for what? replacing the U-jiont?

 

Yes.I've looked up a couple of pages about replacing u-joints, but I am not clear on what to do, and I'd like more clarity before I tackle it.

Thanks

 

Hey old skool luvr, today I went to CTC (north end of Richmond Hill) to see about getting them to do my front u-joint. They asked me to leave the vehicle for an hour and when I came back they wanted me to pay $40 for 0.4 hours of shop time plus taxes for looking at it and telling me that it was the left rear wheel brakes making the noise, in particular the shims (clips) rubbing on the rotor, that the u-joint was good! I think all they did was drive around the parking lot! I refused to pay as they misdiagnosed the problem and did nothing for me.

Just to eliminate the 1% chance that the brakes were causing the noise (two mechanical shops have both told me that now!), I went home, jacked up the left rear wheel, took it off, and removed the caliper bolts to make sure I could see exactly where the clips were. The clips don't come close to the rotors except in the middle part (at the circumference of the rotors) and there is no scraping going on there. Then I put the vehicle in neutral, put the wheel on it and spun it in both directions and it sounded as smooth as silk. I guess the bearings in the u-joint only make the noise under load because there was no noise when I spun the wheel up in the air. Another garage that is full of crap.

No wonder I keep losing what little faith I have left in service garages. Theses people are just ripping off the ignorant vehicle owners!

You mentioned that you know of a good mechanic. Care to PM me with his name and contact info? I'm tired of looking for a needle in a haystack, lol.

 

One sign of a bad u-joint is rust around the rubber seal on the u-joint. It will look like a brown bit of powder.

 

Thanks for that terry s.

My front u-joint seems OK. It's all brown with rust just like the rest of the drive shaft, but I've now had three different mechanics tell me that it is not the problem, so I have to give that some weight.

A couple of days ago I went to a Midas Muffler shop to see if they would diagnose the problem correctly. After all, my brother-in-law told me that he had his u-joints replaced there on his old Jeep. We went for a test drive, the man told me that it was not a u-joint type of sound that it sounded like it was the left rear wheel. Then he said that it sounded like it was coming from the front wheel. Oh boy, here we go again, I thought. Then he brought the vehicle in the shop and raised it up on the hoist. He then turned the left rear wheel by hand and it sounded quiet except that at a certain point it seemed to produce a scraping noise. He was sure it was one of the brake clips. So he then looked for a clip in his goodies box but couldn't find one to fit. So he was going to have to order a set of them. They called for a price and prepared an estimate for my approval - $50 labor plus $56 for the set of four clips plus taxes for a whopping $120, just to replace a clip! I told them I wouldn't mind paying them the labor charge but no way was I going to pay $56 for a set of clips that should cost no more than $10. That was their price, they said, and I told them to put everything back the way it was - no charge. Of course I never believed that the one little clip would be the cause of so much noise - it just didn't make any sense.

So yesterday I took the brakes apart again on both sides and scraped off the rust that had formed on the perimeter of the rotors with a file (which is what had been scraping on the one clip at a certain point on the rotor when he produced a bit of noise in the shop). That done, I took it for test drive. The noise was as loud as ever!

So now three mechanics have told me that the left rear wheel was the culprit. If I had listened to them I would have spent about $180 for false diagnoses and an unnecessary clip replacement!

Today I took the left rear wheel and its brakes apart again just to confirm no noises were coming from there. Sure enough there were no noises there when I turned the wheel with the vehicle in neutral, but I thought I could hear something from the front. So I got under the Jimmy with a light and looked for signs of trouble at the u-joint - all looked good to me. While I was under there, I grabbed the drive shaft with my hand and turned it and I could hear some noise from the front end, not as loud as on the road, but remember the vehicle is not under any load and I can only turn the shaft so fast that way. I got an assistant to turn the wheel while I grabbed a stethescope to listen at different spots to identify where the noise was loudest. What I found was that the noise was coming from something inside the housing shown in these pictures http://picasaweb.google.ca/fjlopes/9242009# - this housing is located about one foot in front of the front u-joint - the transfer case perhaps!

Can someone confirm this is indeed the transfer case? Since it is so close the transmission, should I take the vehicle to a Mr Transmission for their diagnosis and repairs? Are there bearings inside the transfer case that could be worn and make this scraping noise?

TIA,

quickcurrent

 

The unit ahead of the front u-joint is the transfer case which is bolted to the transmission. A stethescope can be helpful but noises travel througn metal parts and can make diagnosis difficult.
I would suggest you remove the drive shaft & check the u-joints. Loosen the 4 bolts about 1/4"at the rear u-joint. You may need to pry the driveshaft toward the front to get the u-joint loose. After it is loose push the u-joint back and take the bolts & caps off. Be careful that the 2 caps do not fall off. If you have a c-clamp you can put it on the caps to keep them from falling off. Lower the driveshaft then pull it back to get it out of the transfer case at the front. Put a pan under the front u-joint as some fluid may come out of the transfer case.
Once the driveshaft is out carefully take the 2 rear caps off one at a time and see if they have grease in them. Then rotate the rear u-joint back & forth it should rotate very smoothly. Then check the front one and see if it rotates smoothly in all directions. If either joint is not smooth or if it feels notchy it should be replaced.

To put it back wipe a little transfer case fluid on the front yoke where it goes into the seal and guide it in do it does not damage the seal. Then put the rear joint back the way it was marked. Replace the caps & bolts. You should be anle to do this in 30 minutes or so.

The noise could be coming from the transfer case or transmission but that would be a big job to fix. Be sure the u-joints are ok first since it is pretty easy to do. With the vehicle level remove the plug from the transfer case and make sure the fluid level is up to the bottom of the hole. If it is low add and if it is overfull let the excess run out. If you need to add make sure you use the right fluid. Older ones use red dexron III transmission fluid but newer ones use blue GM Auto Track II fluid. I think you nee the blue fluid. Check your owner's manual and see if you should change the fluid. Not changing the fluid, particularly the new fluid can lead to expensive problems.

 

Thanks bud, I'm going to get on this tomorrow.

 

I checked the u-joints today. The rear one I had replaced about a month ago, the front one was the original. Took the entire drive shaft off and checked both joints, both move freely and smooth. Then put the drive shaft back on. Now I have to pay Mr. Transmission a visit. Looks like the stethescope may have been right on.

Thanks to all that helped.

Now that I have a rear u-joint with a grease fitting I also need to get myself a grease gun fitting (needle fittings I think they're called) narrow enough to fit into the tight opening and reach the nipple to grease that u-joint. Any ideas for a good place to get one from, online or otherwise?

I'll post further information as I drive on in my quest to get this Jimmy back to full health.

 

Most auto stores should have a needle fitting for your grease gun. However I have a rubber hose on my grease gun that is handy for hard to reach places. On many u-joints if I rotate the driveshaft where the gap is widest the standard fitting will work.

 

I tried that with a standard fitting on my u-joint while I was under the Jimmy, but couldn't get it in there. I'll have to look for a needle fitting. Thanks again.