Thread: Replacement Input Shaft,..."Durability"?

Hi Martin!

I do think your question is certainly a valid one... Did you not confirm the replacement shaft was greased?? I would certainly insisted that the replacement shaft was greased and probably would have also have got photos of it as well...

To me... simply replacing the failed part, with exactly the same part, fitted in the same way, non greased, simply means you will probably have a repeat of what you have been through in another '41Ks of easy driving'!! ...

I believe the only way to remove the worry of this would have been to fit one of the better designed alternatives...

Having said that... there are plenty of high mileage Puma Defenders about with not a hint of a failure!!!

No Pete, there's no worries about the replacement being greased, I think I explained in a previous post that the S/M at ULR explained the whole process to me, even the sort of grease & why etc.
I'm just wondering that now it's supposed to be "good", ....how long will it be "good" for!!?
Pickles.

I was chatting to the guy's down at Les Richmond Auto, after purchasing the Hi-Tuff heavy duty rear axles and flanges, last week.

A good point was made that the grease won't last indefinitely, even encased in the collar. So if you do just replace and grease the adapter shaft, then you'll have to treat it as a service item, albeit a little further apart than the regular service intervals.

They've done a couple so far, on the older Puma's. One was very close to failing, Andrew showed me the photo's, and the other was done as a precaution, which still showed signs of fretting and corrosion.

They retro fit the Ashcroft kit; Ashcroft Transmissions, but are currently out of stock. Having the spline running in an oil bath should fix the issue permanently.

As mine is a 2010, with 90,000k's, this is what I'll do to fix a problem that Landrover should've dealt with during the warranty period. No spline is designed to run without some form of lubrication. Probably the reason there hasn't been a recall from Landrover, is generally most Puma's are out of warranty when this issue rears it's ugly head.
Though having said that some of these failures are happening on the later Puma's as well.

The problem with this is you don't get a "hint" of a failure, it just goes bang and then no drive. It's not a matter of if it will happen, just when. well that's my opinion anyway. Did you get the dealer to take a picture of the new greased shaft Martin? Did they show you the old one?

Originally Posted by ozy013

I was chatting to the guy's down at Les Richmond Auto, after purchasing the Hi-Tuff heavy duty rear axles and flanges, last week.

A good point was made that the grease won't last indefinitely, even encased in the collar. So if you do just replace and grease the adapter shaft, then you'll have to treat it as a service item, albeit a little further apart than the regular service intervals.

They've done a couple so far, on the older Puma's. One was very close to failing, Andrew showed me the photo's, and the other was done as a precaution, which still showed signs of fretting and corrosion.

They retro fit the Ashcroft kit; Ashcroft Transmissions, but are currently out of stock. Having the spline running in an oil bath should fix the issue permanently.

As mine is a 2010, with 90,000k's, this is what I'll do to fix a problem that Landrover should've dealt with during the warranty period. No spline is designed to run without some form of lubrication. Probably the reason there hasn't been a recall from Landrover, is generally most Puma's are out of warranty when this issue rears it's ugly head.
Though having said that some of these failures are happening on the later Puma's as well.

The problem with this is you don't get a "hint" of a failure, it just goes bang and then no drive. It's not a matter of if it will happen, just when. well that's my opinion anyway. Did you get the dealer to take a picture of the new greased shaft Martin? Did they show you the old one?

No, I didn't get any of that stuff, but if I'd have asked, I'm sure there would've been no problem, ULR have been very good. I reckon I was that stressed after being stranded for over 3 hrs on the side of the road, and then enduring "Captain Slow" towtruck driver, as a consequence of which, "just" getting Gracie back to ULR before they closed, I forgot all about anything else!!
Pickles.

Sorry Martin. I was probably tapping the keys whilst you posted your reply.

I just re read my earlier post. The reason I asked about the photo's from the dealer was not a matter of trust, it would be interesting to see the failure of the old shaft and the amount that the new shaft is greased.

As far as longevity of the greased shaft. It lasted 40,000k without any lubrication, so who knows how long it'll go now it's been done properly.

There are some interesting topics on Defender2 on this very subject, & on the subject of greasing it should be re-greased on a regular basis, as grease does dry out/get pumped out. One poster has done his own mod with a grease nipple installed & re-serviced on a regular basis. Also seems the Ashcroft modification although seeming perfect at first sight has not got a lot of mileage since introduced & does get rid of 2 spline lands to provide the lubrication access - so some doubt long terms to how this will effect long term durability of the drive.

I would like to know how well the latter 2015 vehicles with the blue grease/lubricant dripping out of the transfer case flange hold up. I have already noticed that my blue grease stain in this area has already changed colour to a darker oil looking colour! Basically I think it is going to be a service item at about a 100,000km interval if greased!

I suppose one has to think... what happens if this failure occurs when someone pulls out across a busy highway... and loses drive with a bang... and the then gets T-boned...

Where does the liability buck stop...?

This has nearly another 3 years to run until the last MY16 's are out of warrantee... but perhaps they have al been greased? If so, therein lies an implicit liability to JLR for obviously recognising the issue and taking measures on the last of the breed...

I so wish they would just recall the whole damn lot... surely the profits of just a few of the latest Disco/RRS offerings would pay for that... instead of a huge law suit as a result of a fatal...

This is an issue that had lots of discussion , and I think will be on going . I've had my Defender for 11months now , and it'd done 11 thousand ks So I will also be asking about the shaft at the first service . I like the rubber boot method , this should help keep the grease in . I would think without some way of holding the grease in place it will be spun out . Also grease does go hard . This is a poor design , the thing is we have have to live with it . I'm not sure what the cost to replace this shaft is once out of warranty ? Jim .