Hey all, I just installed a replacement front diff on my 1999 and the knuckleheads at LKQ snapped off a bolt in the yoke. I didn't catch it before I installed it, so now I have to swap yokes from my old one to the installed one.
I tried to drill it and use an easy out, but that didn't go very well. It is truly seized in there.
I need to know what the torque specs on the yoke nut are and if my current tools can handle it.
Trouble is, I only have a 2000 FSM and haven't been able to find one for a 1999.

Any help is appreciated.

 

Is the front diff different than the 2000?

 

Yeah, mine has the u-joint with bands style yoke and the FSM for the 2000 shows the flange style yoke and a 205mm ring gear.

I thought they made the change to the 205mm diff in 2001 but the manual shows it in 2000.

 

Need a GOOD quality inch pound torque wrench......

Measure the amount of torque required to turn the front pinion. (tires off please, may wanna manually back the calipers off a bit as well.)
Swap the yoke.
Retorque the pinion bolt such that it requires a BIT more effort to turn the pinion than previously measured.
Should be good to go.

 

Ok so I think I did this right. I measured the torque on both the old and new front axles and got 8-9 inch lbs. each. (axles disconnected) then I marked both yokes, nut, and end of the pinion shaft to line them back up.

I counted the number of visible threads on the pinion shaft, then buzzed the nuts off with my impact. After installing a new seal, I put the good yoke on my installed axle, and tapped it in with a soft blow hammer. Then I threaded the nut back on and tightened it up with a regular ratchet until I couldn't move it. It still had about 1/4 turn to go for my marks to line up so I got a breaker bar and a pipe wrench. The pipe wrench held the yoke steady while I reefed on the breaker bar.

I had about 1/4 inch left to go when I couldn't budge it any farther, so I grabbed my floor jack and put it under the handle of the breaker bar. I slowly raised the jack until my marks lined up and took a measurement which was 7 inch lbs. So I switched back to the jack and raised it a little, moving my mark on the nut about 1/8th past where it was before and then took another measurement- 12 inch lbs. I called it quits there.

There isn't any slop and the only sound I hear when I wiggle the pinion is from the backlash of the ring gear.

Tomorrow I get to fill it and put the crossmember and skid plate back on and test drive it. Hope it doesn't blow up on me!

 

That sounds like a winner. Do NOT back the nut off at all. I do believe you are still within the acceptable range. Should be golden.