Center bearing replacement...uni etc

[Been a while]

Yup the ol' center bearing job, the last one lasted about 50'000ks towing included - I can't remember what brand, but the rubber failed not the bearing..

The new one is made by febest, looks the goods and came with new locking nut and copper washer .. ordered directly from company in germany for under $60.

Ok, so splitting drive shafts and pressing uni's..

I hate doing it at a stand up press- where you have to support shafts and place uni's- and I just can't bring myself to do the hammer and punch thinggg sooo .......

$25 of all thread, nuts and washers and some left over alloy plate that was "pre drilled- the small joys" for a job and never used and came up with little bench top press...

Works a treat with the vice to help hold and align ..

 

[Been a while]

The other problem is dealing with supporting the uni keepers on the tailshaft...

Desperate times call for desperate messures , no pipe that is "just right int/ext diameter"- never fear here's the good ol' socket sacrifice.....

You could still use them in a jam, they can live in the nav tool box for future use no doubt ..

 

[Been a while]

To remove the center bearing I did the dirty, removed old bearing to expose "inner race", then score and cold chisel ... I used the old nut to seat new center bearing then refitted new nut...

 

[Been a while]

It's dodgy and ugly but it worked.... managed to replace all three sets @ $55 ea TOYO Japan.

These are serviceable but getting to those grease points when the tailshaft is in might be an issue....

 

[Been a while]

And that's the center bearing and uni's done, $250 in parts + $30 in all thread etc plus my time $280..
Quoted $490 and UP , and that was with me removing and refitting tailshaft... who knew eh, I didn't think it would be that expensive to have done....

Anyone had a quote lately ?? Be curious to know some prices...

So there you go, cheap arses little press did the job..

 

[tony d22]

How did you know the centre bearing failed?

 

[Been a while]

How did you know the centre bearing failed?

The rubber was well worn and completely cracked and broken at the flexible area..

my bet is, look for the kits with the nut and washer - they seem to be the better made ones- maybe made for nissan oem I don't know... febest seems to have a good name, time will tell I guess.....

 

[tony d22]

Mine seems fine, still original with 250K on the clock

 

[Been a while]

Mine seems fine, still original with 250K on the clock

Lucky you , would you mind taking a photo of yours ? It would be interesting to see where yours sits .. maybe mines to far forward , I did put a spacer on the pinion when I lifted her..
could be the driver too lol
Hmmm maybe I'll check the pinion to box degrees, see if somethings moved or twisted - or maybe i just set it up wrong when I first did it...

There is a mod that uses a holden center bearing, the Nav center bearing looks like a toy next to it ...it's the right diameter for the tailshaft but needs mounting fabrication .. depending on what I do with diff I may look into it. ...

The reason I did the first one was to find a vibration/shudder at take off, you'd think clutch- but I always thought diff shudder that was being magnified by the center bearing rubber being worn..
Anyways the diff bloke said- replace that first and see if it helped or fixed the shudder/vibration before we rip into the diff.
It made it better but it was t h e diff, an oil treatment and a few oil changes she came good- well for 50'000 k's it worked lol diff has finally gone now..

And that brings us to this center bearing replacement , I'm betting cheap arse rubber is used in manufacturing letting the flea bay brought ones down.. bearing itself seemed healthy...

 

[tony d22]

Her you go mate. Specially took them this morning just for you. First 2 are from the rear looking forward and the last one is the best angle i could get from the front.

If you need any more, let me know.

 

[Been a while]

Well thank you very much Tony, another beer owed Ok, two ! Just 'cause ya make me feel special ..


I have been known to check out other d22 when I see them on the street lol haven't been punched yet !
But they seem to sit about there, I'm waiting on a diff so as soon as I have it fitted up I'll show you where mine sits.. expensive little job though, and a shitey one to do too ! Grrr grease - right up there with front wheel bearing service...

Yours is lifted too eh... did you extend the tailshaft at all? Is there any weight on the rear in this picTony?

 

[tony d22]

Glad to be of some help to you.
Yes mate 40mm lift.
Nothing done to the tailshaft. All is stock bar suspension.
Car is sitting on the ground in the garage.

 

[Been a while]

Glad to be of some help to you.
Yes mate 40mm lift.
Nothing done to the tailshaft. All is stock bar suspension.
Car is sitting on the ground in the garage.

Ok great, thanks for that... weird eh, mine needed that spacer. It looked and felt like it wasn't seated far enough onto gear bag spline..

 

[tony d22]

Nah it wasn't even suggested when the suspension was installed. I think if you went just a body lift you have to do it. The car sat a lot higher in the rear too, like 80mm above standard when new.
As you can see in the pic, It is pretty straight in line with the diff, no sharp angles in the unis.
Ohh, I tow everyday, The ute has always had a loaded tradies trailer behind it it's entire life.

 

[Been a while]

Hmmm well there you go.. must have been a cheap one that couldn't handle the pace .. I'll keep an eye on this one.. diffs in, I'll finish it off tomorrow and grab some pics..

 

[tony d22]

Did you use a genuine centre bearing?
I know the cost is probably triple but this is your second one yeah.

 

[Been a while]

Did you use a genuine centre bearing?
I know the cost is probably triple but this is your second one yeah.

Yes this is the second one, first one was done but now looking at yours and others over the years it was just well worn and was still doing it's job. It was replaced mainly to get to the bottom of a shudder/vibration ..
It turned out to be a combination of diff shudder and worn center bearing... diff shudder was fixed/helped with some oil treatment..

I do try to use genuine Nissan but none available at my sorce and Febest looks like quality gear, the rubber in the Febest one is 2 to 3 times heavier than the one I used to sort out that shudder... I'm pretty sure it was a China/Taiwan made center bearing, the rubber was nothing like this one- I think Febest is a OEM quality German based company...

 

[Been a while]

Up date, took the spacer out.. I'll have to load her up and see where is he sits... photos to come...

 

[Horatius]

And that's the center bearing and uni's done, $250 in parts + $30 in all thread etc plus my time $280..
Quoted $490 and UP , and that was with me removing and refitting tailshaft... who knew eh, I didn't think it would be that expensive to have done....

Anyone had a quote lately ?? Be curious to know some prices...

So there you go, cheap arses little press did the job..

It's not that difficult a job without a press or any special tools IMO. Perhaps I'm rough but unis are easy to change with a hammer and an old socket lol. Getting the nut off to remove the centre bearing took a bit though. From memory, had it in a vice with deep socket, 3/4" breaker bar and a metre of pipe to get enough leverage.

The cheap centre bearings can be a bit iffy, I had a cheap fleabay one give out after 2,000 kms, so for the money it's probably not worth doing yourself IMO. Last one I had done at a driveline service, new unis, centre bearing and tailshaft balance for $400 all up including parts. Has done about 40,000kms since, seems ok.

 

[SwampyPom]

Just changed my centre bearing (rubber was split) and the new uni joint I've got is different to the original. End caps are shallower and the clips are now on the inside of the joint rather than fitting on top of the end caps. I cannot find anywhere that has exactly the same uni joint, anyone find the same thing?
So now I've got vibration between 40-70kmh, should you need to re-balance the tailshaft after this job?