G. Cherokee 2.7 CRD REAR driveshaft Rzeppa joints

[OffroadSpike]

Hello.

I have been chasing a drivetrain vibration/noise at certain RMP/speeds since I bought the car. The vibration/noise is very noticeable when the drivetrain is loaded, for example going uphill at around 2000 rpm. It is not engine related since it's not making this noise when car is stopped and revving the engine.

Brought the car to a trusted mechanic and he detected play on the rear driveshaft joints, he thinks that's causing the problem.

My car came with Rzeppa joints both front and rear driveshafts.





Since I didn't find any REAR driveshaft joints for the 2.7 CRD, I bought both ends for the FRONT driveshaft since they look exactly the same. WRONG. The yoke bolt holes on the REAR driveshaft are bigger than on the front, so I couldn't repair the driveshaft.

Does somebody know what joint repair kit to use? Are other jeep model joints compatible?

Thanks

[JeanLuke]

That is weird! The rear shaft should be rzeppa at the front and CV at the rear.

The rzeppa joint at the front of the rear shaft is shared with a late Commodore. Unfortunately, I am not sure exactly which one, but I believe it is one of the axle joints. I took my rear shaft to a driveline shop for rebuild after a rear upper ball-joint failure allowed the joint to pop open and spit out all the balls. That's where I learned of the commonality with the Commodore.

Maybe the Hardy-Spicer catalogue will give you a clue?

[OffroadSpike]

Originally Posted by JeanLuke

That is weird! The rear shaft should be rzeppa at the front and CV at the rear.

The rzeppa joint at the front of the rear shaft is shared with a late Commodore. Unfortunately, I am not sure exactly which one, but I believe it is one of the axle joints. I took my rear shaft to a driveline shop for rebuild after a rear upper ball-joint failure allowed the joint to pop open and spit out all the balls. That's where I learned of the commonality with the Commodore.

Maybe the Hardy-Spicer catalogue will give you a clue?

I think you mean Ujoint not CV, CV and Rzeppa are the same. But yes, some 2.7 CRD came with a Ujoint (tcase) - Rzeppa (diff) rear driveshaft. Some others came with a double Rzeppa joint. I think the 3.1 WG came also with the double Rzeppa driveshaft.

It's frustrating because there's 4 different types of configurations for the front driveshaft and 2 different types for the rear, why Jeep?

Thanks, I'm going to check Hardy-Spicer and see if I get some reference numbers.

[JeanLuke]

Yeah - sorry- brain fart. I did mean U-joint not CV.

I just realised you are not in Australia. The Commodore I referred to was a Holden made in Australia. Some did find their way to UK branded as a Vauxhall. I do not know about the rest of Europe, but I suspect not because the driver's seat was on the wrong side.

EDIT: I think the one you want for the front of the rear shaft is the Hardy-Spicer CV-875. (Emphasis on the "think" - check the dimensions before buying anything.) Catalogue: https://www.hardyspicer.com.au/wp-co...UJ_BRG_WEB.pdf

I have not a clue for the rear.

[OffroadSpike]

For anyone wondering, the driveshaft replacement is really hard to get, aparently it was only put on the 3.1 td and on some unlucky 2.7 CRD. The OEM code is 52111489AA for the whole driveshaft. I found some joint replacents on polish and russian websites, but either they didn't ship international or the payment/shipping process was so tedious I refused to proceed with the purchase.

I bought a whole new aftermarket driveshaft from a spanish website which fitted perfectly.



The old driveshaft had some play on the joints, sadly, the new driveshaft hasn't fixed the rattle I hear, but it might have fixed other vibrations.

[JeanLuke]

That looks like a bit of late-night working going on there!