C4 U joint replacement

[JimBobC4]

I spent the last weekend making trips through the Tennessee mountains, and made one really "spirited" trip down the dragons tale ( US 129 )

Afterword, I started getting the tell tale clicking noise from the back axles.

I think its time for the U joints to be replaced :ugh

I've done a search here and have checked several post,

my question is this :

What is the best set of U joints I can put in my 1995 6 speed ?

I don't want to ever tackle it again so I will spend the money on the good ones, I just need to know what the good ones are !

 

[Stingray6974]

Spicer 5-799X solids.
Mike

 

[Toms007]

Yup what he said! Those are the ones I installed after my run down the "Dragon" (because mine started doing the same thing as yours).

 

[JimBobC4]

does solid mean no grease fitting ?

 

[Toms007]

does solid mean no grease fitting ?

Yup that's exactly what that means.

 

[jonszr1]

while your at it give you yokes a wiggle that come out of the 3rd member . the bearing has a tendancy to go also .

 

[JimBobC4]

while your at it give you yokes a wiggle that come out of the 3rd member . the bearing has a tendancy to go also .

so your saying the pinion shaft bearing could have issues ?

 

[gmjunkie]

so your saying the pinion shaft bearing could have issues ?

No,He's talking about the output yolks.If you don't have any major leakage your probly alright,but try to wiggle them anyway!!

 

[JimBobC4]

No,He's talking about the output yolks.If you don't have any major leakage your probly alright,but try to wiggle them anyway!!

ok thanks. I'm going to try and tackle the u joint replacement this weekend.

Any other wearable items to check or replace while I'm under there ?

Are the tranny mounts on the C4 fairly robust ?

 

[jester]

My control arm bushings were starting to crack and show some wear, so I replaced those while I had the control arms off.

 

[JimBobC4]

Do the half shafts and the driveshafts use the same U joint ? Do I just purchase six of the same item ?

I cant find a specific listing for the driveshaft.

Also has anyone heard of or used a set of Lakewoods ? they seem to be about twice the price ( 45.00 ) and are billed as " high performance" joints.

 

[gmjunkie]

Do the half shafts and the drive shafts use the same U joint ? Do I just purchase six of the same item ?

I cant find a specific listing for the drive shaft.

Also has anyone heard of or used a set of Lakewood's ? they seem to be about twice the price ( 45.00 ) and are billed as " high performance" joints.

The Spicers will work just fine!! I don't know if the Lakewood's are any better or not!! I've broke Yolks,Axel Shafts,Ring Gears,Pinion Gears,Posi-Units,U-Bolts,Differential Housings,Transmission Tail Shaft Housings and Twisted Drive Shafts but never have broke a U-Joint!!

 

[JimBobC4]

your right.


thanks for the sanity check.

no need for the 700 hp u joints with a 300 hp motor.

 

[jonszr1]

oh buy the way your tranny mount is that big long aluminum beam thats connected to the rear end and tranny . i guess that would be faily beefy

 

[JimBobC4]

oh buy the way your tranny mount is that big long aluminum beam thats connected to the rear end and tranny . i guess that would be faily beefy

No soft mount at all ? I can't believe the engine is mounted in rubber and the tranny has no rubber or poly vibration damper.

 

[jester]

Do the half shafts and the driveshafts use the same U joint ? Do I just purchase six of the same item ?

I cant find a specific listing for the driveshaft.
quote]

The drive shaft uses a different part number than the half shafts. I got mine through Summit Racing.

 

[vetteoz]

Do the half shafts and the driveshafts use the same U joint ? Do I just purchase six of the same item ?

I cant find a specific listing for the driveshaft.
quote]

The drive shaft uses a different part number than the half shafts. I got mine through Summit Racing.

Halfshafts are Spicer 1350 series / driveshaft are 1310 series.
As regards the driveline ,the engine is rubber mounted and the rear (batwing) is rubber mounted therefore all the driveline is rubber isolated from chassis.

 

[JimBobC4]

thanks everyone for the info.

 

[jsinga]

A 6sp may wear out the drive shaft u-joints. but...
the 200k mile u-joints I took out of my 87 automatic looked like new. If it hadn't been such a pain to get the drive shaft in and out they might have went back in. (I managed to get it out without taking the exhaust of c-beam apart)
Like it's been mentioned, the trans and diff are solid mounted so the drive shaft doesn't move around giving the u-joints a reason to wear.
In 15 years I've replaced half-shaft u-joints twice.
Only use the solid u-joints because you can't grease them anyway. Repack them with all the synthetic grease you can get in them when you put them in.
It's about a 6 or 7/10 job. Look at the articles people have posted.

JS

 

[nmvetteman]

driveline ujoint

A 6sp may wear out the drive shaft u-joints. but...
the 200k mile u-joints I took out of my 87 automatic looked like new. If it hadn't been such a pain to get the drive shaft in and out they might have went back in. (I managed to get it out without taking the exhaust of c-beam apart)
Like it's been mentioned, the trans and diff are solid mounted so the drive shaft doesn't move around giving the u-joints a reason to wear.
In 15 years I've replaced half-shaft u-joints twice.
Only use the solid u-joints because you can't grease them anyway. Repack them with all the synthetic grease you can get in them when you put them in.
It's about a 6 or 7/10 job. Look at the articles people have posted.

JS

So, since you replaced the ujoints on the driveline WITHOUT removing the c-beam or exhaust, if you had to do it again, would you remove these items? Or just go ahead and do it the same way? I am going to change mine on an '84. What would you suggest at this point?