Carrier/intermediate Bearing Replacement

[ArozNick]

Good evening guys,

A few months ago I had my R/H drive shaft seal replace due to a leak, and my Mech mentioned that the 'Drive shaft bearing' might be on it's way out. Presuming he meant the Carrier bearing.
Anyway, long a behold I'm starting to hear it  & I have a few days off over Christmas to do it, Although I've never tackled this before.

So I have a few questions;

Will a 300mm Long reach bearing puller do the job? And will these be enough to pull the locking ring off as well?
Is there any hints or tips in getting the R/H drive shaft out or things I should watch out for?
Will a 32mm pipe be right for hitting the inner race of the bearing back on?
Would I be better off just replacing the R/H drive shaft?

Thanks in advance!

[Gadgetman]

It is a bit of a job, and ideally, you want to use a hydraulic press to get the bearing situated, but it can be done at home.
The Haynes manual explains how to.

That said, just getting the effing driveshaft out can be a major pain!
(On mine the bearing would not exit the hole in the rear motor mount, so I ended up having to remove the mount at the same time. Painful... )
Ended up buying new tools just for the task.

I would look at the general state of the driveshaft. If both gaiters are OK it's probably worth replacing the bearing, but if one is damaged...
Then a new driveshaft is strangely inexpensive.

The oil seal...
You'll need a tool to tap it into place.
If you know someone with a lathe or a good vertical mill thy should be able to make it for you.

It's a thick disc, 47mm in diameter. With a wide groove on one side that leaves a 2mm wide ridge at the uter edge, and a 26mm diameter tap in the middle. If the tap extends 10 - 15mm that's OK.
(well, my seal had an outer diameter of 47mm, at least. My car has a MA5 gearbox. If your has the same you probably have that, too)

You'll lose some gear oil when you pull the driveshaft. EIther bleed it before pulling the shaft, or be prepared to have something underneath when the shaft comes out.
And pick up a 1L can to replenish with.
(MA5 gearboxes hold 2L or so, but you only lose about 1L with the driveshaft missing... I know... )
I would also suggest that you take a good, hard look at the lower ball-joint and verify that it's in good condition. The rubber may have rotted.
Thy're a bit of a nuisance to pull off. You need a 2x4" plank or similar, place it with one end somewhere under the car, and the middle right under the Lower arm. Secure it to the arm with straps or something else solid, with as little stretch as possible. Undo the bolt holding everyhing in place and pull it out. Then jump on the plank!

There's a groove around the tap of the ball-joint that the bolt passes through when it's secured, so if you haven't pulled it completely out, you'll damage it.
Getting it back on is slightly fiddly, but not very hard. Just make certain the tap doesn't slide too far up because not only won't you be able to fit the bolt, but there's a good chance that you'll damage the rugger seal on it.
You want to replace the nut on the bolt holding the ball-joint.
The nut securing the axle to the hub requires 320Newtonmeters of force, according to the Gospel of Haynes.
This may be just for the older axles with the nut you hammer on to lock in place.
I'm not certain about the ones with a split pin.

If you have one with a split pin, get a new pin before reassembly.

Ok, and you really don't want to do thi if you only have axle stands...

[ArozNick]

Ihanks for the reply!

The oil seal has already been changed recently. Would there be any need to do ot again?
As I figure there wouldn't be much need....

[oilyrag]

Oil seal could well survive the change of shaft. My O/S replacement shaft came with the intermediate bearing already fitted (EuorCar Parts I think) so there was no messing about with that, so a straight fit. As your shaft has been out recently then it should all come apart OK. Check that you mechanic didn't mean the wheel hub bearing, as if it the hub there's no need to remove the shaft.
Good luck!

[Gadgetman]

No, there shouldn't be any need to replace the seal... shouldn't...
It's easy to damage it, though.

It's much easier to undo the hub nut before disconnecting the lower ball joint.

[oilyrag]

As G/man says - Hub nut def. a tight one - needs correct socket and a long bar - I found it best to do this with the wheel on the ground as you may well need to stand on the bar. Once it has been moved just a little then jack up the car and carry on .... same with final tightening, with wheel lowered to provide friction. Don't move the car once the nut has been slackened as you risk messing up the hub bearing.

[jj9]

Some types of Citroen / Pug alloy wheels don't have a centre hole so you can't loosen the hub nut with the wheel on.

If you happen to have this type of wheel and you don't have an impact gun with enough power you will have to get a helper to press the brake pedal.
If doing this make sure to put the wheel bolts through the disc and tighten them or you will sheer off the small screws that hold the brake disc to the hub.

.

[Gadgetman]

You can get a tool for the job. It's a piece of flat bar with two or more holes that maches up with two of the lug nut holes in the hub.
Mount it so that the end of the tool butts up against something solid when you start with the pry bar.

320Nm force is quite a lot. I wouldn't trust un-powered braking for the job.

[jj9]

Yes you probably can, there seems to be a special tool for just about everything but in reality most people won't have one.

Unless you have a leaky brake servo there will be assistance on the braking, if there isn't, simply start the engine.

The main point is don't forget to replace the wheel/ lug bolts or the disc retaining screws will sheer.


.

[ArozNick]

Any tips on getting the actual bearing off? I have sone 300mm long reach pullers. But I don't think there going to cut it...