Axle shaft replacement process

[Kon]

So I had a kinda serious accident on Thursday. As I was entering into a parking spot some lady didn’t stop at all and crashed into my passenger rear tire with something like 30mph.

The result?
1. Bent rear passenger axle shaft,
2. this plate thing that lies between rear disk brakes and the axle shaft hub (don’t know it’s called),
3. the bolt holding track bar’s relocation bracket
4. Broken fuel pump!

Well, bottom line Dana 44 looks ok so I guess no major damage…

Wanted to ask if the process of removing the shafts means that bearings or other parts need to brake so I have to order these too or is it enough to get a shaft and replace just that.

 

[Duck Doctor]

You'll need to have a bearing pressed into the axle shaft and the correct axle shaft retainer for drum or disc brakes.

 

[macleanflood]

Dana 44 shouldn't have retention clips in the differential...that plate is a retention plate...so the tricky bit will be getting bent things apart.

Got pictures?

-Mac

 

[Kon]

No. 2

 

[Kon]

Dana 44 after the crash

 

[Kon]

I currently have these;
https://www.quadratec.com/products/26125_0005_07.htm
and wanted to know if I could get out of it but just buying a single shaft but if I need bearings and the rest too, then I guess I would have to go with paying for the pair again.

 

[macleanflood]

You could contact Ten factory and see if they'd ship you a single axle.

-Mac

 

[hosejockey61]

You better take a look at the entire axle before you think the damage is a single axle shaft. With it being pushed to one side there's a good chance you have bent or broken brackets if not a bent housing assembly.

 

[Tob]

Definitely check your control arm and track bar brackets, frame side and axle side, for any deformation or weld cracking. It may also be wise to inspect your frame for straightness.

 

[TheBoogieman]

I had the same thing happen on my old 03' (only 27,000 miles on it), only the lady was doing 50 mph when she hit me. I let the insurance take care of it and they had to shell out over $5000 for damaged parts and labor. Bent axle, driveshaft and screwed up the tcase output. Bent control arms and brackets, ripped track bar bracket off, broke/bent the shocks, bent sway bar, broke a wheel, popped tire and springs fell out. Zero body damage because my tires stuck out about 4" past the flares.

 

[Drumguy999]

30mph in a parking lot!? Good grief.

That being said, what makes you think the axle shaft is bent? After seeing those pictures, i would agree, you've like got some bent control arms, track bar, brackets, or all of the above.

That backing plate you show is just thin metal, and if its just bent a bit, i would bend it back during the repair process, or try to find one at a salvage yard. i bought a new pair of those plates to the tune of like 260 bucks

before deciding an axle shaft is bent, i would pull out BOTH axles and inspect them for being straight & true. Same thing with the housing. I wouldn't be suprsied if some of the brackets on the housing might be bent as well. you might be lucky in the fact that the axle shaft itself isn't bent, but I would inspect the carrier just in case after an impact like that.

at the least, you're looking at some amount of supension parts (might be a good excuse for adjustable control arms & track bar), and i'd also plan to replace the bearings on both axles, the bearings on both axle ends, along with the seals. the carrier/carrier bearing should be inspected but i hope would be ok.

 

[Drumguy999]

after looking again, your top down view seems to show the wheel pointing outward in the front. so now i see why you think the axle might be bent. unfortunately my guess is the axle tube went with it. I would advise to get a new housing as well, if available, with straight tubes & brackets. It'll put you that much further ahead

 

[Kon]

Definitely check your control arm and track bar brackets, frame side and axle side, for any deformation or weld cracking. It may also be wise to inspect your frame for straightness.

The Jeep is in the shop and I’m waiting for the news. The only thing that is bent and the bolt cut seems to be the relocation bracket of the track bar.

Both track bar brackets (frame and axle) and control arm mounts seem to got out of it the crash harmless.

The impact did not affected the frame directly and since the rest seem ok I believe there is no damage to the frame either. However, to be in the safe side, how do I check for straightness?

 

[Kon]

You better take a look at the entire axle before you think the damage is a single axle shaft. With it being pushed to one side there's a good chance you have bent or broken brackets if not a bent housing assembly.

Seems that track bar’s relocation bracket which was bent and the bolt cut in half absorbed all the impact and other brackets have not been bent.

Now the housing assembly is my main concern as it is near impossible to find a rear Dana 44 over here.

How do I check if the axle housing is bent?

 

[Kon]

I had the same thing happen on my old 03' (only 27,000 miles on it), only the lady was doing 50 mph when she hit me. I let the insurance take care of it and they had to shell out over $5000 for damaged parts and labor. Bent axle, driveshaft and screwed up the tcase output. Bent control arms and brackets, ripped track bar bracket off, broke/bent the shocks, bent sway bar, broke a wheel, popped tire and springs fell out. Zero body damage because my tires stuck out about 4" past the flares.

Holy cow that’s lot of broken stuff! Zero body damage in my case either with minimal tire offset.

 

[hosejockey61]

Holy cow that’s lot of broken stuff! Zero body damage in my case either with minimal tire offset.

Start with this video first to see if the shafts are bent. If they are not bent, then move to the next step.



After checking to see if the shafts are bent, put the axle up on jack stands and remove the tires. Then remove the brakes and axle shafts. The only thing holding in the shafts are four 9/16" retaining nuts. A little gear oil will leak out when you pull them. Next, you're going to have to open up the differential and pull the carrier to fully check. There are two carrier caps (4 bolts) that need to get removed. Be sure to support the carrier when pulling these so the carrier doesn't just fall out. Be VERY AWARE that there are shims on both sides of the carrier. They MUST both go back in the same side they came out of when you go to put it together. (sometimes the shims are under the bearing and it's a non issue. Sometimes there are thick master shims that are different thickness, so keep them on the correct side. The caps must also go back in the same side they came out of AND in the proper orientation. To get the carrier out, first try pulling on it to see if it comes out. If it doesn't, then watch this video to see how to get it out. It's que'd up to what you need.



Ok, once you get to that point, it's really simple. Basically, you want to look through the axle shaft tubes from one side to the next. As you are looking through the tubes, you should see concentric circles straight through. If the housing is bent, you will see something similar to a half moon or worse when looking through it. I have pictures somewhere but can't find them right now.

The process seems worse than it actually is. Just be sure to keep the shims and bearing caps that same as they came out and you'll be good to go.