Testing a Freelander VCU

[101RRS]

Today I backed out of my drive in my XEDI and on steering lock the transmission felt a lot tighter than normal - as if the handbrake was on a bit. While this is not a sign of a seized viscous coupling unit it is certainly an indicator that it should be looked at. I prefer the wheel off the ground method so I thought I would take a few pics of the procedure which only takes about 5 minutes and put them here.

First - take one Freelander
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/

Chock the wheels, particularly if you are on a slope like I am
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/Garry002-2.jpg

Put the car in first gear and release the handbrake - and be careful (the handbrake is on the rear wheels and the handbrake has to be released to do the wheel test)

Jack up the drivers rear wheel until it is clear of the ground
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/Garry007-1.jpg

Remove the hub cap
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/Garry006-1.jpg

Then put a 1 1/4" or 32mm socket with a breaker bar onto the hub nut. Note the position of the breaker bar against the side of the car - marked with white tape.
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/Garry008.jpg

Turn the wheel clockwise to take up the slack in the drive train - see breaker bar has moved to second white tape position.
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/Garry009-1.jpg

Then apply a steady clockwise pressure to the wheel via the breaker bar - the wheel should slowly turn - if it does not then the VC is seized
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/Garry010.jpg
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/Garry011-1.jpg
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/Garry012-1.jpg

In this case the VC is OK.

See this clip also

VCUtest.flv video by gazzz21 - Photobucket

If you want to do the mark on the tail shaft test - here is where the marks go. Red arrow is the VCU - yellow marks are your aligned marks
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e334/gazzz21/vcutest-1.jpg
Hope all this helps

Garry

[hugh]

The best demonstraton I have seen yet,I am sure it will help a lot of people

[mjm295]

I managed to simply lean on the tyre and turn it - didn't use a breaker bar.

[Seahorse]

Great stuff....Thanks for taking the time to share your experience..:)

[Mac88]

Great demo, many thanks. Hope you might be able to shed a little light. I have followed your test and have been able to turn the wheel as demonstrated, however when on lock my Freelander still feels tight as if it is getting bound up a little. When performing a full lock turn slowly I can hear the inner wheels scrubbing.

Do you have any ideas what this might be.

Many thanks,

Mac.

[101RRS]

however when on lock my Freelander still feels tight as if it is getting bound up a little.

As long as it binds a little this is what is supposed to happen and shows how sensitive the VCU is. When turning the front wheels scribe a tighter arc than the rears so turn at a different speed to the rear - this speed difference is detected by the VCU and it begins to lock. HOWEVER it should bind just a little - not a lot - if it is making the engine labour or stall then you need to go look closer at the VCU.


When performing a full lock turn slowly I can hear the inner wheels scrubbing. The obvious is simply the wheel touching the body - could be the tyre slipping on the road surface. Some strange sounds to come out of the tyres when turning slowly on a very smooth surface.

Garry

[Ausfree]

Being very new to Freelanders I am on a very steep learning curve. Thanks for the headsup Garrycol. All the information I am gleaning from the Forum is going straight into the memory banks.

Cheers mate:D:D

[rokdog74]

Hi Guys, Found this link to be an interesting read on the subject of VCU testing, I will be taking to my landy mechanic to find out how much truth is in the subject matter.
I Always challenge the reality I am presented with!!!!!

Symptoms - Bell Engineering (http://www.bellengineering.co.uk/5.html)

[camel_landy]

FWIW - The guys at Bell Engineering are pretty reliable.

M

[Jojo]

Is the procedure the same for an automatic transmission vehicle?

[Tib64]

To answer your question JoJo ... just leave it in park ... has the same effect as putting it in 1st gear on a manual. Basically all your doing is locking all the other wheels up including the front bit of the tail shaft.

Also when you have played around with a few VCU's then you will get a feel for the ones that are on there way out. I had 4 Freelanders here ... did this test on all 4 ... 3 felt about the same but one - my wife's car - was a bit more stiff so I replaced her VCU and now it feels the same as the others and drives much better.

[Druid 66]

Hi there

After reading all the mainly positive reports about the FL1-Oilers I`ve just gone and bought a 2003 TD4 with 175K on the clock.
So far the car seems all good - she does`nt seem to burn-oil or lose-water and the auto-box does exactly what it`s told to in all-modes :)

There are no horrible-noises from the drive-train either however I have noticed that after driving it for a while on-the-highway there does seem to be a-fair-bit-of-drag in the steering - Also if I get underneath it and put my hand on the VCU unit it does occasionally feel VERY warm indeed :o

I did the VCU `turn-the-wheel-test` whilst it was still warm and although it was stiff I did manage to turn the wheel round very slowly when I kept the pressure on. Mind you I did also read somewhere that this-type-of-test was`nt a particularly reliable method anyway :(

To be fair on the unit it does look pretty old I have also noticed that one axle-set of tyres are a different make AND a bit newer than the other set (about 4mm difference in tread-depth) I also found that swapping the newer ones on-to the back made NO difference either (why would it anyway?! :angel:)

Therefore I suppose my question is :- does it sound to everyone as though my VCU needs replacing and if so where would be my next port-of-call for a new one or a refurb..

Thanks in advance Druid 66

[woko]

At 175k and the symptoms you describe, I would say yes it needs replacement.
Do a google search for these part numbers
VCU- TOR000010
Center bearing X2 - TOQ000040
You will find heaps of options.
You can remove the drive shaft and it will run as a front wheel drive until you get the required parts to avoid damage to drive line.

[Druid 66]

Thanks Woko - Thought as much so I whipped off the prop this arvo and `Mondo`d the bugger which BTW was a piece-of-cake :cool:
Googled around a bit too and can`t seem to find any engineering-outfit in Australia who refurbs this kind of thing

Can`t understand why that is either because it seems Bell Engineering in the UK are just a small cottage enterprise - In fact given how a full-blown auto-transmission compares in complicity you`d think any old auto-trans-refit-shop would be able to sort one of these simple little units :confused:

BTW Does anyone know why some places sell those blanking plates thingies?? - As far as I can see there can`t be much harm done by running around with the IRD and Diff flanges spinning round whilst I source a new VCU for the prop.

[woko]

Can`t understand why that is either because it seems Bell Engineering in the UK are just a small cottage enterprise - In fact given how a full-blown auto-transmission compares in complicity you`d think any old auto-trans-refit-shop would be able to sort one of these simple little units :confused:
Its more than likely because of the fluid used and the availability in Australia



BTW Does anyone know why some places sell those blanking plates thingies?? - As far as I can see there can`t be much harm done by running around with the IRD and Diff flanges spinning round whilst I source a new VCU for the prop.
Usually when the IRD fails, it destroys the crown wheel and pinion in the IRD and its a lot cheaper to rebearing the IRD and reuse the old crown wheel and discard the pinion, and use it as a front wheel drive.

I removed the drive shaft out of mine 4 years ago with no ill effects.

[Druid 66]

Its more than likely because of the fluid used and the availability in Australia


Sounds like a nice little business opportunity for someone :cool:

No problems with the roadworthy check either then is there?

[woko]

Mine has been off for 4 years and never been questioned about it.

[psproule]

Mine got pinged for no prop shaft. So I ordered a reco VCU from Bell and fitted it. Annoyingly, I reckon it's tighter than the one I took out!

[Druid 66]

Mine got pinged for no prop shaft. So I ordered a reco VCU from Bell and fitted it. Annoyingly, I reckon it's tighter than the one I took out!

:eek: Does your new one start to warm up when you`re just driving down the highway though?!

BTW How much did the recon one set you back all up? :)

[Druid 66]

Just to update everyone on this little job - I ended up getting a replacement VCU from this mob in the end and now everything is sweet :cool:Freelander Reconditioned Viscous Coupling Unit (VCU) | FreelanderSpecialist.com (http://www.freelanderspecialist.com/freelander-parts/freelander-reconditioned-viscous-coupling-unit-vcu)

Set me wondering about the old one too as I did`nt bother sending it back
Does anyone know if the Toyota Viscous Fan Fluid is the same as the stuff in the VCU - If so changing the magic-goo might be a good way to go next time :)

Viscous Fan Coupling - How To Test ?? @ ExplorOz Forum (http://www.exploroz.com/Forum/Topic/40778/Viscous_Fan_Coupling_-_How_To_Test.aspx)