Blown front axle u-joint
- Thread starter Ron Hall
- Start date
KennethS
TJ Expert
C
can i drive it in 2wd or do I need to remove front drive shaft?
What does blown mean? Just noisy? Or broken into pieces and it is going to tear apart a ball joint?
Removing the drive shaft does nothing to stop an axle shaft from spinning with the front wheels.
Do you need to move the Jeep a few feet or to a different town?
Removing the drive shaft does nothing to stop an axle shaft from spinning with the front wheels.
Do you need to move the Jeep a few feet or to a different town?
You can't drive it like that. You can either remove the inner axle shaft so you can drive it or have it put on a flat bed truck. If you remove the inner shaft so you can drive it make sure to leave the outer stub shaft installed as that's what holds the unit bearing hub together.
One more piece of information... it's unlikely just the u-joint broke on its own. Odds are one of the ears on the inner or outer axle shaft that hold the u-joints stretched or broke with released the u-joint so it could spin and break. I'd replace both the inner shaft and outer stub shaft along with installing a fresh Spicer 5-760x u-joint which is direct fit stronger and more durable replacement for the standard Spicer 297 u-joint the factory installed.
And yes it'd be fine to take it home with the front-end up on a dolly. Shift the transfer case to Neutral before starting home.
And yes it'd be fine to take it home with the front-end up on a dolly. Shift the transfer case to Neutral before starting home.
Just pull the shaft out with the unit bearing and separate the inner from the outer. Then reinstall the outer shaft together with the unit bearing. The unit bearing requires the outer shaft bolted to it in order to keep it from breaking in half. You can drive back and forth across the entire country that way.
Dont forget the copious amounts of trash to keep the gear oil in the tube.
Who is "we", what is "this" and where does the OP mention hub kits?
If your response is based on my lack of knowledge, then here is what is @Chris wrote on the About page for the forum:
If your response is not based on my lack of knowledge then I would appreciate if you could elaborate on what the issue is with what is written in the owner's manual. Thanks!
Andy
Who is "we", what is "this" and where does the OP mention hub kits?
If your response is based on my lack of knowledge, then here is what is @Chris wrote on the About page for the forum:
If your response is not based on my lack of knowledge then I would appreciate if you could elaborate on what the issue is with what is written in the owner's manual. Thanks!
Andy
The large number of front hub conversions in use show that the owner's manual is completely full of shit in this regard. A point and topic that is debated, corrected and then argued about every single time a front axle issue shows up where someone wants to use a tow dolly. See if you can guess how much I care about what Chris wrote?
X2 to Blaine's comment which is illustrated by the common use of aftermarket manual hubs. Unlocked manual hubs, as I have, mean the front axle shafts are not turning while driving which is exactly what happens when the front wheels are up on a dolly.
Which is why we have realized for years the owner's manual advice to not use a tow-dolly might have been correct at some point in Jeep's history but it's certainly not correct for the TJ.
Which is why we have realized for years the owner's manual advice to not use a tow-dolly might have been correct at some point in Jeep's history but it's certainly not correct for the TJ.
Thanks Jerry for taking the time to explain it to new person like me. Make sense. An example of how to be helpful and follow the spirit of the forum. 
Andy
Andy
I hope it's okay.
I have disconnected my front driveshaft (to reduce vibes) on several cross-country trips.
I have disconnected my front driveshaft (to reduce vibes) on several cross-country trips.
So far, so good with my hub kit.
The forums have been telling lots of people to drive around without a front or rear driveshaft for various good reasons for decades. We don't see transfer cases blowing up very often.
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