need help plz asap

[badboy]

hi i went to slindon today on the way home the car started making some horrible noises, got it home jacked it up turned passenger wheel fine d/ shaft turns, turned driver side wheel turns fine d/shaft doesnt, so i took the gator off all locked onto wheel no play at all any help greatly appreciated Cheers Mark

[Mudlark]

What do you have Mk1 - Mk2, you have auto free-wheeling hubs - don't really understand "so i took the gator off all locked onto wheel no play at all"

[badboy]

its a swb mk 1 it has got auto hubs, when you turn the wheel, the shaft doesnt turn on the o/s, i meant the d/shaft wasnt out Cheers
Mark
ps i e-mailed you aswell through mudlark.

[Mudlark]

Right - I'm guessing a bit but not much on this.


I think the tab has gone on one of your auto hubs probably the one that is turning with the wheel.


take the cap off then the circlip on the end of the drive shaft undo the 6 allen bolts that hold the auto hub on and remove it.

on the back of the hub there is a circular plate with a tab on it that fits into the groove on the threaded shaft - if the tab is not there the auto hub is broke


you can get them on eBay for around £20 - they are not handed


you can run without the auto hubs but you won't be able to use 4wd

[badboy]

Thanks or that i will have a look later, the strange thing is the noise seems to coming from the o/s which is the side that isnt turning the d/shaft.
So when it is in 2wd when you spin the front wheels the shafts shouldnt turn correct?????????
Cheers
Mark

[Mudlark]

The noise is the clincher really - what has happened is the auto freewheeling hub on the n/s is broken and has stayed engaged causing the driveshaft to turn which then turns the diff and o/s driveshaft causing the o/s auto freewheeling hub to try and engage but it won't fully engage as you are not in 4wd so it slips out again it is this in and out motion that causes the noise

Yes you are right the shafts will/should not turn when in 2wd and the wheels are spun


These tabs are the Mk1's Achilles heel and are more likely to break than drive shafts, half shafts or diffs.


I believe the reason is due to us doing things like wheelies or flying (just see my avatar ;) )  As you know to disengage the auto hubs you have to reverse in 2wd for a couple of metres; so my theory is that when you get airborne you back off the accelerator slowing the driveshaft revs but the wheels spin at the speed of take off, obviously faster, this causes the auto freewheeling hub to 'think' that its going backwards with no drive (ie in 2wd) causing it to disengage. When you land the wheel stops spinning but the driveshaft is still turning and the auto free wheeling hub engages putting a loading on the tab - which eventually breaks.

Just in case you haven't tried flying yet there are other situations I can think of where this can happen:

stuck on three wheels in a bombhole and blipping the power to get out

front wheel bounce - where you are in a situation where you are applying power but the tyres are gripping and slipping causing the wheels to bounce (get this with more aggressive tyres)

One last thing these tabs can break on disengage as well - then you can't get 4wd. Stripping out the front diff to find that it isn't broken is a pain especially when the fault is so easy to get at ;)

[badboy]

Thanks for your help i have spoken to a few people today they all say the same i have been told the best solution is to take the auto hubs off and replace with the mk2 hubs cures the prob according to a couple of people, what do you recon???
Cheers
Mark

[Mudlark]

The Mk2 disengages the front driveshafts by utilising a vacuum solenoid on the front diff and so the driveshafts are constantly turning.
By putting the Mk2 caps on a Mk1 not only will the driveshafts turn but the diff and propshaft each adding friction to the front wheels decreasing your mpg.

On top of which you'll also get the Mk2 common problem - the disintegrating roller bearing on the wheel hub

Your choice really


I prefer to have the freewheeling front wheels

[badboy]

tricky one this my head is spinning my worry is how long till it breaks again?? Does it happen over a period of time or is it quite a frequent accurance??
Also i have been told if i do up a couple of bolts on the tortion bars it will raise the front up as it sits lower at the front, is this correct.
Cheers
Mark

[Mudlark]

That is one I can't answer I broke two virtually in a row (n/s then o/s) but none since - but I do have aggressive tyres but I'm pretty sure it's not a frequent occurrence as these were the first in about 6 years of Mk1 ownership


torsion bars - have a look here

[badboy]

thanks for that am going to try and get hold of one this week, the torsion bars seem harder than described i was told all i need do is the 2 bolts first shown in your section but ay will have a go.
I think i might have killed my altenator got stuck in a big deep puddle for about 20 min battery showing 12v start the car drops to 0 so got to look at that aswell, all good fun hay!!!
Mark

[badboy]

You were spot on with the auto hub took it off and it drove fine. Were can i get one from looked on ebay found one but the pic shows a different one to what i have got
Cheers
Mark