Front and Rear Suspension Geometry and Alignment

[Andrew Prince]

another stupid question, how long do the OE CVs and bits last on an 80? I know Greg broke two CVs at Lincomb.

OE CVs last quite a while if maintained (i.e. have grease put in) every 10-20,000-odd miles - apparently they can do up to 100,000 miles on-road with OEM set-up. Add bigger tyres and go off-road and they wear faster and break sooner (ask Greg!)

Wheelbearings can last even longer if greased occasionally and maintained at the correct preload. Again big tyres and spacers cause accelerated wear on wheel bearings.

Trunnion/swivel bearings do not last as long and with heavy use (big tyres & offroading) they need replacing fairly often. I'm guessing anywhere from 10k-30k miles.

Why did you need to replace half shafts previously? Normally it's the CVs that wear/break long before the half shafts struggle.

Cheers,

 

[HauptRenate]

The half shafts ends/flanges were damaged/worn Andrew, so I'm guessing the CVs might have been replaced sooner when the car belonged to a Welsh Hill Farmer, which would nulify the question I asked earler....DOH!
Been to the Beast and I can't loosen the plug, I've WD40ed it so maybe tomorrow sometime it should be freed up enough to undo.
Still wondering whether I'm up for my list of "Things To Do". I was thinking of doing everything, but maybe I should just do the bits that need doing...and not try an be superwoman.
Cheers
Renate

 

[HauptRenate]

Actually Andrew, I went back, to try again, thinking I still wouldn't be able to remove the stopper, but it came away straightaway. It looked to be a brand new one, then I realised that it must have been replaced when I last had a major service on it and that was in 2008, so I checked back, and yes, it was replaced it seems.
So, exactly what consistency should the diff lube be? and what colour?
Renate

 

[Andrew Prince]

It's a similar consistency to engine oil, maybe a bit thicker and a similar colour when new. It often smells quite strongly because of additives. I would expect that it will be quite dark in colour and maybe quite viscous - this will be because of contamination with the moly grease from the CVs. The important thing is the level, rather than the consistency of the oil - low means the oil has gone somewhere! Properly filled, it should be up to the bottom of the filler hole.

Cheers,

 

[HauptRenate]

Yup,
Consistency like engine oil, a little thicker perhaps but doesn't appear to be contaminated with joint grease. Level is just below the filler hole as far as I can ascertain. Maybe if I dig around a little it might all turn grey? Is it okay if moly grease and diff lube do mix?
Moly joint grease is greenish grey isn't it?.
If it were contaminated on further examination should the CVs be cleaned and re-packed again?
Cheers
Renate

 

[Andrew Prince]

Yes, grease and diff oil mix! If you have grease contamination, then the oil will be sludgy and cloudy. So that's a good sign!
Packing the CVs is good maintenance practice if they haven't been done for a while. If you're going to repalce the swivel bearings, then it'll be a cinch to repack the CVs - just force some grease in past the balls without removing the halfshaft.

Cheers,

 

[HauptRenate]

Hi there Andrew
Maybe it will be a breeze this time... [not]. I'll certainly consider doing this after I've done the "Pre-MOT Work" (since I know it'll fail on the handbrake again, as it always does... And a few other things). The idea is that it passes first time, and I'd be well happy if it did so, after litl ME doing the work on it - a bit of a buzz methinks.

I had lots and lots of things done on it in 2008 and I have a long list (going to 5 pages) on the stuff that I wanted doing on it, and the stuff that was done, so most of my entire wage from VOSA went on l'beast... to the tune of nearly £4k. Methinks those days are gone and well and truly over...

So, in recap then, I've bombed a bit today along the M4 today (couldn't wait til Tuesday) and there is still some vibration. But I won't have another wheel balancing done until I've had a chance to look at the Front CVs again.

Meanwhile, would it be a good and wise idea to check the rear diff fluid tomorrow as well? I don't think anything on the rear axle was done in 2008, so I guess that stopper will be well and truly seized. Is it still 24mm?

Am still going to look at the Suspension geometry again, but I'm quickly concluding that I need to replace the coils, sooner rather than later. Someone said its quite an easy job (but I'm not them, so that remains to be seen...)

Toby confirmed at Lincomb that I had Front diff lock, but not rear.
I'm not sure how much work the RR diff will require, I'm seeing quite a labour-intensive slug on that, so am asking whether anyone has done their rear CVs as well? so I can get an idea about the likely scenarios. I'll check 80sCool maybe as well tonight and see whether there are any references to rear CVS and stuff.
Cheers
Renate

 

[Andrew Prince]

Meanwhile, would it be a good and wise idea to check the rear diff fluid tomorrow as well? I don't think anything on the rear axle was done in 2008, so I guess that stopper will be well and truly seized. Is it still 24mm?

Alays a good idea to check these things! Yes, it's also a 24mm cap - identical to front diff except the filler is on the back end of the diff, not the front It shouldn't be too tough to get off. Rear diff oil should be fairly clean unless you've sucked muck in via the breather.

so am asking whether anyone has done their rear CVs as well? so I can get an idea about the likely scenarios. I'll check 80sCool maybe as well tonight and see whether there are any references to rear CVS and stuff.

No rear CVs - the CVs are the things that allow the front wheels to steer Other than wheelbearings and maybe axle oil seals, there is not as much to worry about on the rear axle. Give the diff-lock actuator a few firm taps with a LR Special Service Tool (hammer) and see if that frees it off. It might require a strip-down to get it working properly The DL is the least of your worries as far as wheel alignment goes

 

[HauptRenate]

Just goes to how how LITTLE I know about my own cruiser Andrew... doh!
That must have been a really stupid statement...
Pretty obvious really, no CVs on the rear come to think of it... since its Front wheel drive...
When you say "Give the diff-lock actuator a few firm taps with a LR Special Service Tool (hammer) and see if that frees it off. It might require a strip-down to get it working properly" Is this an external bit of bashing that is required?
I'l have to look for pictures of rear diff actuator as well... I heard Ian mention it.
Rear diff is for after the MOT, I might post a fresh topic about that too.
Renate

 

[HauptRenate]

Hi there
I tried to loosen what I thought was the stopper but if its the one just behind the cable its a devil to get to, and also, I couldn't get it off anyway, seized rock hard, I believe the last time it was looked at was in 2004, so I've no idea what the state of the lube is. I'll try to loosen it later today when its a bit warmer out there...
Renate

 

[Julian Voelcker]

Just joining in here...

The swivels usually last as long as the wheel bearings, although they do tend to me most ignored in CV changes or wheel bearing changes so if you are stripping to the knuckle prepare to replace them.

You can test for wear in the swivel bearings by jacking up the front and with the key in the ignition (so no steering lock) and then turn the wheels from one lock to the other and see if you can feel any notchiness in the movement (usually felt in straight ahead position). Also put the wheels in the straight ahead position and hold the wheel at the top and bottom as if you are checking the wheel bearings, but put a bit more effort in it to see if if you can move the whole wheel, hub and knuckle.

Renate, your vibration could be down to 101 things, rather than try different wheel balancing people now, wait until Tuesday and I'll check it out for you.

Checking my records we replaced the CVs and half shafts on your front axle back in April 2005 - I don't know if we did the swivel bearings as well. ISTR you taking a few photos - do yo have any showing the swivels being replaced?

Either way I would say that the front axle is about due for a strip and repack - the peceived wisdom is to do it every 30k miles or so, and since yours hasn't been touched and you are planning some trips you should plan to do it soon.

On the issue of CV grease getting into the diffs - this is the prime cause of front diff problems - initially the bearings start to disintegrate and then eventually the ring and pinion wears so obviously something to avoid.

 

[HauptRenate]

Hi there Julian
Yup, still on schedule for the exploratory Tuesday meet - I see you still have the photo on your website of the wheel strip - actually, its a pretty good picture I might add.
And there was me thinking I could avoid doing another strip - well, I'm just going to have to shove more grease between the bearings then...as I'm sure we don't need to do a complete strip. But that can wait. MOT is fast approaching.
Regards
Renate