Thread: Broken Flexplate - again?

Well ive heard its a fault with discos as well ive heard of a couple of auto Tdi,s breaking the drive plates
good luck mate

what we used to do with certain earth movers was to fit up the flex plate and trans with the flex plate to flywheel bolts a firm finger tight, turn the thing over manually a few revs to get everything to line up and then torque up the flex plate retaining bolts. This ensures everything is running round and round in the same circles.

Hi Ron,
I'm not familiar with newish Rangies, so my comments are general questions more than anything else.

If I'm reading this correct, the P38A has a flywheel and a flex plate?
Didn't it make a hell of a noise last time it cracked?

Most 4WDrives in the past where I've cracked a flex plate you certainly heard it. But this was on vehicles with only a flex plate and the torque converter and was generally caused by alignment and or balance problems.

Best regards
DarrenR

"It's not that long (mid last year) that it was replaced. I wonder if engine balance has anything to do with it. P38A engines are balanced with the flywheel and my flywheel is off the original engine and still has the same balance weights attached."

It wouldnt have done it any good---

rebuild the old one,,
and get it all balanced properly this time,,,


or sell it to the daughter as is

Originally Posted by p38arover

I wonder if engine balance has anything to do with it. P38A engines are balanced with the flywheel and my flywheel is off the original engine and still has the same balance weights attached.

I recall that you mentioned a while ago that you thought this was the case as your RR had a short motor fitted.
I don't know if this would be the cause of your problem. We've fitted dozens of new short motors into P38 RRs & I've never heard of a flex plate failure afterwards. I'm not saying that it can't be the cause, but we've never (to my knowledge) had an engine balance issue with a replacement engine.
Good luck with it Ron.


(I don't think I can offer $1000 for it anymore though - $750 tops now )

if it were that out of ballance you would feel it through the whole car!
the flex plate shoud only be there for the starter motor. its the torque convertor that joins/drives the lot together.
if the flexplate is cracking ide put it down to incorrect fitment, ie to much play in the bolt holes maybe a bent flexplate, a bur on the mating faces??
something like that??

cheers phil

My P38A is running very roughly at idle. It clears up as the RPM are increased.

could this be something else?? like faulty injector/s, sensor fault, temp etc etc...

cheers phil

The original flexplate didn't break with the original engine.

The first breakage was with the replacement (current) engine.

I think we tightened it correctly - see
TSB 0003
CDS. ref: L8432bu
Issue: 1
Date: 06.05.98

I could have sworn I'd seen something about shimming the flywheel or flexplate.

Ron