So today i was out wheeling a little bit in the snow and my driver side front axle broke off at u joint. Heres my dilemma, It broke completely off from the u joint so now the axle is just sitting in the axle tube loosely. I am about 100 miles from home and am leaving tomorrow morning, besides taking the whole front axle apart to pull the axle out what can i do? Can i just jerry rig it up until i get home or will i cause more damage. I dont need 4x4 anymore. So just wondering your opinions on what you would do...?

 

if im not mistaken u have a vaccum front end disconnect at pass side of the axle right? soooo ur front end doesnt spin in 2wd anyway so you should be good?

 

I think the driver side is always engaged though its just the cad side that isnt engaged. Even if i am wrong it is broken off and the axle moves back and forth, its not so much while i am running straight but when i turn it binds up so i dont know what the heck i should do. I really dont want to end up binding up something else while i am driving home. I think i may just bungee it up so that it doesnt move in and out and bind while i turn.

 

with t-case in 2wd, and passenger side cad disengaged, and 4wd light out - if you can spin the tire w/o the axle ends bashing into each other, then you can just drive it home as is. if they are hitting, then you could remove the axles from the tube, then reinstall the stub axle into the knuckle and drive home. w/no axle in the tube you might loose a lot of oil, so keep a close eye on that. edit - (not that it matters for now, since nothing is turning) but you could also get in water and dirt, so you'd need a good cleaning/flush before reinstalling a new axle.

 

if the axle was not broken, the drivers side would turn all the way into the differential, and then just uselessly spin the spider gears.

if you can bungie the broken axle tight into the tube, so it doesn't bash against the outer piece, then you can safely drive it. there is no reason that you need to turn anything inside the diff. i think that's what you are asking. if you have any questions call me. see # in pm.

 

thanks guys i will let you know how i make out and what caused this when i get home.

 

I would fix that before driving it 100 miles......... You may end up doing serious damage to your truck, yourself, and possibly someone else if that inner axle slips, binds, and locks that front tire. That is EXTREMELY unsafe.

 

Jesus vaughan, you're brave posting your number.

 

I agree, just pull the axle shaft and don't worry about it.

 

i thought he might be on the side of the road or out in the middle of the woods or something. i'll edit it out later.