March 13, 200719 yr ok.. so i was running downhill ,about 65 and went to pass some dude in a ford and the front u joint blew out on my 4wd 89 gl. man there was some carnage involved! it took out the muffler, took out the yoke and hit the shift linkage and broke all the bolts out of the shift tower. broke all the plastic on the console when this happened and even threw my coffee cup up to the ceiling and got all over me! once i got it up in the air to inspect the depth of the problem i found that the tailshaft on the tranny was broke about 3 inches back from the seal.sooo... anyone around fairbanks got one i can get for cheap?
March 13, 200719 yr Were you running rear wheel drive? It just seems like there isn't a lot of stress on that u-joint normally. How much of the tranny is broken? Is just the gaurd cup ripped off, or is there aluminum missing?
March 13, 200719 yr ... it took out the muffler, took out the yoke and hit the shift linkage and broke all the bolts out of the shift tower. broke all the plastic on the console when this happened and even threw my coffee cup up to the ceiling and got all over me! once ... Oh my God! ... ... What a Dissaster! Glad to Hear You are good! But I´m not Sure about what Exactly is the "U" Joint... Could you Post here some Pics about?
March 13, 200719 yr Oh my God! ... ... What a Dissaster! But I´m not Sure about what Exactly is the "U" Joint... Could you Post here some Pics about? The driveshaft to the rear wheels is two shafts. Each shaft has a universal joint at each end of it. In the middle of the car is the carrier bearing that supports the middle of the driveshaft. The drive shaft is two shafts since that cuts down on driveline vibration. When you expierience a vague vibration in the driveline that seems to come from behind the transmission, this is what needs to be checked. What happened here is a worse case scenario failure. H'es very lucky he didnt get hurt or worse. There is potential for enough damage to total the car or worse. In a rar wheel drive car with no carrier bearing, its possible to rip the rear axle out of the car. This can happen when the front universal gives way. When the rear gives way it just drops (you may loose the driveshaft). Usually its the universal at the end of the 1st driveshaft that fails, so that should just drag. I am curious as to which universal failed, or if the carrier bearing totally failed. I am glad you didnt get hurt. nipper
March 13, 200719 yr ...When you expierience a vague vibration in the driveline that seems to come from behind the transmission, this is what needs to be checked... Thanx!
March 13, 200719 yr Yeah, I had a u-joint fail on my jeep, at 70 mph. It beat the snot out of the muffler and the body underneath.
March 14, 200719 yr Author the carrier was fine... although im sure i will replace it once i get the monster back home. and yes, the actual tailshaft broke. most likely got in a bind when the joint went. hopefully on friday when i have the day off ,ill be able to tow it home and commence to repairing my fuel concious savior. till then im stuck with my v8 dakota. oh yeah.. i was in 4 whell drive when this all occured. since i live in the arctic i tend to use this more since there is snow on the ground and the roads are icy just about 6 months a year. hee hee... ive never seen a jeep at 70...jk
March 14, 200719 yr Glad to hear that you are ok. hee hee... ive never seen a jeep at 70...jk I have had a Heep going 70. Downhill with a tailwind drafting a tractor trailer......
March 14, 200719 yr The driveshaft to the rear wheels is two shafts. Each shaft has a universal joint at each end of it. In the middle of the car is the carrier bearing that supports the middle of the driveshaft. Actually the front shaft only has one. at the Trans end. The rear of that shaft goes through carrier bearing. It's fixed in place, and has a flange to bolt to the Second shaft. The second shaft(rear) has a U-joint at each end. Usually its the universal at the end of the 1st driveshaft that fails, so that should just drag. nipper The first driveshaft is held in by the carrier bearing. It cannot "drag" unless the entire carrier bearing were to fall out. In my experience(seen 2 u-joints fail on soobs. They didn't break but all the needle bearing caps rusted out= lots of slop= breakin soon) It is the one at the FRONT of the front shaft. I think this is what happened to OP. The front end of that shaft was being whipped around under the car, still spinning from the movement of vehicle driving rear axle. It most likely struck the tailshaft of trans and caused the damage. I always wondered if it would do damage inside car when one of these failed. Aparently so, though not terrible I guess.
March 14, 200719 yr by any chance was your transmission mount broken before this happened? the tranny mounts are two pieces of metal with rubber sandwhiched in between and glued. the rubber seems to come unglued. I've had this trash three or four u-joints
March 15, 200719 yr Author nah... the mounts are good. it was all on account of a dry,crusty u joint that i should have replaced a long time ago. but oh well... the car paid for itself already by saving me gas money! i dont really mind dropping some cash on it from time to time to take care of these problems. although ,i suppose i now know what its limitations are when it comes to neglect
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