[Bdydrp02s10]

alright have an 02 s-10 xtreme ext cab with the stupid 2piece driveshaft. that driveshaft has been giving me hell lately. it started with a slight humming noise then got louder and louder. finally me and my friend looked at it and he thought it was the carrier bearing. so i go buy one from Carquest for $20 it looked different as the factory one has a square surrounding and the new one had a round surrounding. i noticed when taking the driveshaft off that the bottom plate of the old carrier bearing was bowing down. so me and my friend replaced the bearing. it drove fine after that. then after a week or two it started to make the noise again. i checked the transmission mount it was not cracked. so i thought it might just be worn out so i placed an order for polyurthane mount, installed and did not help, a week later on the way to work all of sudden i just started metal to metal contact while driving, so i drove it slow to get to work. i looked under the truck and found that the actual bearing ripped out of the rubber surround and actually moved where it is pressed on the shaft toward the splines. i called in a record and they towed it to a shop that doesn't really specialize in driveshafts.they replaced the carrier bearing with a similar one i installed and it didn't fix the problem either. i looked under the truck and i see that the bottom plate on this carrier bearing is bowing down. this has made me want to get a 1piece aluminum driveshaft but i have called shops and they will not make a one piece driveshaft over five foot. the two piece is between 5and 6ft. do you think something else is causing the carrier bearing to go out prematurely and if the shop can beef up my 2piece shaft. one day i plan on getting the machperformance supercharger kit and i know this driveshaft is not going to hold up.

 

[Bdydrp02s10]

oh yeah it is 4.3liter automatic with roughly 45,000 miles on it

 

[casey53]

this will sound crazy as hell.......but....go to the front end, have the motor mounts checked. If they are going soft, as many have, this allows the front of the motor to drop slightly. the effect raises the tail of the transmission and put undue strees on the carrier bearing. lucky you only have the roar, most of us spent hundreds of dollars replacing everything trying to lose the damned vibration.

 

[BlazerLT]

What about the U-joints?

They would cause that noise at the start.

Maybe you replaced the wrong thing?

 

[02WHTXtreme]

i have 2002 xtreme v6 and i have 62000 miles now when i had 25000 my driveshat felt weird to same symptoms as you. ONe day it broke at the u joints. its a combination problem. It is the weak leaf springs and the c/v joints need to be serviced there are 3 fittings that require service. if there not serviced they will wear out an the rear end will be wobily and weak, thus making sounds. the leaf springs also make sounds. when the driveshaft is wobily it wil get unbalanced and make a humming noise.

 

[Bdydrp02s10]

yeah that sounds like a good idea to check the engine mounts i do stomp on the pedal alot. i was going to change the engine mounts to poly mounts when i changed the trans mount but i couldn't find them in polyurethane but i am starting to think it is one of the u joints going out.

but i have been hearing so much crap about ujoints going out on 2piece driveshaft s10's that i want to get a custom driveshaft

thanks for giving me some ideas

 

[s10rz350]

I have a 99 over 70,000 miles and have been putting a few extra hp through the drivetrain for about 20,000 miles. I've taken out my driveshaft twice to check the ujoints. The first time I checked them I didnt seperate the driveshaft and I couldnt repeat the noise my truck was making so at the time it didnt seem like the ujoints.. The second time I pulled the driveshaft I seperated it and could then replicate the noise which was the ujoints. I dont have a press to replace the ujoints myself so I'm gonna have a shop replace them asap.

 

[Bdydrp02s10]

so are they going to reinstall stock u joints or some upgraded ones if their is a such thing? how much u think it will cost to get that done whether it is on u joint or more needed to be replaced.

i am just trying to compare u joint replacement to getting a new aluminum driveshaft. i already spent $200 on it and am looking at it in the long run. i plan on doing similar mods that you have accomplished. i found a aluminum 2piece driveshaft custom made ranging from $350 to $550 with upgrade u joint on a site.

 

[Bdydrp02s10]

i plan on getting it fixed in january provided if it last that long

 

[Concept S-Series]

I had to change Both CV joints and the u joint in my s-10 it had about 65,000 miles on it at th time i paid to have the cv joint replaced but did the u-joint myself... cost me $120 to have the CV joints replaced at a local machine shop.. that price includes parts

 

[Bdydrp02s10]

alright, checked engine mounts and driveshaft. engine mounts look fine. when i checked driveshaft i found that the front 3 u joints are alright, i tried to wiggle the rear shaft and the rear two u joints were making tapping noises, so the rear ones most be worn out.

i did some browsing on another forum and found out that the rear two u joints don't hold up. i did notice that those two ujoints are spring loaded. so they are probalbly not holding up the driveshaft like they are suppose to. letting the driveshaft put weight on the carrier bearing. so i think i will get those replaced with some heavier duty ones and get my driveshaft balanced, instead of getting an aluminum one

thanks to all for your guys help


p.s. i'll try to make multiple paragraphs instead of one to prevent eye strain.

 

[02WHTXtreme]

like i said the reaon the rear cv koint dosent hold up is becasue if u dont grease the zerk fitting it dries out the springs goes weak and loses tension. it is not a sealed bearing it requres service every 3000 miles . that is waht the man at the drivline specialties told me.

 

[02WHTXtreme]

also there is no need for a custom driveshaft. If you look in the service manual it says to service the driveshaft. The dealer never tells you this. I had my truck fixed under warranty then it happened again. The grease fitting is a needle zerk fitting witch is a pain in the ass to do but it you have to grease the 3 fittings in the driveshat every 3000 miles

 

[Bdydrp02s10]

so your saying that those a&%* holes at the dealer are not doing that. i bought the service package when i first bought my truck and i bring it in their every three months to get it serviced. i never have trusted the dealer repair mechanics, now i don't even trust the guys that change my oil there

 

[MuddyS10]

i trust the one here in town, they do good work and get it dont fast, but a needle grease zerk on a u-joint isnt the most obvious place to grease when you have maintenance done.

 

[02WHTXtreme]

yeah i no it sounds weird, when i brought my truck to a different dealer then who repaired my truck when it was under waranty, they had no idea that the c/v joints even had those special needle fittings. the service guys said it was a sealed bearing. Call any driveline place and ask how often the fittings need to be serviced.

 

[02WHTXtreme]

Also none of the oil changer places even have the needle fitting. They only have the blunt fitting for like ball joints and stuff. The fitting is 3.00 and its breaks easy. You need to have a grease gun with a rubber hose so the needle has some play.

 

[02WHTXtreme]

i broke the needle before i had the rubber hose. Also its is sojmetimes hard to even find the fittings in the U joint

 

[brownmb]

Someone tell me more about these "needle zerk" fittings on U-joints. Are they on the older (91) factory U-joints? Can you grease the factory U-joint? I am familar with the grease gun injection needle that you slip under or into rubber boots on steering linkage parts when there is no zerk fitting - is that what you are talking about? How about some pictures?

 

[Jess]

moved to trans-rearend room.

brownmb. those fittings are very short fitting. some parts have them, most don't. but you can buy them if you want. no, you don't use that needle on then. there is a different type of needle for them.