What is the reasoning for the drive-shaft going in the same angle it came out? Is it for vibration/balance? What happens when you replace it all together with a new one? I marked mine, but I'm curious what would of come to it if I hadn't. Anyone chime in?

Ryan G

 

i think your talking about the axles,( or drive axles ) not the main driveshaft from the trans to the diff. you want to put the axle in so it rotates in the same direction because the axle shaft twists when you drive (hard). if you run it in the other direction, the axle gets twisted in the oppisite direction and has a chance of snapping. ive seen this happen on a high hp porsche race car.

 

Yes, I mean the drive axle, It can go into the tranny several different spots, but the differential only 4 spots. so for the average joe, theres not much of a reason to mark it? or generically mark it so you get withing a couple splines? I'm not running high HP, but I'm glad mine is marked, don't want it snapping:P

 

Its general good practice to mark the driveshaft with a paint line before removing it. On some vehicles it is balanced a certain way and putting it together differently can result in vibration. On the rx-7 I have never had a problem but it is still a good idea to put it back the same way ti came off. For axles it matters because if you launch on them they are stressed in one direction. Swapping sides will cause them to be stressed the opposite way making them more likely to snap.