When to change uni joints?

[edddo]

As far as I can tell my uni joints are fine.
But they are at least 120000km and 10 years old.
Well maintained but at what point do people just renew them from a preventative maintenance perspective?

[harro]

As far as I can tell my uni joints are fine.
But they are at least 120000km and 10 years old.
Well maintained but at what point do people just renew them from a preventative maintenance perspective?

I have never thought of changing unis out as a preventative type maintenance.

I carry a spare as they are relatively easy to change and grease regularly as in at least every oil change.

when we are touring I take a mini grease gun and give them a once over every 4 or 5 k or sooner if we are doing multiple water crossings.

Never had one fail yet (touch wood[smilebigeye]).

Paul.

[bee utey]

It's not how old the joints are that matters, it's how well maintained they are that does. How old is the grease in them?

[Slunnie]

Also depends on the type and quality of uni, how they are used and under what conditions environmentally and in terms of setup.

I think most people just leave them untl they are a problem.

[edddo]

It's not how old the joints are that matters, it's how well maintained they are that does. How old is the grease in them?

I grease them until I hear/see grease spilling through the seals about every 5 to 10k depending on how much dust and water they have seen.
Looking like they have an indefinite life then - if well looked after. I do carry a spare....but never done one.
I am surprised how good the splines are as well - almost no noticable play.
Must be being too kind to the car.

[harro]

I grease them until I hear/see grease spilling through the seals about every 5 to 10k depending on how much dust and water they have seen.
Looking like they have an indefinite life then - if well looked after. I do carry a spare....but never done one.
I am surprised how good the splines are as well - almost no noticable play.
Must be being too kind to the car.

You can never be too kind to your car.

Look after her and she will look after you[thumbsupbig]............

[AK83]

Today! [tonguewink]

LOL! ... just this morning I finished changing the last one from last nights semi successful endeavour(D2 front prop)

Like Slunnie said, just keep an eye on them at every service. Give 'em a shot of grease whilst you're under the car doing the oil change.

Dunno about easy to change if it's a D2 front.
Out on the road, I suppose you could hack away at it with some makeshift tools, but I wouldn't call them easy to do. The cardan joint side would be a PITA without some proper tools.

On my D1, I plan to change them before I head out on any remote trip .. as I have no idea how old they are, or if the previous owners had greased them at all.

[donh54]

Doing my D2 front shaft tomorrow, and the rear some time soon as well. Little bit of play in the front uni. The DC seems tight still, but not knowing the service history for the last 60K, I'd rather err on the side of caution.

[BigJon]

I think the uni joints in my 88 Rangie are the originals. I have never changed them and I have owned it for about 14 years. The odometer doesn't work, but my best guess is 4-500 thousand km so far. Regular greasing is the key.

[scarry]

Most on later vehicles are not greasable at all.

I am pretty sure the D3/4 are not greaseable,and i haven't heard of many,if any, failures.

Many on road vehicles,with UJ's that are not greasable, do 300 to 500 thousand k's without touching them.

[DeanoH]

......................Must be being too kind to the car.

No such thing as being 'too nice' to the DC joint on a D2. Not just the uni's but the centreing stud and socket, especially with a suspension 'lift'.

Deano :)

[Robmacca]

For me, I think it depends on the whether u know the history of the vehicle or not & with mine I don't.... I had the unfortunate experience of having one fail on our recent VHC Trip. I had replaced a fair bit of parts on my defender before our VHC Trip but to be honest, I actually forgot about replacing the Uni's in my Defender. I put some grease in the unis before leaving and checked for movement and all seemed ok at the time, but after a couple of thousand kms I was to find out that they were not.... I was lucky enough to have a couple of spares on board but it's one thing that I would consider next time before venturing out on a big trip again..... It's not nice to be sitting on the side of the road with your family their while u try and replace a failed uni.... Would much prefer to do these things in the comfort of your shed and enjoy a trouble free touring trip :)