Transmission / Drive Shaft Vibration
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Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 446
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From: Helena, Al
Transmission / Drive Shaft Vibration
It is just about time I park my '91. In the last 200 miles of driving it has developed a terrible vibration. And I do mean TERRIBLE. I can't figure out if it is the transmission or the drive shaft that is the cause. For months now the transmission has been making popping or clanging noises, sometimes randomly but also predictably when acclerating from a stop or near stop speeds.
At interstate speed the vibration is so bad the steering wheel feel funny in your hand and the dash is making so much noise you have trouble hearing the N1 exhaust.
I am convinced it is something in the transmission or the driveshaft because it goes away when you push in the clutch (regardless of engine or road speed).
I don't remember if my parts car has a drive shaft or not. I will have to look under it the next time I am out in the country where I have it stored.
I have a spare transmission but the reason it is not in a car was because it was due for a rebuild the last time I was driven. Looks like the next few months is going to be expensive.
At interstate speed the vibration is so bad the steering wheel feel funny in your hand and the dash is making so much noise you have trouble hearing the N1 exhaust.
I am convinced it is something in the transmission or the driveshaft because it goes away when you push in the clutch (regardless of engine or road speed).
I don't remember if my parts car has a drive shaft or not. I will have to look under it the next time I am out in the country where I have it stored.
I have a spare transmission but the reason it is not in a car was because it was due for a rebuild the last time I was driven. Looks like the next few months is going to be expensive.
Banned. I got OWNED!!!
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 312
Likes: 0
From: San Jose, CA
u joint going bad prolly.....replace ASAP or face the wrath of the rotary Gods......seriously though....replace the driveshaft before you damamge your tranny.
Last edited by Madrx7racer; May 16, 2005 at 03:37 PM.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 446
Likes: 1
From: Helena, Al
Fixed
Last weekend I scored a good S4 driveshaft from a good friend and forum member (Thanks Marshal) so this weekend the car went on jack stands to see what damage I could do. I forgot I had to drop part of the exhaust to remove the driveshaft so what I planned on being a 30 minute job turned into nearly two hours.
It was not hard to determine what the cause was once I had the old driveshaft on the ground. The front joint had a bearing that was cracked and partially missing. The rear joint seemed to be frozen. I could not get it to flex in any direction by hand.
With the fresh drive shaft in the car drove like a dream. All of the noises and vibraion (even the ones I considered normal) went away. The car is the best it has been since I got it running over a year ago.
Attached is a photo of the bad joint.
It was not hard to determine what the cause was once I had the old driveshaft on the ground. The front joint had a bearing that was cracked and partially missing. The rear joint seemed to be frozen. I could not get it to flex in any direction by hand.
With the fresh drive shaft in the car drove like a dream. All of the noises and vibraion (even the ones I considered normal) went away. The car is the best it has been since I got it running over a year ago.
Attached is a photo of the bad joint.
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