Jeep CJ-7 driveshaft and clutch?

If you are certain that your 4WD system works, but you could shift through the gears without the clutch and without going anywhere, I would suspect that the TCase was in neutral, possibly from being busted. I would see if you are getting any rotation from the driveshaft that is hanging at the rear when you put it in gear.

First off your u-joint went bad and the vibrations caused the bolts to blow out of the rear pinion. You now likely need a rear pinion, new seals for that and at least a new u-joint. You also might need pinion bearings depending on how long it was vibrating for.

You 'cannot' drive it with the driveshaft still in place. It will not work, the driveshaft will act like a propeller and take out things like the exhaust, brake lines and gas lines, let along the holes it punches in the floor pan.....

You will need to unbolt the front of the driveshaft and put it inside.

Then you need to 'lock your front hubs' before putting it into 4 high for the drive home....

You also need to be very careful when pulling away at a corner so you don't stress out the front u-joints too much.

My CJ7 will run fine up to 60 or 65 mph on front wheel drive with no issues. If yours vibrates at speed, Slow Down or you will blow a front u-joint. Then go looking for the bad front one after you limp home. (only if it vibrates)

Mike

"Tie [the rear driveshaft] up so it would spin freely without hurting anything else" .... LMAO!!!

It sounds as if he forgot to lock the front hubs, yep. But wait, no smashing against the floor pan when he lets out the clutch. I know it is unlikely, but it sounds as if the clutch, transmission or shift mechanism got damaged in the fracas too.

Cheers,

Earle

bolts to

pinion, new

need pinion

will not

things like

punches

inside.

so you

with no

blow a front

home.

in 1st

thought i

recently

rear-end

either

the

the

like a FWD.

pull it

to try

else(yeah

through the

move...??

I also

too? Any

rather tow

Or he's got the transfer case in neutral...

Cheers,

Earle

clutch,

the

it

it

into

corner

limp

'00

accelerating

with

thinking

then

pull

decided

work.

I suppose it is possible to get the driveshaft tied and centered, but wow, if it lets go at speed....

He also will need new straps for the u-joint. They are cheap. A set of straps and new bolts runs about $5.00.

Mike

Earle Hort> "Tie [the rear driveshaft] up so it would spin freely without

sooo yeah I am a friggin idiot...I forgot to lock the hubs!! As soon as I can get a ride and a 8mm socket I'll be rollin...

How can I tell before getting everything back together if I need a new rear pinion? It vibrated for about 2 weeks before it blew.

Thanks for the responses,

-J-(an idiot...lock the hubs!!)

Look in the cups where the u-joint sits for the end tabs. These tabs need to hold the u-joint from moving side to side so if they are bent or missing, you need a new yoke.

When you fit the new u-joint, if it fits snug between these tabs, you are good to go.

They usually are bad after a blow out, not always, but....

They cannot be bent back straight, the yoke is cast. I have heard of folks welding the caps in, but...

Mike

snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wrote:

I once sold a clutch because the transfer was in neutral, he heeded one anyway. ;-) God Bless America, Bill O|||||||O mailto: snipped-for-privacy@aol.com

Jeremy,

If you had vibration, you may have had a bad U-joint. Make sure you buy ones with grease fittings, and keep them greased. The U-joints with grease fittings are about $13 each at O'Reilly's, along with new bolts and straps. Also, use some locktite to keep the bolts from backing out. That can happen even with good U-joints.

BTW, are you sure it's 8 mm? The bolts on mine are SAE, although some are 12 point, some have the internal hex fitting, and others are 6 point. No metric amongst them.

Finally, I doubt you damaged anything but your U-joints (and pride :). I've lost my U-joints a couple of times at freeway speed, and all that was required was new U-joints. No noticeable vibration from the driveshaft smacking the ground, although I did stop as soon as I could.

Michael White

If he replaces the yoke he needs to follow the proper procedure, as explained in the service manual for his model and year, or he may blow out the pinion bearings. The new yoke may necessitate a new crush sleeve or different shims, depending on the model of rear axle. If this thing vibrated for two weeks before it blew, there is some chance that he bent the pinion too. A sign of that will be inability to install the new yoke according to directions. That is, the pinion won't turn all the way around with the same preload. Chances are pretty good that this stuff is all OK, but you never know.

Cheers,

Earle

These tabs

are bent or

tabs, you

heard of

rollin...

need a new

in 1st

thought i

recently

rear-end

either

the

pull the

like a FWD.

pull it

to try

else(yeah

through the

move...??

I also

too? Any

rather tow

Hi Earle, After destroying many ring and pinions, I get a feel for the crushing sleeve, of course all manuals say replace it every time. God Bless America, Bill O|||||||O mailto: snipped-for-privacy@aol.com

Wow, you were a dishonest mechanic who cheated a customer? Not surprising, that.