A few weeks ago, I noticed a loud *clank* when I accelerated from low speed. To be certain, I'd hit the throttle sharply while coasting and there would be the *clank*. At a dead stop, I'd shift from Park to Reverse: *clank*. OK, I figured my u-joints were the originals and at 178K miles, it was time to change them out.

I go to O'Reilly Auto Parts to get new joints. The kid gives me two boxes, which I open and inspect. One is the complete kit, the other has a joint with the zerk fitting installed and only three clips. He's dumbfounded when I stated I wasn't taking it because it was missing a piece. I learned years ago to do this after buying spark plugs and when I got home I discovered used plugs.

So, he executes a transfer ticket to the store near where I live, and the guy there gives me my other needed part. Yesterday, I dropped the driveshaft and discovered what was causing the *clunk*. A cap at the transmission joint broke at some point and without any lubrication, the needle bearings dried out, washed with water, and little by little dropped out of the cap.

To make matters worse, I had an American made Precision u-joint and a Chinese made u-joint. The Chinese u-joint was off by .0030! I returned to the store with the cap from the old joint to show the clerk. He checked it with his caliper and *surprise*, I'm right. I insisted on the replacement being a Precision brand product. Turns out the kid at the first store charged me $9.99 (Chinese price) and gave me the American. This time the clerk told me he'd have to upgrade the receipt by charging me the difference, which was fine by me. The Precision u-joints are $19.99. Always, always, always spend the money on the good stuff, guys.

 

I bought the Spicer Life U-joints P/N 5-790X. If you hold them up to a stocker, they are clearly beefier. They were recommended over on Pirate 4X4. No knowledge of the Precision brand.

That's one crappy looking U-joint, VW. Glad you could get that crappy rusted cap out of there.

 

And yet the stock u-joint there was Spicer! Either way, stock joints don't come fitted with grease fittings, so I'm certain I'll get an easy 150K miles out of this next set.

 

Yeah, I don't bother with the greaseable kind. Too lazy to do it religiously. If I get 100K out of $50 in parts, I'm fine with that.

 

A little hi temp grease and some jb weld could have fixed that old one, good for another 100k anyway.

Oh, I almost forgot the duct tape.

 

Hehe, I like the way you think, sounds like the way I fixed my Dakota.

How hard is it to replace the U joints? I think mine might me getting close to needing replacement.

 

Do you have a repair manual? They can be a bit trying, and it helps to have an assistant. First, you need to know if you have a steel or aluminum composite driveshaft. Second, you need a vise that opens very wide. If you don't have a vise, then access to a shop press helps. The assistant is needed to hold the driveshaft while you work the vise/press to press out the old joint caps.

 

Or get,rent or borrow one of these.

 

^^ DOH! Great advice!

Also, pay close attention when installing the new ones as the roller bearings can be a pain and drop. Then, you have to press the works apart, reset the roller bearings, and do it again. I applied some light oil to the outside of the cap to aid in reinstallation.

 

+1 on the Spicer joints. Also, any joint with a grease nipple is not going to hold up against a solid one. Save the zerk type for your Civic