noiseboymart

noiseboymart

Active Member
My VCU is on its way out so I want to remove my rear propshaft to prevent any damage to IRD. I have searched and found a guide on how to remove the whole drive train to the rear is frontprop , vcu and rear prop. My question is can the rear shaft be removed by itself without removing the rest until I get the brass together for a new vcu.
Cheers
 
Why remove only the rear prop? There's no point, as said its far easier to remove the front, rear and VCU as one.
 
It was just a thought as it sounds a bit of a juggling act to remove the lot in one go without damaging any of the cv joints and it will be a few weeks before i can get a new vcu + bearings so thought the best place to leave the rest of the bits was on the car rather than lying around in the house.
Cheers for the replies.
 
It would be very hard going to remove the rear prop on it's own in situ due to removal of the uj securing bolt at the VCU end plus pulling the uj off the VCU spline. As posted, better and easier to remove the lot in one piece.
 
Contrary to what most have said, it's entirely possible to remove the rear propshaft, or front propshaft for that matter. I do remove and refit them that way. I'd not drive the car with either section removed though as it causes lots of vibration and gear noise.
 
Nodge68 said:
Contrary to what most have said, it's entirely possible to remove the rear propshaft, or front propshaft for that matter. I do remove and refit them that way. I'd not drive the car with either section removed though as it causes lots of vibration and gear noise.
Click to expand...

Interesting - I was encouraged to take the whole lot down before fixing the rear UJ and on reflection thought that may be easier than struggling to separate the VCU splines from the prop underneath at awkward angles.
 
I have taken down just the front before. It's do-able bit so is eating a bowl of peas with chopsticks. Sometimes it's easier just to use a spoon.

Again I didn't drive it though
 
gareth123 said:
Interesting - I was encouraged to take the whole lot down before fixing the rear UJ and on reflection thought that may be easier than struggling to separate the VCU splines from the prop underneath at awkward angles.
Click to expand...
That's why I do it in sections. I find that with the VCU secured to the body, it's a good way to get extra purchase to remove the splines. Also it's entirely to easy to split the front joint boot while trying to mount the VCU and prop shafts all in one piece. I take the rear prop off first, followed by the front prop then VCU last. I refit them in the reverse order.
 
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Unless new matching tyres cures my transmission noise I too will be removing the whole propshaft tomorrow but I plan on getting the cash together to buy a recon VCU from Bell engineering and basically refurb the prop assembly inc. new boot for prop/IRD cv joint.
To aid taking off the VCU would it be an idea to support it with a trolley Jack whilst undoing the bolts?.
 
britishwardog said:
Unless new matching tyres cures my transmission noise I too will be removing the whole propshaft tomorrow but I plan on getting the cash together to buy a recon VCU from Bell engineering and basically refurb the prop assembly inc. new boot for prop/IRD cv joint.
To aid taking off the VCU would it be an idea to support it with a trolley Jack whilst undoing the bolts?.
Click to expand...

I'm going to change my VCU this year. I've put it off long enough.
The VCU fits nicely in my trolley jack cup. Some smaller jacks won't have a cup large enough to hold the VCU securely enough. It's possible to lift it into place by hand, it weighs around 20 Kg's.
 
britishwardog said:
Unless new matching tyres cures my transmission noise I too will be removing the whole propshaft tomorrow but I plan on getting the cash together to buy a recon VCU from Bell engineering and basically refurb the prop assembly inc. new boot for prop/IRD cv joint.
To aid taking off the VCU would it be an idea to support it with a trolley Jack whilst undoing the bolts?.
Click to expand...

Yes, it would help as it saves struggling to hold it up whilst removing the last bolts.

With regard to previous comments regarding removal of individual propshafts in situ, from an ergonomic point of view I feel that lying on your back and working overhead is more awkward, uncomfortable and tiring than having the assembly for instance on a bench/in a vice. Using good old common sense regarding damage to the front (IRD end) constant velocity joint will prevent this happening, I must say that these joints are more robust than people think but heavy angular strain should be avoided. The standard Hardy Spicer UJ's are bullet proof and are highly unlikely to be damaged or strained.
 
Irishrover said:
Yes, it would help as it saves struggling to hold it up whilst removing the last bolts.

With regard to previous comments regarding removal of individual propshafts in situ, from an ergonomic point of view I feel that lying on your back and working overhead is more awkward, uncomfortable and tiring than having the assembly for instance on a bench/in a vice. Using good old common sense regarding damage to the front (IRD end) constant velocity joint will prevent this happening, I must say that these joints are more robust than people think but heavy angular strain should be avoided. The standard Hardy Spicer UJ's are bullet proof and are highly unlikely to be damaged or strained.
Click to expand...

+1

I believe I loosened all the bolts connecting to the rear diff and IRD first - this way I could roll the car forwards/backwards a bit with it all still in place to get access to all the bolts before removing it. I supported the prop ends "half way down" and supported the VCU with a trolly jack before removing it. It was pretty much common sence and so long as you're not wreckless or drop something it shouldn't be damaged. In fact, I found it took more care not to damage it when moving it around after its off the car, quite a cumbersome thing.
 
I got a friend to help me lower the whole unit down last year - a lot easier! But I see it could be done with carefully placed jacks and stands. I will have a go at dismembering the rear prop in in situ as Nodge68 has suggested (if I recall on the bench the rear prop came off the VCU much more easily than the front which gives me some confidence for doing on my back!). But if it just gets to be a faff then I will drop the whole lot. I am not planning this for a while because of work commitments but will report back in due course. I already have big vice on order for the UJ replacement (thanks Irish Rover for giving me the necessary spec)
 
Well i had a go at loosening the torq / star bolts last night. No Joy on some of them as i have half inch drive torq skts and they foul the joints. Do smaller drive skts fit in or do they do a torq/ star spanner.
 
noiseboymart said:
Well i had a go at loosening the torq / star bolts last night. No Joy on some of them as i have half inch drive torq skts and they foul the joints. Do smaller drive skts fit in or do they do a torq/ star spanner.
Click to expand...
A hex socket will work at a pinch or a bi hex spanner iirc.
 
Had new tyres all round fitted this morning but unfortunately it didn't cure the rumbling underneath so I've managed to remove the propshaft on my Hippo without too much fuss, I don't have the e10 and e12 sockets for the star type bolts but 8 and 10 mm sockets/spanners did the job fine.
After crawling underneath I found that the front bearing of the VCU was at fault, the bearings themselves were ok but the rubber surrounding them was shot, quandary now being that do I chance it and just fit a new bearing or go for a complete new VCU/bearing package from Bell engineering, I know common sense is saying change the VCU but money tight at mo, time to start saving up me thinks!
 
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britishwardog said:
Had new tyres all round fitted this morning but unfortunately it didn't cure the rumbling underneath so I've managed to remove the propshaft on my Hippo without too much fuss, I don't have the e10 and e12 sockets for the star type bolts but 8 and 10 mm sockets/spanners did the job fine.
After crawling underneath I found that the front bearing of the VCU was at fault, the bearings themselves were ok but the rubber surrounding them was shot, quandary now being that do I chance it and just fit a new bearing or go for a complete new VCU/bearing package from Bell engineering, I know common sense is saying change the VCU but money tight at mo, time to start saving up me thinks!
Click to expand...

I recon that although VCUs generally go over time they can go at any time - new or old. Therefore, although it may mean more work in 6 months or 6 years time, I'd be inclined to safe some dosh and just to replace the bearings - that assumes you've tested and are happy that the VCU isn't too stiff. Not sure if you can reuse bearings if the VCU needs replacing in 6 months though? I think its also 'buyer beware' when buying VCU bearings as cheap ones will only last 6 months, I believe people on here recommend to replace with the GKN ones?
 
Here's me removing the props and VCU. Those with a keen eye will notice that I removed the rear propshaft first.
 

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