sometimes I just use my knee to hold the tire in the area so I can get leverage. So you'll only need one set of chocks and maybe a wood block (I use a rubber square I have from my quickjacks). Sometimes I even just push my impact under the tire to wedge in order to break the nut loose or torque it when reinstalling. Nothing to overthink there. You'll see what I mean when you're under there and things are spinning.

As for balancing, I had mine balanced as well when they were rebuilt. Its not strictly necessary but makes for a smoother shaft and longer life from the joints when there's no vibrations to contend with. They can spin it to see if it needs it.

 

I'd be disappointed if any reputable driveline shop would rebuild a shaft and not balance it as part of the basic fee. If that's not the case, find another shop.

 

Any dedicated driveline shop should be able to rebuild the D2 driveshaft and YES they should provide balancing as part of the service. I would expect at least 48hr turn-around so if you need little/no down-time then I would pull driveshafts from the junkyard and have those rebuilt or If you have a local indy Land Rover mechanic you may want to ask them if they have good spares kicking around. More expensive but another good option is to purchase rebuilt driveshafts from GBR in Salt Lake City.

 

Thank you, I called again today to ask a few things and the person I spoke with today seemed to know these specific driveshafts - he said they're a bit different than the typical American ones, just some different sizing I think. He also said the parts alone are about $150-180 so the cost to rebuild is more like $275, $300 with tax... At that amount, is this still a better idea than getting a new replacement? I don't plan to use more than a 2" lift with 32" tires - just basic stuff for me. Either way I need to remove the driveshafts, so I can bring them out there and see what they say. The u joints on AB are about $35/each and I saw people saying the centering ball is $75-100 or so in some other threads. They have a good reputation and it's pretty much the only driveline shop anywhere around.

I'm not in a rush here and they said they'd repair them pretty quickly anyway, but I'd have to go out of town both times, so they might sit there for a bit unless I can bring them to them in the morning and have them ready the time I'm ready to leave town in the evening when I'm out there for work. I think I've heard about GBR being serious, but maybe more for heavier trucks than mine will be (basic lift), but I could ship them through the work UPS account and maybe it would save me a bit without tax and their labor rates in UT compared to CA. Thanks, I'll call them and see what they say.

Any idea what each driveshaft weighs?

 

I got a new cheapo eBay one for $150 shipped - it's been holding up fine. I don't expect it to last all that long, but hey, for the price I don't really care, and it's been great so far

 

I would say you're better off still getting yours rebuilt because you'll get quality joints vs cheapo joints. The price is a bit higher than I'm used to, but locale has some effect on that. As far as weight... maybe around 10 lbs? Just a guess from memory, could be way off.