U joint Question

wei462 · Jun 9, 2004

How do you know when your U joints are going out on your drive shaft? I have a '00 GT and every time I start off, there is a kind of thud in the front (near the tranny hump). I jacked the car up last night, put it in neutral and was able to move the driveshaft about 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch. A friend of mine said that if I was able to do that, that the U joints were going bad. I still have the stock DS but I am in the market for a new one. Thanks for any help.

Aaron

TripleBlk · Jun 9, 2004

There shouldn't be any movement when you grab the driveshaft and move it fore and aft and side to side. Also, check that the bolts that hold the driveshaft to the rear wre nice and tight. Torque value on those bolts is 75 ft/lbs.

BTW , Ford put in pretty good original parts as far as U-joints go. They cut corners elsewhere, but not on the important stuff.

Cobra Jay · Jun 9, 2004

Either A-your u-joints are bad or B-your slip youke is bad. You shouldn't be able to move the D/S that much. Less than 1/32 of an inch if at all. My suggestion to you is to just replace the D/S with a FRPP unit. You can get one from Summitt Racing for 174.95+S&H. That's your best bet.
If your slip yoke is worn, you might have some issues with your output shaft on the trans. Let me know what you find out. Hope I helped.

P.S. The FRPP D/S is only an option if you have a 5spd.

TripleBlk said:
BTW , Ford put in pretty good original parts as far as U-joints go.

Actually the ones from the factory aren't all that great. They're o.k. for regular use, but they are definately a weak link once you start modding your car. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND DANA u-joints for replacements if you stick with the stock steel D/S. DANA's are what's used in the FRPP Aluminum D/S's.

TripleBlk · Jun 9, 2004

GT JAY said:
Actually the ones from the factory aren't all that great.

Well, if the guy is going to mod the car and race it, it also makes sense to put a driveshaft loop. If he runs slicks, most tracks will REQUIRE the loop. And it ain't just Ford joints that break from that kind of abuse.

Cobra Jay · Jun 9, 2004

TripleBlk said:
Well, if the guy is going to mod the car and race it, it also makes sense to put a driveshaft loop. If he runs slicks, most tracks will REQUIRE the loop. And it ain't just Ford joints that break from that kind of abuse.

True. I'm just saying they aren't that great and if you're going to replace them use DANA's.

I worked in the D/S dept at Ford for almost 4 years so I know a little bit about them. EVEN the F-Series trucks come with DANA's if that tells you anything.

TripleBlk · Jun 9, 2004

GT JAY said:
True. I'm just saying they aren't that great and if you're going to replace them use DANA's.

I worked in the D/S dept at Ford for almost 4 years so I know a little bit about them. EVEN the F-Series trucks come with DANA's if that tells you anything.

Are the DANA's permanently lubed like the stock U-joints ?

wei462 · Jun 9, 2004

Thanks for the help guys. I was wondering if what I had done to my car was going to screw with the DS or not. I am ordering the DS right now. I will let yall know what happens in a week or so. Thanks again.

Cobra Jay · Jun 9, 2004

TripleBlk said:
Are the DANA's permanently lubed like the stock U-joints ?

I know the ones on the Trucks don't come with zerk fittings, but I think the Aluminum Mustang shafts that FRPP gets from Visteon have zerks. I'm almost positive that ALL replacement DANA's come with them, but don't quote me on that. I know a lot of companys are making them without zerk fittings so they purposely won't last as long. Another thing people fail to do is have their D/S re-balanced after they replace their u-joints. However it's almost always cheaper to just buy a new one since it can be costly to to have one re-balanced.

Bottom Line- I know for a fact that the DANA's are a far better Quality part than the factory Ford ones.

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