Hey Guys,

I am in the middle of replacing my axle u-joints and hubs on my 2000 xj. I ran into an issue trying to seat the c-clip in one of the caps. It actually is "clipped", but it isn't sitting in the slot (see photos) like the others and I don't know if this is a big issue or not - I assume it is.



The ears are not bent and I used a hammer to install. Thinking about using a vice to press them in further, but every time I tried that with the hammer it starting binding and I couldn't get the u-joint to spin properly.

Any ideas or suggestions would be appreciated!

 

It is possible that the caps are not pressed in all the way, or that your axle shaft ears are bent in slightly. They should seat all around. Rather than call it good enough, I would try to resolve this before you put it back in. If you don't, in a few miles you might be wondering why you're getting vibrations... and then having to do it all over again.

 

Pull it apart.
You'll find a needle bearing (or 2) between the cap and the trunion.

 

Thanks for the advice guys, gonna pull it apart and make sure it's seated correctly. We'll see how it goes!

 

When you go back to reinstalling, its alright to spread the ears a little with a BFH then clamp them back down after, won't hurt anything

 

I had a similar problem once. it turned out to be one of the needles slid down inside the cap and got between the joint and the cap.

 

WHAT ?

 

X2

 

Damn needle bearings are slick. Sometimes you think all is well but they slipped down

 

confused?

 

Spreading the ears induces fatigue.
Extremely bad idea.

 

The ears move on their own anyway, it doesn't do anything more than what happens naturally

I wouldn't do it everyday for kicks, but its no big deal every couple of years

 

No they DO NOT move on their own.
No idea where you got that info....but it is wrong.

 

every torn ear disagrees with you

all this stuff moves around like crazy

what purpose do the c-clips serve? to reduce movement

 

If the ear moves the shaft is no good.
Quit posting crap like this.