Questions concerning driveshaft replacement or repair, CV axles, etc

[Zeta]

Excellent, thanks for the confirmation!

[Zeta]

Unfortunately it seems I got the easiest nut off first, because even my (newly replaced) flared crowfoot wrench is slipping on the next one I'm going after. I'm worried it's going to get rounded off and give me bigger problems.

Ugh. Yep, it’s rounded off. 12 point box wrench slips, and so does the flared crowfoot. Maybe a 6 point box wrench is the way to go? I doubt it would provide much more contact than the flared crowfoot, but it’s worth a shot. I’ll have to order one.

On the bright side, I got the other two nuts off, so it’s just the rounded off one holding me back now.

[Zeta]

6-point wrench did the trick! Got the driveshaft off today. After that though, I inspected the U-joints and noticed that they both have a lot more play on one axis than the other. Is that normal? I took a video showing what I mean, here: https://imgur.com/a/VpMJ2Kl

I’d like to know whether they’re ok or not before I install new parts and get things put back together. It would be a shame if I have to buy a whole remanned driveshaft, but it would be even worse if I put it back together and it just breaks again because of bad U-joints.

[Galahad]

Those should be free to move in both axes, what you showed in the video is not how they should act

[Zeta]

Oh no, just as I feared. Guess it’s time to look for a reman. I read that Driveline Service of Portland is reliable and reasonably affordable.

[Zeta]

Ok, another question. I’m installing the new CV axles, and a tiny bit of grease squelched out from the dust caps when tightening down the bolts. Is it ok if the bolts get a little CV grease on their threads, or is that a recipe for them loosening up and falling out on the road?

[Zeta]

Never mind, just found the gaskets that were supposed to go beneath the dust caps. Glad I didn’t torque all of the bolts yet, cause it’s coming back off.

[Zeta]

Just ordered a new driveshaft from Portland Driveline. They're running at $588 currently, in case anyone was wondering. Looking forward to being done with this project.

Does anyone know what parts come with the driveshaft from them? Like, does it include the new center bearing, giubo, and clamp ring? What about the self-locking nuts? It would be good to know what to expect, because I already have the center bearing and giubo, but ECS had sent me the wrong clamp ring (it was just the metal part without the plastic inside of it, despite the picture on the site showing the plastic included) so I would have to reorder that if its needed, along with new self-locking nuts.

[turbodan]

I'm interested in how you turn out with that driveshaft. I had some problems with theirs recently. Unless it's a custom job they are sourcing them from PTI. You may end up getting the first one I ordered and sent back. Hopefully fixed.

Does not come with a guibo. Just the driveshaft and studs for the rear flange.

[Zeta]

I'm interested in how you turn out with that driveshaft. I had some problems with theirs recently. Unless it's a custom job they are sourcing them from PTI. You may end up getting the first one I ordered and sent back. Hopefully fixed.

Does not come with a guibo. Just the driveshaft and studs for the rear flange.

Hmm, that’s a little concerning. Seemed like they were really good in the past from reviews I read here. Perhaps quality isn’t what it used to be. I’ll make sure to check it carefully when I receive it, and post an update with how it goes.

Did the shaft come with the center bearing and clamp ring, or nah? If it’s coming from PTI, it looks like it should based on the photos on their site: https://www.powertrainindustries.com/st ... model=528e

[turbodan]

They have been great for me in the past, I had a driveline services driveshaft in my old turbo car. I put a PTI shaft in my wife's X3 about two years ago and it was flawless. This time around I had issues though. Shaft number one looked good, joints felt nice and it fit properly. Problem was a shudder when accelerating through 20-25 MPH. Driveshaft number two came in with a super stiff axis on the rear u-joint and a bunch of issues with the circlips retaining the joints. I spent two hours with a hammer, drift, file and snap ring pliers sorting it out. With these issues resolved it miraculously has been great, smooth as glass.

The good news is that I'm becoming increasingly convinced that these things are only happening to me. The build has been plagued with this sort of thing. They do come with everything except the guibo. They are ready to bolt in once you get the studs installed in the rear flange.

[Zeta]

Got my new driveshaft in the other night! I’m now attaching the new giubo to it, and I’ve already hit a point of confusion. The Bentley lists different torque specs depending on the size/grade of nut used-

M10 8.8 grade: 46 Nm
M10 10.9 grade: 72 Nm
M12: 123 Nm

The nuts that I ordered from ECS based on the Real OEM part number were listed on the site as M10. However, they have a number 12 clearly stamped on them, while the old ones had a 10. The old bolts that I’m reusing are embossed with a 10.9, so I should think the 72 Nm is the way to go. I assume the new nuts are M10, because they fit the old bolts and appear to be virtually identical to the old nuts besides the different stamped numeral. It’s still unsettled me enough that I wanted to ask for reassurance though! Certainly don’t want a failure due to over- or under-torqued nuts.

[Zeta]

I went with the 72 Nm but frustratingly, my Harbor Freight torque wrench malfunctioned and overtorqued the first bolt, snapping it. So now I am waiting on another nut and bolt (those f***ers are $8 apiece!) and I got the wrench replaced for free.

And another question: the knurled bolts on the rear flange. Do they need to be hammered into their holes before bolting down, or does tightening them to spec squeeze them in properly?

[turbodan]

I went with the 72 Nm but frustratingly, my Harbor Freight torque wrench malfunctioned and overtorqued the first bolt, snapping it. So now I am waiting on another nut and bolt (those f***ers are $8 apiece!) and I got the wrench replaced for free.

And another question: the knurled bolts on the rear flange. Do they need to be hammered into their holes before bolting down, or does tightening them to spec squeeze them in properly?

I've never used a torque wrench on the fasteners at either end. 72nm is about 52 ft-lbs, that should be about right for the guibo. Just guessing on the rear flange to diff I would estimate about 30 ft-lbs.

The studs do need to be installed into the rear flange before the shaft goes in. You can use a nut to thread on and pull them in, when I did mine I had one on hand that was the correct pitch and had a captive washer. That was perfect. You could certainly use the nuts that it installs with but being self locking nut will make it more difficult to keep the studs from spinning during the process. They have a flat cut into one side which locks against a corresponding edge on the back of the flange, requiring they be installed in the correct orientation to fully seat.

[Zeta]

I’ve got a problem. The replacement bolt is delayed from ECS, and I don’t even know when it’s going to ship, much less arrive. I’m getting concerned because I’m planning to embark on a week-long road trip on July 1st which I intend to do with Pendleton. If the bolt doesn’t arrive in time, do you think it would be safe to temporarily use a reasonably appropriate size and grade of bolt from the hardware store, and replace it with the legitimate one after the trip? It would just need to get me through about 2000 miles.

[Mike W.]

I’ve got a problem. The replacement bolt is delayed from ECS, and I don’t even know when it’s going to ship, much less arrive. I’m getting concerned because I’m planning to embark on a week-long road trip on July 1st which I intend to do with Pendleton. If the bolt doesn’t arrive in time, do you think it would be safe to temporarily use a reasonably appropriate size and grade of bolt from the hardware store, and replace it with the legitimate one after the trip? It would just need to get me through about 2000 miles.

Absolutely. Just get the right sized bolt, and locknut, bolt it up and you'll be fine. If it's a 10MM, really a 3/8" bolt would be fine for now. I'd shoot for a 10MM, but not lose any sleep over it if I used a 3/8. Do make sure you use a locknut though. If it's 12MM, you could get away with 7/16" in a pinch, just don't do any slide your foot off the pedal launches.

Executive summary: Bolt and locknut and don't sweat it short term. You'll be fine.

[Zeta]

Thanks for the reassurance, Mike. Home Depot was sold out of 10.9 grade M10 50 mm hex bolts, but they had 12.9 grade internal hex head (looks almost identical to the bolts for the CV axles), so I got one of those and a lock nut that fit. I got Pendleton back on the road yesterday! Drives better than ever.

The one concern I still have is I’m not sure if I put enough transmission fluid in. I had replaced the strainer and pan gasket, then refilled with the prescribed 3 liters, but the gasket was off on one corner, so some fluid leaked out, and I had to drain the pan again and re-seat the gasket. I drained the fluid into a clean pan so I could reuse it, but of course there were some losses in transferring it around. I added approximately the right amount again, and yesterday after I got the car back together I went through the procedure of shifting between all the gears with the engine running, then drove around for 15 minutes, and checked the fluid level with the car idling. It wasn’t even registering on the dipstick. I ended up adding the rest of the gallon of ATF that I had bought, and drove around some more. Still not registering. It’s weird though, because I feel like I’ve added significantly more than 3 liters, and the transmission feels fine when I’m driving. I guess I’ll buy another quart of ATF today and see if that will get me there, but I wanted to make sure I wasn’t missing anything.

Edit: Come to think of it, I did drain considerably more fluid than the specified 3 liters. It was actually a little over a gallon, because I had to use two old gallon jugs to hold it. Is it possible that significantly more fluid was able to drain than the standard “drain and refill” amount because the car was sitting for 7 months without running prior to it? I know that more can slowly drain out if it’s left for multiple days, but I did the change all in one day, not counting the second drain and refill.

[jayjaya29]

I would continue filling and rechecking the dipstick per procedure until it registers on the stick.

[Zeta]

Took another nearly 2 quarts, but the transmission is filled to a proper level on the dipstick now. Changed the engine oil Tuesday and everything is running as smooth as can be. Hopefully I'll be able to enjoy the car for a good while now before I need to do any other significant repairs!