Thread: Free Wheel Hubs,

Originally Posted by landyfromanuthaland

I want to fit FWH to the antichrist, I take it this is a straight bolt on thing, couple beers each side?

Varies a bit on the hubs, but basically they are all designed to be a straight bolt on job. Remove hub cap and axle nut with washer and split pin, remove drive flange with six bolts; replace gasket, fit free wheel hub in place of drive flange, replace nut/washer split pin, fit cover on hub (this is the bit that varies).

Catch for the unwary - the drive flange bolts are BSF thread. They are longer for the free wheel hub so you need new ones - make sure the hub comes with them or you may have a problem finding the bolts.

The only reason I have free wheel hubs on my 2a (they are rarely disengaged) is that they came with half a Landrover attached for $15, so I thought I would fit them to see if they made a noticeable difference (they don't). I was short two of the bolts, and had to make them.

John

ok one word on this



DONT



clear enough?

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

ok one word on this



DONT



clear enough?

Actually, the only really valid reason I have found for them is that they enable you to use low range as a creeper gear on hard surfaces without steering problems. But I wouldn't spend much on them.

John

so apart from

• not lubing the Ujs in the axle correctly
  
• not lubricating the top siwvel bearing
  
• allowing the drive shaft to stay staionary while bouncing thus hammering the bearings in the Ujs that dont turn
  
• if not installed correctly allowing the uj to slide out from between the swivel pins and having arc stress put on it
  
• hammering the axle housing side axle support bearing
  
• leaving the front diff not turning and letting it rattle on the same pairs of crown and pinion teeth
  
• leaving the front propshaft stationary allowing the slip joing to hammer
  
• leaking bearing lube out and letting the inside world into the wheel bearings
  
• sliping out of lock when you need them leaving you in 2wd when you should be in 4 and
  
• occasionally eating themselves leaving you in butfart nowhere in permanant 2wd
  

they have the upshot of letting you occasionally select low range 2wd without worrying about windup?

Throw a couple of buckets of sand onto the black top where your going to be turning or if your on concrete wet it down.


Now I should also point out that not all of those things happen to all of the types of FWH but at least some of them will.

Ok i made up my mind now, stuff the FWHs lol

Of course if you (like I used to) use 4wd maybe every 3rd or 4th weekend most of the above problems never occur. My series 3 lasted me 180,000 klm and the guy I sold it to for around 60,000 klm - until I moved away- with nary one of those problems, simply coz it got used in 4wd a bit

it also depends on the freewheeling hubs that you got but a lot of the faults in my list wont turn up untill they become so bad that they catastopically fail..


and thats a selling point for a series landrover they are real little troopers, they'll keep on trucking with twisted axles, busted con rods, no coolant, snapped spring leaves and who knows how much else out of kilter and get you to where youve got to get to before they lay down and die...


and when they do some freak like me, dinty, uncleho or markndeb (hell even dobbos got one hes working up)(and thats just off the top of my head) will come along, lovingly lay a hand on the guard apologise to it for all the ill in the world, ask it nicely what it needs to make one more trip to the garage and then begin to make it go one more time.

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

so apart from

• not lubing the Ujs in the axle correctly
  
• not lubricating the top siwvel bearing
  
• allowing the drive shaft to stay staionary while bouncing thus hammering the bearings in the Ujs that dont turn
  
• if not installed correctly allowing the uj to slide out from between the swivel pins and having arc stress put on it
  
• hammering the axle housing side axle support bearing
  
• leaving the front diff not turning and letting it rattle on the same pairs of crown and pinion teeth
  
• leaving the front propshaft stationary allowing the slip joing to hammer
  
• leaking bearing lube out and letting the inside world into the wheel bearings
  
• sliping out of lock when you need them leaving you in 2wd when you should be in 4 and
  
• occasionally eating themselves leaving you in butfart nowhere in permanant 2wd
  

they have the upshot of letting you occasionally select low range 2wd without worrying about windup?

Throw a couple of buckets of sand onto the black top where your going to be turning or if your on concrete wet it down.


Now I should also point out that not all of those things happen to all of the types of FWH but at least some of them will.

Dave. Your scaring me. I've got FW Hubs on my S3.

Seems like a Rangie engine and box, and a pair of Rangie LSD's would be the go for an upgrade.
I seem to recall a mention of this as a possiblity.
Is it possible to fit the Rangie diff centres to the Series model housings?

If so, that would be the solution for Landyfromanutherland, and myself, and lots of other folk too.