Transmission clonks

OK, I know they are crude 1940s bits of kit, but my 110 has started to get extra clonky of late.
There seems to be a fair bit of backlash on the rear axle(Salisbury). Is this normal? or do the halfshaft splines wear.
Add to that some vertical play in the front transfer box output flange and it is getting a bit uncomfortable.
U/J s are good and it has not been offroaded as far as I know, nor does it tow often.
The A frame balljoint hasn't got any visible play, but looks original (1995).
Thanks ,
Jim.

I've said this before, but the biggest difference to my drivetrain clunk was when I changed the rear drive flanges. That quietened it down a great deal. The splines on the flanges seem to wear faster than the driveshafts. But I have a standard Rover set up rather than a Salisbury, which may differ.

The transfer box output shaft bearings can be changed with the box still on the vehicle. They've only got a single ball bearing race so it has to do quite a lot of work, so replacing them would be a good idea. There's a Buster's guide of him doing this somewhere on here. If I was you I'd refresh that ball joint anyway, as it's over 20 years old!

Brown said:

I've said this before, but the biggest difference to my drivetrain clunk was when I changed the rear drive flanges. That quietened it down a great deal. The splines on the flanges seem to wear faster than the driveshafts. But I have a standard Rover set up rather than a Salisbury, which may differ.

The transfer box output shaft bearings can be changed with the box still on the vehicle. They've only got a single ball bearing race so it has to do quite a lot of work, so replacing them would be a good idea. There's a Buster's guide of him doing this somewhere on here. If I was you I'd refresh that ball joint anyway, as it's over 20 years old!

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All makes sense, thanks for your reply.
Jim.

Also check you trailing arm and radius arm bushes - they can contribute a surprising clonk

I really need to pluck up courage and lay under it while a helper takes up the play.
Suspect it is a series of worn bits adding up.
It does tingle at 50 more noticeably now though, and wiggles at the back, despite no great play being found with levers etc.
Jim.

HECKFLOSSE said:

I really need to pluck up courage and lay under it while a helper takes up the play.
Suspect it is a series of worn bits adding up.
It does tingle at 50 more noticeably now though, and wiggles at the back, despite no great play being found with levers etc.
Jim.

Click to expand...

Everything said above is very good advice. The drive flanges are softer than the half shafts for good reason - the obvious one that the flange is cheap and easy to replace, and the real one that if they were the same, they would eat each other alive - and glue themselves together into the bargain.

Bushes are cheap, and always worth binning in this situation - general NVH will reduce, and IME, the vehicle will be much nicer to drive.

Rear axle ball joint is really a service item, and they are cheap to do too - just use a decent one, like lemforder.

another favourite is the drive flange on the front diff - they seem to wear, and are not daft money.

You can do see how much there is throughout the drive train with it on the floor, in difflock, and one wheel just clear... obviously, this has safety considerations - make sure all the other wheels are securely chocked, and (hand brake off) rotate the lifted wheel ... you can follow the play "up" the train this way too - which can be useful - I.E. fix the biggest issue first...

You'll find a lot of it in this way, and you can be as gentle or as rough as you like.....

As above, rear drive flanges first - cheap and easy to change. I think you'll be surprised at how much wear there is

zeaphod said:

As above, rear drive flanges first - cheap and easy to change. I think you'll be surprised at how much wear there is

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And how much of a clonk even a small bit of wear on the splines can produce

As above... start with the rear drive flanges and work forward if the issues persist.

I had similar problems with my 90 (noisy and sloppy drivetrain) but cannot say definitively, which components were principally to blame - I just worked forward replacing bits as time and funds allowed, although most of the parts required were pretty cheap to acquire.

In relation to the A-frame, mine had pretty much collapsed and replacing it did remedy a worrying vague feeling from the rear end at speeds above 40. I found it impossible to separate the pressed-in bush assy from the link, so purchased one complete - cost was around £50, I think! Oh, and after one near miss with a flying bush (whilst trying to press it out with a bench vice), I took the plunge and purchased a 10T press (£80'ish).

Just take your time with everything and remember that certain components are tightly torqued and would have suffered years of exposure to the elements - I had to resort to using a 4' section of scaffhold pole as a breaker bar at times... scary!

HECKFLOSSE said:

OK, I know they are crude 1940s bits of kit, but my 110 has started to get extra clonky of late.
There seems to be a fair bit of backlash on the rear axle(Salisbury). Is this normal? or do the halfshaft splines wear.
Add to that some vertical play in the front transfer box output flange and it is getting a bit uncomfortable.
U/J s are good and it has not been offroaded as far as I know, nor does it tow often.
The A frame balljoint hasn't got any visible play, but looks original (1995).
Thanks ,
Jim.

Click to expand...

Check the A frame bolts too at the chassis end, they wear the thread off bolt at the bracket and can get pretty clunky.

My money's on the drive flanges though. Gets some HD ones and covert the axle to the old oiled bearings setup and you'll thank yourself later