Me vs. Mechanic: How Difficult to Remove Front Driveshaft? (TC to Front Diff)

[iXerces]

Hi All,

I don't have the space/tools at the moment to work on my car and in anticipation of a coming move I'm having a little preventative maintenance done on my '90 iX with 190K. I have noticed no problems with the AWD, but because I've only had the car since August I asked my mechanic to drop the front driveshaft and inspect/lube the splines where it meets the TC.

I just got a call from him that they have 1.5 hrs of labor into it and estimate another 5-6 hrs to complete the job. He claimed that they would have to remove the exhaust and move the transmission. This did not jive with what I would have guessed, or understand from reading here/elsewhere.

I have no first-hand experience with the shaft, so for all I can personally say he is correct. But I know that a lot of you do have the experience that I lack.

Is he full of crap or am I the one confused? How difficult is this/how long should this really take? Is the exhaust/tranny actually in the way?

I told him to stop working on it, and I am hoping he isn't going to charge me since they haven't been successful and he initially estimated it would only take about an hour or two. But since these splines are critical to a functional AWD I really want to know what kind of shape they are in and get some lube on them ASAP. I can probably do this myself over the summer but I'd rather not wait that long especially since I have to drive it a couple thousand miles for the move.

Should I argue with him, take it somewhere else, or just wait and do it myself?

Thanks in advance for your advice.

[Danny]

Book time is .5 hrs for the front drive shaft.

[pantelones]

Book time is .5 hrs for the front drive shaft.

Yep. OP you are getting ripped off, or something is seriously wrong with your car. I did this with on an IX, and it took about an hour including jacking the car up and down. I swear at least 10 minutes were spend arguing about putting the jack stands on the frame rails or front sub frame...

[iXerces]

Thanks. That was my impression. I guess I cannot discount that something could be "seriously wrong", but overall the car is in great shape and I would be very surprised if this one spot was amiss. Not very happy about this...

I guess I'll just do it myself first chance I get. Should have just been more patient.

[nando]

yeah, it's probably not even a half hour if you've looked at one before.

get the car in the air. remove the front DS bolts. pop out the centering pin with a flathead screwdriver. pull driveshaft out. how could that possibly take 6-8 hours?

you don't have to touch the exhaust.. or move the transmission.. find a better shop or DIY.

[DesertBMW]

Is he full of crap or am I the one confused? How difficult is this/how long should this really take? Is the exhaust/tranny actually in the way?

?

Thanks in advance for your advice.

If the front driveshaft splines are damaged then yes they have to move the transfer case back in order to remove the front driveshaft. Splines do get stripped on these cars. The way the front DS is removed, is flex disc is unbolted then the shaft is pushed into transfer case then the flex disc is removed, then you have enough room to push it forward then the DS is removed. But if the splines are damage it won't go into transfer case further. Same thing with rear driveshaft if the splines are rusted and the driveshaft can't collapse then rear diff has to be moved or whole engine with transmission little so that DS can be removed.

[iXerces]

If the front driveshaft splines are damaged then yes they have to move the transfer case back in order to remove the front driveshaft. Splines do get stripped on these cars. The way the front DS is removed, is flex disc is unbolted then the shaft is pushed into transfer case then the flex disc is removed, then you have enough room to push it forward then the DS is removed. But if the splines are damage it won't go into transfer case further. Same thing with rear driveshaft if the splines are rusted and the driveshaft can't collapse then rear diff has to be moved or whole engine with transmission little so that DS can be removed.

Well, I guess that could be the culprit then... Not the best news I've had this week. I haven't noticed any issues with the AWD (passed a jack test when I bought it and performed flawlessly all winter) but who knows...

Ironically I instigated this operation mostly to assess the condition of the splines! Perhaps I got my answer without even seeing them. Maybe I'll know more when I talk to them/see the car in person. They've never given me any reason to suspect their work or honesty but this issue had me scratching my head.

[nando]

If the front driveshaft splines are damaged then yes they have to move the transfer case back in order to remove the front driveshaft. Splines do get stripped on these cars. The way the front DS is removed, is flex disc is unbolted then the shaft is pushed into transfer case then the flex disc is removed, then you have enough room to push it forward then the DS is removed. But if the splines are damage it won't go into transfer case further. Same thing with rear driveshaft if the splines are rusted and the driveshaft can't collapse then rear diff has to be moved or whole engine with transmission little so that DS can be removed.

you are 100% wrong. if the driveshaft splines are stripped you don't do anything different, it comes out just the same.

the funny thing is you are completely wrong and then you use a picture I took 12 years ago as proof. lol

[nando]

Well, I guess that could be the culprit then... Not the best news I've had this week. I haven't noticed any issues with the AWD (passed a jack test when I bought it and performed flawlessly all winter) but who knows...

Ironically I instigated this operation mostly to assess the condition of the splines! Perhaps I got my answer without even seeing them. Maybe I'll know more when I talk to them/see the car in person. They've never given me any reason to suspect their work or honesty but this issue had me scratching my head.

he is completely wrong. as a general rule, ignore everything this guy says.

[iXerces]

Thanks nando. Though I am happy to learn that my splines might still be OK, I'm not thrilled with what this might mean about the garage I am using.

What on Earth could the problem have been? I want to chalk it up to some kind of ignorance on their part rather than malice. Sadly, neither is encouraging. For 30-60 min it was probably worth it for me personally to just pay them to do it, but not to now have that sinking feeling.

[nando]

it's probably just ignorance. they may have never worked on one before and been burned by similar experiences in the past. they'll have to figure out how to pull the shaft on their own, and even if it's easy they aren't going to know that until they actually look at it.

[The Dark Side of Will]

There are DIY's around... find one with good photos, print it out and take it to the garage.

[Todd Black 88]

Don't Indy shops run on "all data" down there, or do they just "wing it"?

[iXerces]

There are DIY's around... find one with good photos, print it out and take it to the garage.

I've seen lots of DIY for the front driveshaft shim, but they all seem to mostly skip over the removal because it is so "easy." If you or anybody could point me to a removal specific DIY that would be very helpful. I will also stay on the hunt.

I thought this would be a no brainer for the pros. If it is as easy as this and other forums and postings suggest, I just don't understand how they could get it so wrong. Maybe they just got confused and/or nervous. They made some appeal to the "database" but I don't know exactly what that meant.

I'm pretty curious as to what they are going to tell me tomorrow when I go to pick up the car.

Thanks to everybody who has replied.

[imwhyteyo]

Theyre screwing you for additional money.. taking advantage because clearly you dont sound knowledgeable. It took me an honest 7 minutes to completely remove my driveshaft yesterday (my cars already on stands). There is absolutely no moving of shit involved, especially the exhaust, its on the other side of the engine!.. the shops jipping you, you sound passive, they didnt want to simply tell you your car was fine and the splines were fine.. after they greased it. Because they put it on the lift and did it, dp you think they wanted to walk away with a 60$ service on such a "unique old BMW"... "NO NO, lets tell him something completely wild and confuse him talking about things he wont understand anyway" because you drive an awd.. for whatever reasom the shop will mark up your parts fees and services to bank alittle extra off your ignorance. Its sad.. but I wouldnt pay them more than an hours worth of labor and THAT would be a nice tip!... worst case scenario could only be a stripped gear and shaft. That would easily come out regardless. They saw a good opportunity to screw you. Its like when I get quoted 680$ to do a fucking clutch slave cylinder back some years ago. I got the car home, bought a brand new slave for 18$, legit 15 minutes of install time. (2 bolts!!!) I drove back to the shop 2 days later in my car and flamed him out for claiming it would take him 4 days to do the job, and how bullshit all his other made up claims were. He almost swallowed his tongue. Dont pay a penny until you get a general consesus as to why everything else was fucked with. Sounds like a scam beyond all. I hate these guys!