Front Drive Shaft

[Danihound]

Hi, guys i have a Jeep KJ 2005 4x4 Limited, yesterday i stared to hear a sound like if it was a chain from down the jeep and when i was going uphill it started to sound even worse and lose traction same if you floor the gas, i thought it was the transmission or the transfer case (since it wouldnt engange 4x4) but i found the front driveshaft was the one making the sound, if you rotate it by hand it sounds like a chain.

so, can i take it out and drive my jeep until i buy the cv joint replacement for the drive shaft, or will there be any problem?, since i use it daily for work (highway and roads).

 

[adamkrz]

Yes if your talking about the front driveshaft- rebuild kits available online for pretty cheap also.

 

[Danihound]

Yes if your talking about the front driveshaft- rebuild kits available online for pretty cheap also.

yes that one.

thanks, i will probably just buy the rebuild kit and repair it.

but i wanted to know just in case.

can a bad driveshaft be the cause of those problems? (the sound when going uphill,lose of traction and the sound when gaining speed).

 

[tommudd]

www.driveshaftparts.com is the place you want to be

 

[Danihound]

www.driveshaftparts.com is the place you want to be

thanks.

im going to ask my mechanic, but i have a doubt, should i only buy the front cv joint?.

can you tell me which parts should i buy?, i know theres one for the side that goes to the front wheels, but what about the size that goes to the back wheels?.

 

[Aceofspades]

Own 2 jeeps. Took me 3 maybe 4 front drive shafts before I found one that didn’t vibrate above 50mph.
The other Jeep I recently just removed both ends and installed 2 New ends.
The parts cost me $67 total shipped to my door.
I did need to use a 3 jaw puller and a snap ring plier tool. Both from harbor freight for about $35 using 20% off each item. Wife and I went together.
It worked perfectly.

i recommend
https://www.harborfreight.com/snap-ring-pliers-with-reversible-action-63938.html
they are a knockoff of the Channel Lock brand

The puller isn’t on the site but it’s the single one for $19.
If you made it this far I’m pretty sure you know what you’re looking for

 

[Danihound]

Own 2 jeeps. Took me 3 maybe 4 front drive shafts before I found one that didn’t vibrate above 50mph.
The other Jeep I recently just removed both ends and installed 2 New ends.
The parts cost me $67 total shipped to my door.
I did need to use a 3 jaw puller and a snap ring plier tool. Both from harbor freight for about $35 using 20% off each item. Wife and I went together.
It worked perfectly.

well the shaft on this one looks good, not broken or anything, but i was thinking about changing both ends, since if one is bad the other one is probably goind to die soon to, or thats what i think, better be safe than sorry i guess.

 

[Aceofspades]

Would not waste my time doing one.
Many will pipe in and say it’s as easy as changing oil.
Mine was not like the video where the ends slip on and off like a pair of old slippers
I needed to pull both heads
Even with both ends cleaned up ( the splines on the shaft) there was some resistance and I used a a large socket to tap into place.
Line up the supplied gaskets by using the new bolts supplied as well.
Pack the grease well. Move the joint a lot and keep packing grease.
Make sure the orientation of the new joints are correct.

 

[Danihound]

Would not waste my time doing one.
Many will pipe in and say it’s as easy as changing oil.
Mine was not. I needed to pull both heads
Even with both ends cleaned up ( the splines on the shaft) there was some resistance and I used a a large socket to tap into place.
Line up the supplied gaskets by using the new bolts supplied as well.
Pack the grease well. Move the joint a lot and keep packing grease.

will do!

 

[Danihound]

also good thing to take note, i got this jeep free...and the 4x4 has never worked since i got it (theres no resistance if you try to activate or anything the stick does nothing).

so im really questioning myself about this repair.

 

[tommudd]

Do what you want but it is always the rear one that goes out. I've done at least 12-15 of them, always the rear.
My 04 I bought new needed rear one at 73,000 miles, replaced it again at 180,000 , not because it needed it, but had the front driveshaft out, had a kit there ( keep 4-6 in stock all the time) so changed it, at 232,000 both ends still good. Have removed, rebuilt and reinstalled ones in less than 15 minutes, just to prove a point

 

[Danihound]

Do what you want but it is always the rear one that goes out. I've done at least 12-15 of them, always the rear.
My 04 I bought new needed rear one at 73,000 miles, replaced it again at 180,000 , not because it needed it, but had the front driveshaft out, had a kit there ( keep 4-6 in stock all the time) so changed it, at 232,000 both ends still good. Have removed, rebuilt and reinstalled ones in less than 15 minutes, just to prove a point

Oh good to know , thanks.

 

[Aceofspades]

Tom, cmon. 15 minutes. I get it. You “never had any issues” with anything but this is a bit of an overstatement - to prove a point - to someone asking for help.
Obviously they aren’t a full time mechanic with 30+ years under their belt and using a fully stocked garage or shop.
Christ it takes me 15 minutes to remove the bolts by hand while rotating and locking the shaft.
Then the finaggling it out from behind the exhaust system.
Now OP needs to start the actual work and guess what ? The heads don’t always come off and go on like butter.
So I’m telling OP to be prepared with the tools he will need to use to complete the job should their be any issues.
Help here is great but the personal pride rubs people the wrong way and can lead to inexperienced members taking on tasks they can’t handle. My .02

 

[tommudd]

Tom, cmon. 15 minutes. I get it. You “never had any issues” with anything but this is a bit of an overstatement - to prove a point - to someone asking for help.
Obviously they aren’t a full time mechanic with 30+ years under their belt and using a fully stocked garage or shop.
Christ it takes me 15 minutes to remove the bolts by hand while rotating and locking the shaft.
Then the finaggling it out from behind the exhaust system.
Now OP needs to start the actual work and guess what ? The heads don’t always come off and go on like butter.
So I’m telling OP to be prepared with the tools he will need to use to complete the job should their be any issues.
Help here is great but the personal pride rubs people the wrong way and can lead to inexperienced members taking on tasks they can’t handle. My .02

Sure I have a few tools but if you are doing this you have the tools , right ?
As far as getting it down out, the 03 takes a bit longer by maybe 2-3 minutes
Never had an issue with tearing them apart, but then we never let one go till its banging off the floorboards either
Personal pride it is NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Its telling someone not to be afraid to do it, that it is not that hard of a job.
I've coached others on doing it , ( sitting watching them in case they ran into issues ) that had never done it before and longest was 30 minutes, but he had to stop and drink some beer before finishing
From now on screw it
I will not tell people how easy it is, heck installing new spark plugs takes 6-8 hours , how's that LOL

 

[uss2defiant]

well it definitely takes more than 15 minutes the first time.
You have to do some wrangling to get the driveshaft out.
There's a 1aauto YT video that'll give you an idea on what to expect.

 

[HoosierJeeper]

Make sure to use a dab of blue loctite on the bolts. I noticed a few of mine were loose a year or two after doing the repair.

 

[Poquito_jalapeno]

So I have an 03 liberty limited that the rear cv joint has gone bad. My question is I've seen in a few other forums discussion of the replacement joints not lasting, so how long have yours lasted?
I don't want to replace the joint and be doing it again in 30,000 miles. If that's the case I feel I'd be better off replacing the whole shaft as I've read those are lasting upwards of 120,000 miles.

 

[mrlavalamp]

I havent hit 30k on my rebuild but its pretty tough to go off of anecdotal evidence when it comes to comparing rebuilds to new.

Folks not getting much out of theirs could have used poor quality parts, got some kinda crud or dirt in there while they were rebuilding it, too much or too little grease, or even didnt clamp the bands on well enough allowing water in, etc. Errors in rebuilding are easy and common with shade tree mechanics and dealerships alike (and the reason why real shops should warranty their work.

you probably will get more life out of a 100% new shaft, but you will also pay more for it.

Personally 30k out of the joint would be fine with me as I will be doing the rear shaft joints by then anyways, so probably just do both while I am there (just like my diff oil changes and t-case).

Of course I have a spare set of shafts now so I just rebuild them on the bench, and then swap them in when its time. I then save the shafts I pull out for when it is time do the dance again.

 

[Poquito_jalapeno]

I havent hit 30k on my rebuild but its pretty tough to go off of anecdotal evidence when it comes to comparing rebuilds to new.

Folks not getting much out of theirs could have used poor quality parts, got some kinda crud or dirt in there while they were rebuilding it, too much or too little grease, or even didnt clamp the bands on well enough allowing water in, etc. Errors in rebuilding are easy and common with shade tree mechanics and dealerships alike (and the reason why real shops should warranty their work.

you probably will get more life out of a 100% new shaft, but you will also pay more for it.

Personally 30k out of the joint would be fine with me as I will be doing the rear shaft joints by then anyways, so probably just do both while I am there (just like my diff oil changes and t-case).

Of course I have a spare set of shafts now so I just rebuild them on the bench, and then swap them in when its time. I then save the shafts I pull out for when it is time do the dance again.

Thank for the reply.
I appreciate the idea that 30,000 isn't bad. My biggest issue is I don't have a lot of free time and try to do repairs that will last.
I do my oil and diff as well as transmission filter on schedule. I guess I never thought of my driveshaft as being scheduled in that same way.

 

[Danihound]

hi guys, i did it, thanks for the information.

I got help from another jeep guy from my place, we had some problems taking it out cause it was stuck, but after some karate chops with the hammer it came out.

also it came to my attention that the 4x4 system is destroyed, looks like the previous owner didnt take care of it, so its busted.

my friend told me that since this jeep dosnt go offroading i should take out all the 4x4 system and let it in 4x2, since this jeep is not my daily drive and i got it for free, im tempted to do it.

What do you guys think about it?, should i do it?.