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Thanks guys. I would prefer not to hack anything together on this car. I'd rather do it the right way. I can wait on this assuming there are no serious safety concerns. There are some other areas I would like to work on like updating the cooling system, seafoam treatment, fixing the holes in the floorboards and maybe fix the window switch. This SYE kit may wait a bit. But thanks for all the input!
Basically you can survive without it but how long you can survive depends on a few things. Your angles, your U-joints, what you put your Jeep through, and how you drive it all can shorten the life span of some U-joints and cause a catastrophic failure if they let loose.
The U-joints in the rear driveshaft were actually replaced this year. I did this before realizing I would need to get a new driveshaft. In any case, it will see minimal use until I can get this done. Mostly short trips to work and back or the grocery store. I don't plan to go wheeling this winter with it.
Thanks guys. I would prefer not to hack anything together on this car. I'd rather do it the right way. I can wait on this assuming there are no serious safety concerns. There are some other areas I would like to work on like updating the cooling system, seafoam treatment, fixing the holes in the floorboards and maybe fix the window switch. This SYE kit may wait a bit. But thanks for all the input!
do as you wish, but i think you have the wrong idea about the hack n tap. the name makes it sound worse than it is, look at any thread where people ask about the strength and durability of a hack n tap and given it was drilled properly, it will be as good as a "real" SYE.
if you were to install a long arm kit, would you be willing to cut the control arm brackets and drill into your frame rails? if the answer is yes, then the hack n tap is the same. the factory output shaft is plenty good, all the "hacking" is cutting and drilling a hole. unlike a transfer case drop it doesn't negatively affect anything.
that being said I totally get the "doing it right" mindset, so best of luck if you go the full SYE route. just be ready to pay a lot of money. (installation if you don't do it yourself, new driveshaft, and the SYE itself).
do as you wish, but i think you have the wrong idea about the hack n tap. the name makes it sound worse than it is, look at any thread where people ask about the strength and durability of a hack n tap and given it was drilled properly, it will be as good as a "real" SYE.
if you were to install a long arm kit, would you be willing to cut the control arm brackets and drill into your frame rails? if the answer is yes, then the hack n tap is the same. the factory output shaft is plenty good, all the "hacking" is cutting and drilling a hole. unlike a transfer case drop it doesn't negatively affect anything.
that being said I totally get the "doing it right" mindset, so best of luck if you go the full SYE route. just be ready to pay a lot of money. (installation if you don't do it yourself, new driveshaft, and the SYE itself).
The issue with the Hack and Tap (which like you said makes it sound worse that it is) is the potential for you the DIYer to **** something up. With an SYE kit it's at least laid out with instructions and such that don't rely on any form of "craftsmanship" as it's all about taking things apart and putting them back together.
OP - He is correct that a Hack and Tap done right is plenty strong and many folks have done it with success and it's cheaper too (although some would argue to get the best case scenario you'd want to invest in a new DS either way so that brings the cost difference down to a couple hundred bucks IRC)
The U-joints in the rear driveshaft were actually replaced this year. I did this before realizing I would need to get a new driveshaft. In any case, it will see minimal use until I can get this done. Mostly short trips to work and back or the grocery store. I don't plan to go wheeling this winter with it.
I'd say roll with it and keep an eye on any vibrations (specifically cyclic vibrations that resonate through your Jeep). You might get lucky as things settle and you'll be one of the people that don't have issues with driveline vibes.
Thanks for the information guys! While I pride myself on doing work to my cars myself, I know my limits and what I feel comfortable with. The reason I got the lift kit that I did was that it was a complete bolt on affair. Granted I had trouble getting almost every bolt out, but no cutting, grinding, welding, etc required. I would prefer to keep it that way for the SYE installation. Granted it's a little more expensive this way, but I'm willing to invest that money so that I can do it myself and have it just bolt on and go.
Thanks for the information guys! While I pride myself on doing work to my cars myself, I know my limits and what I feel comfortable with. The reason I got the lift kit that I did was that it was a complete bolt on affair. Granted I had trouble getting almost every bolt out, but no cutting, grinding, welding, etc required. I would prefer to keep it that way for the SYE installation. Granted it's a little more expensive this way, but I'm willing to invest that money so that I can do it myself and have it just bolt on and go.
Don't let the "bolt on" nature fool you doing an SYE requires you to crack open your T-case and remove much of the internals. It's best done slowly, in a well lit place, with lots of room to spread out parts in an organized fashion for your first time.
Also, keep in mind that getting that T-case out of there is a royal pain in the *** most times. I'm not joking that it took a couple of days over the course of thanksgiving a couple years ago to do mine (my first one) and a lot of that was wrestling the T-case out and back in.
I agree with your choice to go with an SYE.
Never having done one before, it took me about four hours to install one in my ‘96 daily driver, including removal and installation of the transfer case. Of course, I had an automobile lift available to me. It would have been much more difficult to remove/reinstall the transfer case otherwise, but certainly do-able. Opening the TC and installing the SYE kit was the easiest part of the job. See this video:
With the SYE kit installed, you can then use a front XJ driveshaft for the rear. Find a low-mile one at a junk yard for $30-$60. Makes the job much less expensive if you DIY this way.
vibrations in your drive line after you lift your jeep?
In the event you have vibrations in your drive line after you lift your jeep, the Old Man Emu lift kit for an XJ comes with 6 spacers to lower your transfer case. If you use another lift kit for a 2" or 3" lift, several other manufactures make spacers that accomplishes the same thing. They space the cross member that spans below the case to the frame-rails down about one inch. This often changes the angle of your drive shaft enough to eliminate the vibrations. This solution avoids ordering a custom fabricated SYE driveshaft - saving both time and money. Note: the Slip Yoke Eliminator does NOT eliminate the slip yoke - it merely relocates it in a new drive shaft. However, changing out the case extension to a shorter one moves the front joint forward which, in turn, moderates the angle of the drive shaft. Though a new drive shaft is a good solution, and often required on higher lifts. There are many possible combinations, but these BFG HO2 examples illustrate the relative increase in tire weight with lift height: a 29" nominal tire (no lift), 235/75/r15 = 36.4lb's; a 31" nominal tire (3" lift) , 245/17/r16 = 48.9lbs; a 33" nominal tire, ( 4-1/2" lift), 265/75/r16 = 58.7lbs; a 35"nominal tire ( 6"+ lift ), 315/70/r17 = 65.2lbs. The greater the weight of the wheels, the greater the rotational inertia that is carried back through the drive train every time the jeep changes speed. Thuss, the need to strengthen the "week point" in the stock driveshaft with a stronger one on large lift. Fortunately, Chrysler's "week point" doesn't care about my relatively light 31 tires, soI chose not to spend that additional $$$$ with 3 lift, and I've been wheeling with a dropped transfer case for years with no ill effect. The modest drop may effect my break-over angles slightly, but on trails suitable for my XJ, this is insignificant. This is a good installation video:
In the event you have vibrations in your drive line after you lift your jeep, the Old Man Emu lift kit for an XJ comes with 6 spacers to lower your transfer case. If you use another lift kit for a 2" or 3" lift, several other manufactures make spacers that accomplishes the same thing. They space the cross member that spans below the case to the frame-rails down about one inch. This often changes the angle of your drive shaft enough to eliminate the vibrations. This solution avoids ordering a custom fabricated SYE driveshaft - saving both time and money. Note: the Slip Yoke Eliminator does NOT eliminate the slip yoke - it merely relocates it in a new drive shaft. However, changing out the case extension to a shorter one moves the front joint forward which, in turn, moderates the angle of the drive shaft. Though a new drive shaft is a good solution, and often required on higher lifts, I chose not to spend that additional $$$$ with 3 lift, and I've been wheeling with a dropped transfer case for years with no ill effect. The modest drop may effect my break-over angles slightly, but on trails suitable for my XJ, this is insignificant.
SYE isn't just "moving the slip yoke" it also eliminates a potential weak point in your drivetrain, the drop kits "solve" an issue in a temporary fashion, if you never go higher than the drop kit can solve for great. IF you do, you're left with doing this upgrade anyway.
It's all about the value of your time over money, if the drop solves your issues without sacrificing performance for your use case and it makes sense to you, go for it (doesn't work for everyone btw)
Lots of folks choose the SYE for it's numerous benefits.
True, I believe we're saying the same thing. For a moderate lift ( I specified 2" & 3"), a $35 investment may sove the issue and It's worth trying before a sizable investment. Though it's only beeen on my XJ for 3 years of wheeling, I don't thint it as a temperally fix due to all of the other things that have worn out in that time. For hard core wheeling, most people get a higher lift that requires a new drive shaft , $600 - $1,000, that makes altering the transfer case, $250+- for parts far more palitable.
