nasty accident, urging you to check your UJs properly

ive been trying to solve this problem for the past couple of months, since ownership really. tread created here. http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f7/vibration-3rd-gear-upchange-help-190107.html#post2003747

but today, all came to a massive disastrous ending......

so the vibration had got pretty rough recently, changin from when it would occur, sometimes 20 mph, sometimes 30, and most recently all the time until 60mph. today i was drivin back from liverpool on the motorway after a tattoo appointment, sneezin my hed off with hayfiever, doin a steady 70mph admiring the newly changed engine oil and how much better my acceleration has become.

i get off the motorway and head for home, about 3 miles away from home on a main bypass the driveshaft uj gives way, the front prop smashin into the floor underneath me, prompting me to come to a halt immediately and lift my legs up for fear of it spinning them into tatters of meat.

i then realise that the propshaft hadnt come through the floor, it had knockied it do hard that the carpet and chequerplate and rubber mat had all flown up in the air taking my legs with it. SCARY stuff.

so i get out the car, take a look underneath, the rear UJ on the front prop has disintegrated, chewed up most of the prop flange, and hit the body making a deep groove in the aluminium flooring.

i use what tools i have (the original landrover toolkit wallet) which is less than useless. i cant budge nething, im tryin to take the propshaft off so i can drive it in rear wheel drive with the difflock engaged to get home.
then i wonder if the front prop comes apart off the splines like the rear one does. it doesnt budge at all, not one bit.

i look around for anything i can use to get the propshaft out the way and stop it rampaging all over the place if i was to drive off.

i find a rag in the back of the land rover, rip it into three strips, tie each strip together to make a 3 foot piece of rag rope. then tie the propshaft loosely to the side of the chassis so it is still allowed to spin, but not to go anywhere near the tranfer box flange or any other things it may grind against.

i shove it in diff lock, and drive off at 5mph, its holding, i stop and check it, no problem. i manage to drive all the way home at 5-10mph with the 4 way flashers on and get under neath once again. the propshaft flange is destroyed after examining it, i need to fit a new one tomorrow.

the weird thing is, ive been looking into this vibration issue so much, and examined the UJs so many times, that ive discounted it, until 2 days ago when i thought it wouldnt hurt to order 4 new UJs to fit over the weekend, theyre arriving tomorrow. coincidence that it goes the day before.

so im lucky to have my legs, im buzzing about being able to do a temporary roadside desert style repair using half a turban. and im also wondering about the front prop shaft.


phasing, the rear shaft i had apart ages ago to inspect it and grease it up, i didnt know about phasing and just slammed it back togehter, its almost inline, about 30 degrees out. the front propshaft im confused about, its in phase right now, as far as i can see it doesnt even come apart on splines. so am i missing something or can it be phased incorrectly and come apart.


lesson of the day, dont just get underneath and giv ur UJs a wobble or tap em a bit with the hammer, make sure u change em out before something reli bad happens. if theres any doubt that ur drivetrain is in some way not perfect, id have it all out n fit new parts asap.


i couldve lost my legs today and i dont want it to actually happen to anyone else.

heres some photos from when i got home

Those pics are way too big a file to view properly.

it would be good if they fit on my screen

johnlad said:

it would be good if they fit on my screen

Click to expand...

Yu think you've got problems.. I'm using a 7" android tablet thingy.

redhand said:

Yu think you've got problems.. I'm using a 7" android tablet thingy.

Click to expand...

evenin joe, im on a net book myself, so its a small screen aswell

sorry lads, they were fone pics, didnt know theyd be that big, changed em now

I've got an abundance of props for a Discovery 300tdi if you need another one for very little money.

Mark L said:

I've got an abundance of props for a Discovery 300tdi if you need another one for very little money.

Click to expand...

cheers for the offer mate, props should be ok though. il fit these new UJs and get a flange to fit to the front of the transfer box and hopefully everything should be ok.

my decision on phasing, after reading hundreds of forums on the topic is gonna be, front propshaft 30degrees out of phase, and rear propshaft in phase.
anyone got any differnt phasing specs id like to know please

No worries. Just check it hasn't bent it if it hit the underside as hard as you say it did.
Drop me a PM if anything changes.

Mark L said:

No worries. Just check it hasn't bent it if it hit the underside as hard as you say it did.
Drop me a PM if anything changes.

Click to expand...

ok cool, ye ill check it when its all off tomorrow n keep u in mind if i need anything

Bodmodbaby/Mcgiver

mick the builder said:

Bodmodbaby/Mcgiver

Click to expand...

haha i was gona say i macgyvered it originally but wasnt sure neone would get the joke.

so today the UJs i ordered didnt come. i rang land ranger services in atherton, just up the road from me, and a reli nice guy called martin sorted me out with a scrap propshaft from a disco, i took the flang and uj off, checked they were in good condition and went to fit it, took him back what i didnt need and dropped him a tenner for his trouble.

fitting the UJ was easy after readin a few writeups on the internet, using a vice and socket method.
also replaced the disco uj grease nipple with a shorter one to give access to the greasegun. the disco one was way too long and couldnt even get the greasegun onto it with the tiny amount of space left between the flange and the grease nipple.

the only problem i had in fitting was that the bolts left in the transfer box flange had been mangled by the spinning prop when the event happened, 2 were ok, but the other 2 even though id got the nuts off to remove the damaged flange, were way beyond worthy. i got the grinder and a cutting disc and cut the 2 mangled bolts out, and made up some new bolts the same length but put them in the flange the opposite way so that i didnt have to remove the output shaft to fit them.

anyway, all done now and the truck drives like brand new, i mean im really impressed with it. the clunk has completely gone, there is no grinding sound, no vibration. it drives like i imagine a new defender to drive, only slower (2.5td engine)

so, many many thanks to land ranger services in atherton, highly recommended, and it wouldnt be possible without them. super guys.

lucky man. well done on the fix (thats what macgyver would have done). just done my rear prop, went for MOT and it was loose at both ends (like me after a night out) but i was totally un-aware as had checked it a month ago when i had to do the front UJ's and all was well. he asked if i'd heard it squeeking and rattling to which i replied everything does that if it wants attention then it needs to distinguish itself. it took me ages to get the old ones out even though they were foobar. tools used to get them out...spanner, prybar, sockets, mole grips, 4lb lump hammer, oxy/acet torch and a lot of language i picked up listening to the hooded teenagers at the end of the street. all done now hopefully will get a re-test tomorrow and have another years trouble free motoring

captain skellon said:

lucky man. well done on the fix (thats what macgyver would have done). just done my rear prop, went for MOT and it was loose at both ends (like me after a night out) but i was totally un-aware as had checked it a month ago when i had to do the front UJ's and all was well. he asked if i'd heard it squeeking and rattling to which i replied everything does that if it wants attention then it needs to distinguish itself. it took me ages to get the old ones out even though they were foobar. tools used to get them out...spanner, prybar, sockets, mole grips, 4lb lump hammer, oxy/acet torch and a lot of language i picked up listening to the hooded teenagers at the end of the street. all done now hopefully will get a re-test tomorrow and have another years trouble free motoring

Click to expand...

ye even tho its usually a ball-ache to fix anything on these bloody land rovers, i enjoy cos eventually after using all the man toys you can find (spade, crowbar, massive hammer) it all works out for the best. nice sense of satisfaction when u fix something yourself aint it.

i plan to check the bolts in a weeks time and pack more grease in if needed, but for now its driving like a champ. really impressed, you wouldnt believe its more than a couple years old the way it drives now.

I'm slightly concerned now as my landy does a vibrating thing when your doing about 30mph in 4th then stops when going faster plus when we actually had some sun the other day I was driving with the window down n something sounds like it's rattling underneath, (yes I know landys do rattle but I dont think like this) it's recently come back from an engine refit n had the rear prop changed, the front was a good one already, so could I be having the same problem as the op?

Ta

Mandy

sounds like you need to get underneath and have a look my rear one was fine when i did the front but a month later was done for. where in west yorks are you i'm in bradford if your nearby and not sure what to look for. got my MOT today so shouldn't need to lift the bonnet or look underneath for another year....my arse

Cheers for that I'm only in Wakefield n work in Bradford may take yoh up on offer if I get stuck :crazy_driver:

no probs

lcbandit said:

I'm slightly concerned now as my landy does a vibrating thing when your doing about 30mph in 4th then stops when going faster plus when we actually had some sun the other day I was driving with the window down n something sounds like it's rattling underneath, (yes I know landys do rattle but I dont think like this) it's recently come back from an engine refit n had the rear prop changed, the front was a good one already, so could I be having the same problem as the op?

Ta

Mandy

Click to expand...

ye that sounds like what i was getting. but id also check your tyre pressures are equal to rule out any vibration from wheel balancing issues, or maybe a wheel weight has fallen off. and then after ruling that out start inspecting the driveshaft.

with mine, i was expecting to be able to wiggle it to detect any play in the UJs by hands. but i reli sugest getting the shafts off and inspecting them thoroughly..

also the suggested phasing for the splines is 30 degrees for the front one, and in phase for the rear one. although mine is the opposite way round cos the front splines are ceased and the rear one i just left out of phase cos i didnt know about the phasing thing, ill be putting it back in line soon tho. but as of now i dont have any vibrations at all so may leave it as is.