Guys, what would you guys say is the mileage where changing the front driveshaft U-joints becomes critical ???

CauseyLR service manager says that up here in Canada, since we live in a cold climate for some 5-6 months a year, driveshaft failure is basically unheard of, and I'd rather be safe than sorry.

 

There may be a little truth to that. In the cold, the bearing with their limited grease may last a little longer. My first set were fried at about 36,000 miles, luckily I caught them before they failed. Worse case, if they fail you can loose your tranny and damage the t/case. It is not worth waiting for them to fail, I would rather pay $150 and have them replaced then $7000 or more when the tranny and t/case get involved.

 

All right, could you tell me exactly which parts to order at my local NAPA store ???

Might as well do this now I guess.

 

Percisson 334 u-joints or the 1-0005 u-joints from Auto Quest.

 

perhaps a centering ball kit too?

 

Will we hear noises prior to them breaking down? Drumming/squealing/clunks etc? steering vibration?
Alan

 

Mine was in Vermont it's whole life (I assume its the original one)- that's almost Canada. I just changed it at88k miles.I had a very slight vibration in the steering wheel at about 60 mph or so, that's it. When I took it off I could feel sort of a dead spot when twisting a bearing. It probably had a few thousand miles left in it at least. I don't doubt that highway driving in Canada would bea lot easier on them than stop and go traffic in 100 deg. heat with the exhaust baking on them. I wouldn't wait to you hear noises coming fom them though, you probably won't.

 

Well, I'llget the parts, and plan on doing the work sometime after the holidays probably. As I said, I'd rather be premature, than too late.

 

Hey Darover, unless you've replaced a lot of u-joints and think it's fun, I'd strongly recommend just removing the driveshaft andhaving a driveline shop take care of the u-joints. They will also balance it for you. I'm having mine done soon and they quoted me $180 incl parts, labor and balancing. Take it from someone who's done a few u-joints in the past, $180 is not too much, and much less painless. To do it comfortably yourselfyou'll need a hydraulic press. Next best thing is a good solid bench vice and large sockets. A driveway mechanic would have to use a G-clamp and sockets...oh, and there's a good chance you'll eff them up and maybe loose some needle bearings...then you'll have to buy more UJs and start over

Happy holidays!

 

I agree with Fonzie. That double cardan can be a booger.