Inner universal joints

[Richard LarterParticipant]

I had a great time at the Citroen Centenary in Coventry but 760 miles towing a caravan proved too much for the inner u/js  but at least I got home safely with only light knocking and relieved it was not big ends. Is there an easy way to change these joints or is a full suspension strip down, it is a 1949 Light 15.

Cheers Richard

[Peter FeredayParticipant]

Basically Richard I don’t know. I did replace my inner cardans some years ago without dismantling the suspension – but that was with the gearbox out! Since then I’ve had a go at removing them just by undoing the 4 nuts on the gearbox end and attempting to wangle them out – without success. But possibly if the engine and gearbox could be jacked up enough, after removing front and rear mountings and disconnecting volute springs – although yours has solid rubber side mountings I think? – it might be possible. Perhaps the light 15 has even less room for maneuver than my 11B? Somebody reading this will eventually put us both straight.

If you want to borrow the appropriate club tools please let me know – off to France in two weeks

 

Peter

[Larry LewisParticipant]

To do the drive shafts with the engine in the car, you need to take the upper and lower ball joints apart with all that is involved with that. Brake drum, backing plate, wheel bearings, track rod end. It’s a pain, but with the engine in the car there’s no other way to do it that I know of. There is a LOT less room in a small-bodied car. You will need special tools to pull the drum and the inner and outer wheel bearings.

[Peter FeredayParticipant]

I quite agree Larry that it’s a complete pain to replace the driveshafts, having replaced both sides on my car two years ago. But Richard was asking whether the u/j’s on the inner cardans could be replaced without removing the whole drive shaft. On my 11B there was almost enough room to slide the cardans off the splines at the gearbox end, and I had the impression that if the engine/gearbox could be moved enough as I indicated above, it might be possible.

It might actually take less time to remove the gearbox to do the job, rather than taking off the complete driveshaft in the conventional, time consuming, special tools requiring, knuckle skinning way.

[BernieParticipant]

Before Richard gets too excited ……

There is so little room in a Light 15 or Légère that the gearbox box will not move away enough to clear the sliding splines between inner and outer driveshaft parts.

I seem to recall it is just possible to remove the outer drive shaft from the hub by only undoing the lower swivel and swinging the whole hub assembly up with the top wishbone.  However, I would personally opt to remove the gearbox rather than disturb any swivels.

B………….

[Larry LewisParticipant]

Either way it’s a pain, especially on a small car. Years ago a guy here in Toronto had a Legere and he said his mechanic replaced the inner U-joint cross in the car. Must have had a lot of patience and lot of skin he could afford to lose. So, it may be possible.

[David FaulknerParticipant]

Rather than take the gearbox off, which is possible in a small bodied car, but really needs the engine out to replace it, would removing the radiator, gearbox support (which needs to be done to get the gearbox off anyway) and jacking the engine up at the gearbox end give enough room for the inner coupling to slide off the drive shaft?

[Larry LewisParticipant]

David- No I don’t think so.  You might as well just pull the engine out as moving the engine/gearbox assembly to get the drive shafts off the gearbox coupling flanges is a royal pain. Once that’s done, lifting out the engine is easy.

[Richard LarterParticipant]

Hello Everyone

Last week was difficult, first the inner cardan joints started to knock as mentioned on this forum the my computer caught a nasty virus which needed professional care so I had no access to the great advice on the forum. Left to my own devices I thought would try to avoid stripping the suspension  but if I got stuck Peter was only 40 miles away with the special tools.

I took off the grill, bonnet and radiator. Then I uncoupled the cardan joints from the gearbox, unbolted the engine mountings and the gearbox mounting and raised the front of the gearbox until it cleared the driveshafts. I then slid the inner ends of he driveshafts off the splines to replace the cardan joints, which I got at my local garage being common to MGs and some Triumphs. Reassembly was the reverse of dismantling to paraphrase a well known manual and the car is up and running and my computer is fixed.

Cheers Richard

[David FaulknerParticipant]

Pleased you got it sorted Richard and good to know that the joints are readily available.

 

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