front axle will not disconnect...snapped d shaft u joint

[bryanjeep]

We had tons of rain today. The streets had a few feet of water of course I got to put the Jeep to use in the streets. So many idiots driving trhough water with cars, they deserved it when they got flooded. Anyway, I pushed a car up a slope in 4 lo and I went to take it out of 4 lo, the light never went out.

I drove it down the street and all I hear is clunk, clunk, snap (havent we heard that too often)! I looked underneath and the u joint that connects to the t case came undone, well the strap that holds it there snapped in half. The u joint came apart. UGH!

I figured out that this happened because I hade the shifter in 2 hi and the front axle still was locked. Why would it still have been locked? Can the high water cause it to stay locked? So I layed down in the water and took out the d shaft. I rode it home like this.

Is it ok to drive it on the street with the front still locked together? I really dont have the motivation right now to fool with this Jeep.

 

[Snitty]

the ubolt strap system used in our generation of jeeps is nothing to brag about... i've broken many... my autozone warranty record shows a million ujoints purchased... when they come apart.. i just pay the 8 bucks to get a new one... i don't see a reason to pick up needle bearings and repack everything... but i've done that too...

anyway.. if you have a crack in your vacuum lines, you very well may have sucked some water into the disconnect.. or it could be the actuator switch.. or one of many more things... but... if you were in 2hi, then the driveshaft should have been disconnected from the powertrain... when in 4wd, you may have had too much traction and bound up the ujoint while pushing

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

the ujoint at the transfer case likely didn't snap due to the front axle disconnect not disengaging. If you have an open from differential you won't feel any bind in 2wd with the front disconnect engaged, and there will be no bind at the transfer case.

Be sure to never shift in or out of 4wd when in water when you have a vacuum disconnect, it often pulls water into the disconnect.

Make sure you have the same gear ratio in the front and rear axles, that much bind in 4wd would cause the ujoint to snap, which was the weakest point when using 4wd on a high-traction surface.

 

[jps4jeep]

When you fix, up grade from straps to u-bolts. Autozone will thank you!! (snitty)

 

[Snitty]

and autozone even has ubolt style straps too

 

[bryanjeep]

But the only thing that I can think of is that the front t case output does not spin at all while in 2 hi. That is what I think caused the u joint strap the self destuct. But besides that is it safe to be driving with the front axle still connected? How can I fix that problem.

I am not too worried about putting the front d shaft back in for now because I now live in the city. There is no mud. But I would like to get that front axle disconnected without a lot of money. If I did suck in water into the disconnect, is it ruined? I know my ratios are the same.

 

[bryanjeep]

160 T-stat in an 89 YJ

So I figured that I had two problems at hand. The shifting into 4wd in water caused the front axle to stay connected. And the amount of traction that I had while pushing that idiot in the street snapped the u joint strap. So now all I have to do is pinpoint the front axle problem.

Anyone know where to start? The vacuum sytem is really hard to understand so I am sure it is in that.

 

[Snitty]

it is not ruined... just gotta take the 4 bolts out that hold in the shift motor.... and spray some wd40 in there and work it back and forth... this will get rid of the water

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

The t-case front output does spin in 2wd, slowly. It's free to parasitic rotation that comes from the front axle.

Remove the vacuum disconnect from the front axle (4 bolts). A small amount of diff fluid will come out but not much. Work the dhift fork by hand while spraying WD40 in both vacuum ports. Reassemble and you should be in working order.

If you have further problems with the vacuum system post up, I'll walk you through further troubleshooting.

 

[newbie]

bounty hunter smart! use big words, must be mechanic! me too!

 

[Snitty]

while you have the shift fork off... try to move the shift collar in the axle back off the axle.... if you can't, you may have something froze up inside there... if you can move it... then that shows that your shift fork is not functioning properly... another thing to check is see if there is vacuum at the shift motor... unplug the vacuum lines and have someone shift back and forth from 2 and 4wd... the vacuum lines should alternate back and forth with a good strong vacuum

 

[LVRockCrawler]

could also convert to a cable disconnect and get rid of the vac system altogether... did it recently, works well and only took a couple hours to do...

 

[bryanjeep]

Badly Needed: 304 distributor bracket

I am thinking about doing it, just finding those parts isnt easy.

 

[currupt4130]

they make a kit for that, quadratec sells it i know

 

[Utah_jeepster]

Yo LVRockcrawler where can I get one of those cat shaped tire chacks like you have?

 

[Snitty]

haha... i need me a few of them

 

[LVRockCrawler]

yea... the cat shaped tire chock is pretty cool... only works once tho... as for the cable disc. - its more shopping at bike shop for cable and hardware store for lever - theres a post here somewhere where i found the step by steps... only cost about 10 bucks and a cpl hrs time... and the funny part... it actually WORKS!!!