Differential Disaster!

[tvrgit]

Hope somebody can help: I've pulled the driveshaft flange out of one side of the diff, will it fit back?

It started off so easy: change the drive shaft boots. Bought the boots and the plastic cone type kit that lets you fit the boot over the joint.

Got one end of the driveshaft off, but the other end (the diff end) was solid, I couldn't turn any of the bolts at all. Never mind I though, I'll fit both boots over the outer end.

Unfortunately, I couldn't get enough grip to get the boot over the cone: the joint was wobbling about too much, so I decided to tke off the circlip, knock the outer joint off, replace both boots, and then put the joint back.

I couldn't get enough swing on a hammer to knock the joint off, so I went back to trying to remove the inner end of the drive shaft, to find that I seem to have pulled the flange out of the diff as below:



I assumed it would be held in place with a circlip (assumption is a bad thing) but obviously not. It's turning free of the diff so it's out of the internal splines (I can turn this flange without either the propshaft or the other wheel turning).

Will that go back in without stripping the diff? Are there likely to be bits of ciclip now inside the diff waiting to get chewed into the gears?

I suspect I know that the answers are "no" and "probably" respectively, but I'm hoping I'm wrong!

Help!

Edited by tvrgit on Saturday 14th November 16:16

[al 350i]

i've not done a driveshaft on a cerb before but most driveshafts are held in with a circlip, if i was you i would carry on pulling it out, fit the neww boots and once its out you will probably have a better understanding of how it goes back in.

[sk7ine man]

Yes, as above, take the driveshaft out, get the boots onto the shaft, refit the circlip, slide boots back on and push back into the diff, you may have to twist and push to get it line with splines in the diff, a very gentle tap with a wooden mallet should see it in

[tvrgit]

Thanks guys, you've kind of confirmed what I thought, I'll give that a go. At least now I have somebody to blame if it goes wrong!

I'll try not to worry about a possible stray circlip ... No, I'll try, really. I mean how much damage could one ickle circlip do? Apart from terminal...

[Jackal83]

If it is held in with a circlip it must of been knackered!!!! so it was going to be a job anyway later on!!

easyer to find problems and solve them than the problems finding you 100miles from home!!!

[Ireland]

Is there a circlip ..... or not?

If there is then you'll have to strip it and get the bits out.

[tvrolet]

There's no problem with this. I replaced the oil seals on mine (not on a cerb though, but same BTR diff) last weekend, and also saw them apart at John Reid's beforhand.

The drive shafts are only held in with a spring clip. It's not a 'circlip' that needs to be manually sprung open to remove/fit the shafts but, a spring clip in a groove in the drive shafts. The proper way to remove the drive shafts out the diff is, as you've found out, it to knock them out with a soft mallet or wooden block and club hammer. The proper way to put them back in is to knock them back in again, making sire the splines are engaged.

It's real unlikely the spring clip would break - it isn't a 'circlip' type affair i.e. pressed out of flat sheet and possibly brittle, but it's a ring of round section steel, almost like one coil of a spring flattened off. It's also in a real deep groove in the drive shaft so it isn't going to pop out of that in a hurry. The spring clip WILL still be in the groove on the drive shafts - trust me. Just knock 'em back in.

[tvrgit]

Willie, you're my hero have I ever told you that?

Thanks everybody - I can sleep now!

[tvrolet]

No problemos. Just thinking though, you might want to check the state of the oil seal if the shaft has come out too far and there's been the weight of the splines resting on the seal. If it's just come out a little bit then the shaft will still be supported inside the diff. If it's come right out then the splines have quite sharp endges and the seal could get damaged.

It's an easy fix once the drive shafts are out (and you know how to get them out now ). Just prise out the old seal and press in new. John Reid does these if yours look like they've been 'nicked' or cut - google Readman Racing/Grantura Engineering.

Or maybe just hope for the best and replace only if they start to leak. Your diff seems remarkably dry. You will be checking there's enough oil in it? Fill/level plug is the big bolt just ahead of the drive shafts on the right hand side. IIRC it uses an 80W grade...

[tvrgit]

tvrolet said:

Your diff seems remarkably dry. You will be checking there's enough oil in it? Fill/level plug is the big bolt just ahead of the drive shafts on the right hand side. IIRC it uses an 80W grade...

Thanks again, I was just thinking that when I looked at the photos last night, and was just about to go out to look for the filler plug - not that I'm going to fill it before it's all back together, that would be silly...

[tvrolet]

tvrgit said:

tvrolet said:

Your diff seems remarkably dry. You will be checking there's enough oil in it? Fill/level plug is the big bolt just ahead of the drive shafts on the right hand side. IIRC it uses an 80W grade...

Thanks again, I was just thinking that when I looked at the photos last night, and was just about to go out to look for the filler plug - not that I'm going to fill it before it's all back together, that would be silly...

The oil level at the filler plug is lower than the bottom of the seals/holes the axles come out of, so you can fill it to the proper level with the axles out.