Need front driveshaft advice for a WJ 4.0

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JeepWJ19

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As the title says I've got a roadblock. I have a 2002 WJ with 4.0 with a 242 transfer case.

Quick useful knowledge of 242 Tcase:
4Part-Time(4PT) = traditional 4HI locked transfer case

4Full-Time(4FT) = 4wd without locked transfer case so front can spin at independent rate


So back in December there were icy roads and snow so I put it in 4FT. Heard a slight faint grinding. Put it back in 2wd and all is well so I kept it there.

This past week got snow again so put it back into 4FT and got a very loud grinding noise with any sort of throttle. I'm in college so I don't have the time to look at it myself. Luckily so commute so I got my trusted mechanic to diagnose it.

As I suspected the Rezeppa joint at the transfer case end was toast. He called me today and said the boot was fubar and debris is in the joint but was honest with me saying he cannot 100% undoubtedly tell me that is what is grinding. He also said the shaft had some slop in it when rotating it.

In 2wd it does not make any noise or none that I can tell (should probably turn the radio down more). I tested 4pt before I dropped it off and I did not hear that loud grinding noise. I'm fine with the fact the Rezeppa joint is toast but it concerns that I only hear this in 4FT. Is this Rezeppa joint the likely culprit because the shaft still spins in 2wd and 4pt. Another friend of mine said the Rezeppa joint is grinding hard in 4FT because of torque bias or something like that. Does that have any merit? He said it could be the chain but since I hardly use 4wd and only 139k miles with no abusive off-road use he finds it hard to believe it would be a chain.

Now I have a couple of options as far as the front driveshaft. I have a fixed yoke at the dana 30 and the Rezeppa at the tcase.

I can either get:
1. Bobo brand Rezeppa joint 70-120 bucks off rockauto depending on manufacturer
2. Whole new stock driveshaft (380-400 bucks ehhhh don't like this option)
3. Get a new double cardan shaft and a yoke for it at the tcase (400 bucks) comes with Spicer 1310 greasable u joints

93-95ZJ double cardan will work but can't find any so that is out of the question.

Cannot use a WJ v8 double cardan as it is only 32" where mine is 35" and I'm on a 2.5" lift.

I appreciate anyone who can offer advice and help.
Thanks!
 
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At one fourth the cost and the high likelihood a new joint would fix it, I know that's what I would try first.
 
Look up driveshaft shops near you. You can take it in (have your mechanic pull it off, you can drive without it).

My slip yoke in my front driveshaft for my Jeep is worn out. I'm taking the driveshaft in tomorrow, $225 to replace that joint. The shop is called "Arizona Driveshaft & Differential" and you can look for one in your area on Google. I'm also taking in the rear driveshaft to have it balanced.
 
Originally Posted By: KCJeep
At one fourth the cost and the high likelihood a new joint would fix it, I know that's what I would try first.


Thanks for your input KC :]

You make a sound argument. The parts are one fourth the cost, but by the time the old rezeppa joint is taken off, and all those new parts are assembled the difference will shorten. 70-120 and then add shipping for the rezeppa joint, then by the time it's assembled and takes the old joint off could be looking close to total $200

It's definitely a cross roads.

The rezeppas are known to have a short life which is what is tearing me.

or I can pay an extra 200 bucks, ujoints are super cheap, more aftermarket support and more reliable and easier to service.
 
When mine failed, it made a grinding sound when 4WD was disengaged. I took the drive shaft off and drove on for a week or so then bought a rzeppa at AAP. I used codes, picked up in store and it has a lifetime warranty.

I was unaware of a ZJ driveshaft working. I'm assuming the older transfer case yoke fits the new ones?

I have maybe 25k on it now. Failed winter 2014 IIRC.
 
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Originally Posted By: Nick1994
Look up driveshaft shops near you. You can take it in (have your mechanic pull it off, you can drive without it).

My slip yoke in my front driveshaft for my Jeep is worn out. I'm taking the driveshaft in tomorrow, $225 to replace that joint. The shop is called "Arizona Driveshaft & Differential" and you can look for one in your area on Google. I'm also taking in the rear driveshaft to have it balanced.


I already have, lazily and not as stringent, but have. When I was originally looking for V8 WJ driveshafts I found one for 70 bucks and the yoke for the tcase included. This was before I knew the WJ V8 shaft was too short. The shop I called said they do driveshaft balancing but I did not think of asking if they could lengthen it.

Maybe I will try to call them tomorrow, I do have a pretty big custom offroad shop near me that does project builds so maybe I will give them a ring.
 
#3 is the only option worth considering, especially with a lift.

I have a 3" lift on my WJ. I know and you know how screwed up that angle is going to be, even with a new Rzeppa shaft. Your relationship with Rzeppa shafts ended the moment you set the truck down with the lift on it.

If you decide on another Rzeppa, find a good deal, because you're going to do a lot more in the future.
 
Originally Posted By: DoubleWasp
#3 is the only option worth considering, especially with a lift.

I have a 3" lift on my WJ. I know and you know how screwed up that angle is going to be, even with a new Rzeppa shaft. Your relationship with Rzeppa shafts ended the moment you set the truck down with the lift on it.

If you decide on another Rzeppa, find a good deal, because you're going to do a lot more in the future.


Thank you for your advice and I knew what I was getting into with the lift, money isn't the real issue, it's the rezeppa joint.

I think I'm going to first call around and see if any places do driveshaft work. I did some more in depth searching and found one.

Right now after thinking about it pretty hard is either:
1. get a custom drive shaft made. I think they can be made cheaper than the IRO $400 shaft.
2. get the V8 WJ driveshaft and have it lengthened. 70 bucks for driveshaft and transfer case yoke and then probably another 150 bucks for it lengthened. Still cheaper.
3. get the IRO driveshaft with 1310 ujoints.

Right now I'm leaning hard on number 2. The place I found still has the V8 WJ double cardan driveshaft and yoke, so if all goes correctly and the price is right and a shop will lengthen it, then I'm rolling with it and not looking back. Might order new ujoints as well.
 
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Originally Posted By: JeepWJ19

2. get the V8 WJ driveshaft and have it lengthened. 70 bucks for driveshaft and transfer case yoke and then probably another 150 bucks for it lengthened. Still cheaper.


#2 option full speed ahead!
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I had to do some deeper searching because I could not find any shops near me basing my search off of google for "driveshaft shops ".

I found a place that will lengthen the driveshaft, balance, and add new spicer 1310 ujoints for about 150 bucks, depending on some variables with the driveshaft.

I called around again to the local yards and they have a 2004 V8 WJ driveshaft and the transfer case yoke for $65 bucks.

My mechanic knows personally the driveline guy who is going to be lengthening the shaft so is going to call him and make sure he takes the correct measurements.

I did not want to settle for the Bobo brand Rezeppa joints because I really don't know how much time I'd have them before they failed again, so I'm going with the more reliable route and I believe is the right way to do it.

Thanks all!
 
Well just as an update:

The WJ V8 247 front output yoke is on my 242 front output shaft and fits nicely (both being 32 spline).

I took the double cardan driveshaft that I got for $53 dollars to the driveline expert Friday. He was playing with the double cardan end and said that he doesn't feel any play in it at all, and I don't know the specifics of how these things work but he told me that Dana crimps from factory the centering ball for these double cardan shafts. He noted that it can be pain changing the ujoints on the double cardan end and considering that he doesn't feel any play and they are moving nicely that I should just keep them on.

Cool, and he suggested since I don't offroad much and don't submerge my jeep in water I should go with the Spicer non-greasable 1310 joint. Also cool, as I personally did not want to keep greasing the joints if I could get a non-greasable option. So I'm only have the front single ujoint replaced.

Skip forward to this morning:
He called me and said that the driveshaft doesn't need lengthened. He told me the measurements with my jeep on its full weight from yoke to yoke is 34" or 34.25" (I can't remember everything). My preconceived notion from reading was that the WJ double cardan driveshaft was too short but when I had them side-by-side that didn't seem to correlate. Hearing different results I went to my jeep and measured and sure enough got the same measurement. He said the driveshaft was about 1/8" off from being perfect so he wanted to mention that he can still lengthen it if I wanted too but he said I won't feel a difference and I won't have to pay the extra money to lengthen it.

He already has the new ujoint on and he said all he had to do left was check it's balance, and if it needs it he will re-balance it for me. Then I should be good to go.

I'm so glad I went this route.
 
Heh, Heh I bought a pair of Spicer U-joints for the Rat. Grease-able of course. When I was kid there were zerks everywhere on a car. Blah, blah. blah. And I used to walk 6 miles uphill through the snow to work in the mine when school was done. These are the last grease-able UJs i will buy. The stock BMW staked in, non grease -ables lasted 20 yrs and 250 K miles. I can just about hide my own Easter eggs and I'm gonna remember U joints?
grin2.gif
 
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Originally Posted By: andyd
Heh, Heh I bought a pair of Spicer U-joints for the Rat. Grease-able of course. When I was kid there were zerks everywhere on a car. Blah, blah. blah. And I used to walk 6 miles uphill through the snow to work in the mine when school was done. These are the last grease-able UJs i will buy. The stock BMW staked in, non grease -ables lasted 20 yrs and 250 K miles. I can just about hide my own Easter eggs and I'm gonna remember U joints?
grin2.gif



Jeep has been working great so far. Glad I made the switch and it was a C-H-E-A-P upgrade.

I did not want to re-grease the joints every so often when Spicer's non-greasables last, like you said, 20 years. It's a no-brainer.
 
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