The Rover-Landers of BC

I am new to this forum as I have just purchased a 2000 Discovery.

I have started to research all the maintenance that is required an have read that the front drive shaft U-joints could be an issue (no grease points close to the transfer box).

Does anyone no a good place to take my drive shaft to have the U-joints looked at / replaced and grease points added?

Thanks!

Welcome to the board D2000,
Whenever I have need of a good driveshaft expert I go to Coast driveline in New Westminster. If you are just looking for advice on the condition of your u-joints you can take your truck to one of the businesses listed in our "supporters" section. Seeing as you are in Cloverdale you might try Keith Robinson or UK Trek and Traction. Dave Blair and others on this forum have trucks like yours and I'm sure will offer advice. Generally speaking u-joints and double cardan joints will let you know when they are on their way out by vibrating at certain RPM's or all the time. Some are greasable and some are sealed both obviously have their advantages and disadvantages, but either way it would be good to have someone show you how to check these yourself especially if you intend to use the truck off-road. I know you are asking about the front shaft but it is worht mentioning that some Discos have a flex disc rather than a u-joint where the shaft meets the rear differential, you should check this and make sure the rubber isn't separating. If you are going to use the truck heavily and it has one of these flex couplers you should think about changing it over to a u-joint coupling.

Hello, and welcome,
You wont be dissapointed in the service from PAT,S DRIVE LINE In Port Kells,i have used them, to have a custom front drive shaft for my 109, series truck, all the best rick.m

Hi D2000 and welcome to the forum.

The double cardon joint on the front drive shaft of the DII is the subject of much concern and some misinformation amongst the various Rover boards I've visited.

Things I know first hand:

-- The u-joints do wear out and can give very little notification before they are seriously gone.

-- You can replace the u-joints at any driveline shop, or it can be done by any mechanic that is not just a parts replacing technician. I did mine myself.

-- The ujoints are the same as are used at the front of the rear shaft, so go to Lordco or your favorite jobber, have them look up the number and cross reference it to the heaviest-duty version of that size ujoint, which will definitely have grease fittings.

-- the spring and cup in the double cardon can be greased and refit if it shows no sign of wear, or you can purchase a new one through the dealer.

-- My original u-joints wore out at 205,000 KM

Things I've heard, but haven't experienced myself...

-- Land Rover technicians at dealers generally just replace the shafts, and don't replace the ujoints. mucho denaro!

-- Used shafts from auto wreckers are at a premium price due to the above, I'm told $750 USD.

-- I've heard that a jobber can also get you the spring and cup assembly, but I didn't need to replace mine.

-- The thing that makes this so scary for many DII owners is that if the ujoint totally fails, you now have a loose drive shaft rotating due to still being attached at the differential end, and this has been known to cause cracking of engine block, transmission case, oil pan, transmission pan, and generally screwing you over for between $5,000 and $15,000 from what I've heard.

I would put the front drive shaft u-joints high on your list of preventative maintenance concerns, or make sure you have a bullet-proof extended warranty. That being said, I drove mine for 75,000 KM in ignorant bliss of the problem and heard the squeak while driving the Whipsaw, and was able to drive home and replace the joints the next day. I'm told not everyone is that lucky.

Dave

Thanks for the quick responses – I appreciate all the advice.
I think what I will do is take out the drive shaft and take it in to have
it looked at.

The reports of failures and damage caused scares me – I think I will
sleep better if an expert looks at it. I have only ever had front wheel drive cars, so I have a lot of new things to learn.

So far I just love my Discovery – now about that fuel Consumption ….

Thanks,
Christopher