U-joint problems????

[JPL]

Ok, so me and rede30 are driving home from college in Napa, CA and we had just gotten over the grapevine and we're on the 210 freeway. I start to feel bad vibrations but realize i am going 95 so i speed check the vibrations and they do not subside at all. So i pull over off the freeway and jack each tire up and check to make sure its not falling off or flat tire or tie rods etc. but those are fine. so we drive it around the block and the back end is going up and down and we're still vibrating. What could it be????

If it is the u joint how hard is it to get to and change????

I had to get my car towed to a mechanic for the night so should i have him fix it and what would seem like a decent price for that. I haven't called him yet to get a quote.

Help.

[static]

i read in Bentleys that u-joints failing is uncommon but if they go, need change the entire half of the driveshaft (depends on which half the u-joint failed of course)

Alex

[arsevader]

i read in Bentleys that u-joints failing is uncommon but if they go, need change the entire half of the driveshaft (depends on which half the u-joint failed of course)

Alex

Unlikely you'd find people selling half a driveshaft as they have to be balanced in one piece.

Is the vibration road speed or engine speed related?

[JPL]

Not engine speed. But, when i was slowing down to get off the freeway it seemed like the vibration got a little more rough but not a lot. I got a quote and it would be 480 to rebuild the driveshaft and u-joints b/c apparently it has to be welded and pressed. if the mounting frame and brackets aren't shot then it would be 350 to replace the joints but that is unlikely.

anyone know of any good shops around the La Crecenta area in SoCal so i don't have to trailer my car back to Riverside?

[KillerCalypso]

Check out/replace your guibo mount if not replaced it may be very deteriorated. Vibration could be from the center bearing as well.

[SpecM]

Check out/replace your guibo mount if not replaced it may be very deteriorated. Vibration could be from the center bearing as well.

-That would be my first choice too.

-The U-joints aren't hard to change, cuz you have to replace the entire driveshaft!

[fretburnr]

i recently had to replace my driveshaft as my rear-most ujoint was TOAST. i went through a guibo and a CSB in like a week just to find out i had to replace the whole thing. I couldn't find a shop here that would repair the shaft, so i got a new one

[roninmf]

480 to rebuild a half-shaft? thats fucking nuts....buy a remanufactured one from an autoparts store for like a 100 bucks man.....and im having the same problem....untill i get my car to the shop to swap shafts with a used one i picked up last weekend..too damn cold out for my white ass to be busting knuckles

[Jon '92 325ic]

You can buy your driveshaft

from a place called Driveshaft Specialist, Inc. They're in San Antonio, TX (www.driveshaftspecialist.com) so you don't pay sales tax, but they ship out of place here in So Cal, so shipping wont be too much (or take too long). And you can have them ship it to the shop that will install it. For installation try The M Shop. They're in Eagle Rock, just south of Colorado Blvd. on Eagle Rock Blvd. (by where the 134 & 2 intersect). They're $85/hr and only work on BMWs. Driveshaft should be about $320 with shipping +$40 for flex disc (guibo).

[roninmf]

why is everyone calling it a drive shaft? its an axle. on fully independent layouts, they are referred to as "half-shafts" because its not actually all one peice like the solid rear ends off of older and some newer rwd cars. also, i checked the tolerances of my cv joints with bmw specs and turns out, mines not actually that bad. rather, my guibo is blown all to fucking hell so im gunna go ahead and replace that for now. if your still in need of a half shaft, pm me and maybe i can hook you up with a really good deal.

[arsevader]

why is everyone calling it a drive shaft? its an axle.

Because a driveshaft is what it's called...

on fully independent layouts, they are referred to as "half-shafts" because its not actually all one peice like the solid rear ends off of older and some newer rwd cars. also, i checked the tolerances of my cv joints with bmw specs and turns out, mines not actually that bad. .

You are talking about something completely different. He is talking about the driveshaft that runs between the gearbox and the rear differential. You are talking about the 'half-shafts' between the differential and the rear wheels.

He refered to 'U-joint'. On the E30, the driveshaft has 3 U-joints and no CV joints. The rear axles are the only thing with a CV joint on these cars.

rather, my guibo is blown all to fucking hell so im gunna go ahead and replace that for now. if your still in need of a half shaft, pm me and maybe i can hook you up with a really good deal.

Now you are confusing things. The rear axles have no 'Guibo', only the driveshaft has this.

[DaN]

I doubt it's u joints, unless something is broken. You'd think they would gradually wear and get worse, not all of a sudden.

Check the rubber bushing thats pressed in the end of the driveshaft where it mounts to the trans. It keeps the d/s centered, if its damaged it will allow the driveshaft to spin off center at speed.

Also Inspect the guibo and center support before buying a driveshaft. Doubt you need it.

[roninmf]

sorry, hangovers are great for starting a misunderstanding in a conversation. anyways, my stubborn ass father took my car to my former mechanic told me that a vibration i had at set speeds (30 mph and 55mph) was at fault to the cv joints on the driver and passenger sides.... thought about that...then realized the possibility of that actually happening. so a put my car up on jack stands in my frozen yard, and followed the bently on checking them...needless to say nothing was wrong with them, and the axle my father had just purchased from a junk yard was now useless to me...so i checked under that troubleshooting part of the bently and investigated the flex disc..which turned out to be the true problem..

not in any way intending to jack your thread...at all...just kinda explaining myself to prevent future embarrassment on my part. since im off to a good start.