Much has been said and discussed on this subject so apologies if this aspect has been covered elsewhere and I've missed it, but mine need doing and I can see that there are basically 2 types available, those with grease nipples and those without. Are the ones without even worth considering? I don't do much (if any) off-roading in the old girl ('98 reg 110 300TDI) so it will generally only have to deal with crud off the road and maybe towing the odd trailer now and again. Also, is there a make or type of grease that is best to use with or in them? Any advice or insight welcome, thanks.
The grease-able ones are essential IMO - the others are just a money making racket for the parts suppliers.. 
It's also worth the minimal extra cost for genuine GKN joints..
Cleanliness is next to godliness, so provided you grease them regularly, with a clean gun, and clean nipples, they should essentially last for ever.
My choice of grease is Castrol Pyroplex Red - it is way superior to a standard LM type, which although being LR spec, is crap IME..
I grease all my nipples every 3 months - maintenance being cheaper than repair ...
There are much better greases out there - BUT, they are too good for a needle roller bearing - so good in fact that they stop the needles turning, and it all goes horribly wrong from there on in ..
It's also worth the minimal extra cost for genuine GKN joints..
Cleanliness is next to godliness, so provided you grease them regularly, with a clean gun, and clean nipples, they should essentially last for ever.
My choice of grease is Castrol Pyroplex Red - it is way superior to a standard LM type, which although being LR spec, is crap IME..
I grease all my nipples every 3 months - maintenance being cheaper than repair ...
There are much better greases out there - BUT, they are too good for a needle roller bearing - so good in fact that they stop the needles turning, and it all goes horribly wrong from there on in
..
dag019
Well-Known Member
I will have to have a look at those next time I am in the market. I was going to suggest gkn as mentioned above. I keep a couple on the shelf so a uj failure is not a show stopper. I would also disagree that with greasing they last forever. There is always two of the cups that get less grease and run dry and fail. Greasing regularly makes them last longer but I get about 2 years/60k miles out of a uj as a rule of thumb.
Ok job done, and thanks for the advice, GKN it was with lots of moly grease! I found that getting the old one out was not happening by hitting it, but reasonably easy with a well greased bench vice as a press, 19mm socket one side and an open ended spanner the other. However, putting the new caps in seemed a little too easy, they were not loose but just pushed in with very light taps of a small hammer. Is this normal? I was expecting them to be a tighter fit?
Last edited:
v8250
Well-Known Member
They're normally just a +ve fit, not too tight, not in any way lose. What's the GKN part #? You may like to xref' here...https://gwynlewis4x4.co.uk/product-category/propshafts/defender-300tdi-td5/
