The OFFICIAL clunk/thunk driveshaft thread (1 Viewer)

[NMuzj100]

The idea that "thunk" is a healthy sign is silly on it's face and has never before been proposed here in the 100 forum. (IIRC)

Overgreasing the 100 series driveshaft is not possible. A under-maintained grease seal clogging up and preventing a healthy flow of grease through the yoke is.

If you have a clogged (dry) seal the solution is more frequent greasing not less.

The FSM for the 100 recommends daily greasing of the driveshaft if there are water crossings involved. The parts are designed for frequent generous lubrication.

First attached photo - Front drive shaft showing new Moly grease (shiny purple) pushing out old Amsoil 2000 series grease (red). If the old grease was contaminated or emulsified with water this flushing action would be more important.

Second photo - Clean new grease spilling past the grease seal on the rear yoke. This is what you are after.

 

[NMuzj100]

Anyway, with lubing the driveshaft does anyone have any pictures that show EXACTLY where and how to lube the d-shaft?

If you read the two posts linked above then you will know plenty.

 

[agaisin]

I lubed my propeller shafts for the first time a few thousand miles ago and was starting from zero knowledge/experience so I can appreciate the original poster's request for pictures and how.

I think the pictures are covered, and the question of how much grease was covered, but I'll point out a few potential points of confusion for newbies like myself.

First, I had never used a grease gun before, but the grease gun attaches to special nipples called zerks. I would recommend a pistol grip grease gun so you can squeeze the grease with one hand and use the other hand to keep the attachments in place.

Second, you will need to adjust the position of the driveshaft to be able to access all the zerks - I don't think it's possible to just park and magically access all 6 zerks (4 spider and 2 slide yokes). Count on having to move the car or the wheels (lifted and transfer case in N).

Third, you will ask yourself what kind of grease to use Well, I've seen that debate here as well. I'll summarize - the FSM just references MP (MultiPurpose Grease) and specifically calls out NLGI 2 as the type of MP for both slide yoke and spider. However, numerous people claim that Moly Grease is best for the slide yoke, and I guess NLGI 2 is fine for the spider according to everyone. If you choose to use Moly for slide yoke and NLGI 2 for spiders, then that's two grease guns you'll need. Personally I've been using just NLGI 2 for both and I think it's been fine (i.e. got rid of my thunk so far), however I may experiment with Moly in the slide yoke next time around.

Good luck!

 

[NMuzj100]

NLGI #2 is the thickness of the grease not the type. So two guns are not necessary but nothing wrong with using a non-moly for the spiders (Some think it's better). Just make sure your Moly is a NLGI #2.

 

[agaisin]

Thanks for the correction/clarification. So if I wanted I could use Moly NLGI #2 for both spider and slide yoke?

 

[Cj80cruiser]

Thanks for the correction/clarification. So if I wanted I could use Moly NLGI #2 for both spider and slide yoke?

It's been discussed before that Moly tends to let things slide past one another and possibly doesn't let the roller bearing roll like they should. I say its been said because I personally don't know this to be true and is the opinion of others.

 

[arbetrader]

Hey guys, thanks a ton for the pictures, they definitely do help a lot. I'm hoping I can do this service this weekend alongside an oil change. Cheers!

So I can use MOLY NLGI #2 for both slide yoke and Spider? That's what it sounds like I'm hearing from the above comments.

 

[arbetrader]

Oh, one other thing. I'm assuming I'm going to be be greasing each grease nipple. Will the grease start oozing out of the slide yoke while I'm greasing it? Will this happen when I grease the spider gears too? And will this only start happening once I've finished squirting the grease into the last spot, or what am I using to guage knowing once I've put enough in?

 

[LCHardriver_02]

From my experience, on the spiders, you will inject grease until you see the grease flowing and then try and wipe the excess off to keep your underside clean. Mine took several pumps before I saw grease coming out.

On the slide yokes, you will pump in grease, pump in grease, pump some more and watch as the yoke extends with the new grease. Once the yoke "bottoms out", the grease will start flowing out. It will take some time and a lot of grease, so don't lose patience. As for clean up, you will probably want to take a look after moving the truck and allowing the yoke to move in and out, as it will push more grease out.

Hope this helps...

 

[NMuzj100]

what am I using to gauge knowing once I've put enough in?

Harddriver has it right. When you see fresh clean grease coming out of the seal then you can stop.

It can be messy so take some disposable rags or newspaper under the truck with you and wear some safety glasses.

So I can use MOLY NLGI #2 for both slide yoke and Spider? That's what it sounds like I'm hearing from the above comments.

Like CJ80 said this is totally up in the air. Some OEMs say no Moly grease in their roller bearings others specify greases containing Moly for bearings with the same construction. In could also depend on the Moly particle size. Some OEMs have standards for the maximum particle size. I'm using the Moly in the spiders for ease of service. I would not use it for wheel bearings.

 

[Cj80cruiser]

On the slide yokes, you will pump in grease, pump in grease, pump some more and watch as the yoke extends with the new grease. Once the yoke "bottoms out", the grease will start flowing out. It will take some time and a lot of grease, so don't lose patience.
Hope this helps...

This is exactly what is warned not to do in other threads. Not to overfill the driveshaft where the shaft begins to push out as it will put pressure on your T-case and not let the driveshaft retract.
So you're saying that its ok if your driveshaft extends while filling with grease...just keep filling and it will eventually ooze out. Will this always happen? Ever heard of one being so clogged that it won't let the grease escape?

 

[NMuzj100]

This is exactly what is warned not to do in other threads. Not to overfill the driveshaft where the shaft begins to push out as it will put pressure on your T-case and not let the driveshaft retract.
So you're saying that its ok if your driveshaft extends while filling with grease...just keep filling and it will eventually ooze out. Will this always happen? Ever heard of one being so clogged that it won't let the grease escape?

The oozing (often called purging in service manuals) is important to push out contaminants and the old grease .

Look at this Dana/Spicer Lubrication Guide (page 6)

 

[marcfj60]

When I bought my '99 with 90K miles a year ago, it had "the clunk." It had the typical coming to a stop at a light and/or starting from a light behavior. I searched MUD, finding a lot in the 80-section but not too much in the 100-section. Now I see there is a 'definitive' post on the topic. I'm still leary about filling the slide yoke completely with grease until it oozes passed the seal but The Thunk that went away 5K miles ago is back with a vengance and it's driving me insane. It just so happens I'm due for an oil change so it will be a good time to grease the driveline as well.

I will have to say that the pistol-grip grease gun I bought to replace an ancient 2-hander my father gave me was well worth the cost. Now I can hold the zerk fitting on with one hand and pump the grease with the other.

When I greased the assembly last time, I had been scared by several posts about building too much pressure inside by filling the slide yoke completely and causing damage to the T-case or the rear end. So I actually completely removed the prop shaft and greased it that way. But that was a ton of work for what seemed like such a small task. There seems to be enough responses in this thread that say to just fill it until it oozes out of the seal so I think I might just try that. Maybe to make myself feel better, I'll remove the zerk after I get the ooze to let the excess pressure come back out. Man this is going to be messy.

 

[NMuzj100]

There seems to be enough responses in this thread that say to just fill it until it oozes out of the seal so I think I might just try that. Man this is going to be messy.

Now that you are going to lube it right get a Moly grease for a complete conversion.

The biggest problem is that even the maintenance freaks here aren't getting the shafts lubed every 3000 miles. The miles rack up quickly because the ride is so comfortable.

 

[Tinkerer]

Now that you are going to lube it right get a Moly grease for a complete conversion.

The biggest problem is that even the maintenance freaks here aren't getting the shafts lubed every 3000 miles. The miles rack up quickly because the ride is so comfortable.

After I first used moly type grease and overgreased the slip joints until grease seeped out past seals, in 2007, I did not lube again for about 3 years.

(Because the thud completely disappeared with moly overgreasing and did not reappear, and my vehicle sees only light-duty service. The slip joint itself slides very little in service and is extremely well-sealed.)

IMO the U-Joints are more critical for lubing frequently, if your vehicle sees lots of hard use, water/mud/sand immersion, etc.

 

[hankinid]

..... Now I see there is a 'definitive' post on the topic. I'm still leary about filling the slide yoke completely with grease until it oozes passed the seal but The Thunk that went away 5K miles ago is back with a vengance and it's driving me insane. .....

When I greased the assembly last time, I had been scared by several posts about building too much pressure inside by filling the slide yoke completely and causing damage to the T-case or the rear end.

If you don't see clean grease exiting from the seal, how can you tell it's fully greased (other than removing and replacing the shaft)??

Issue I think with fear of 'locking' the slip joint may be that the joint is full of old, dried grease. If so, you might not be able to get new grease past the old stuff.

Toyota recommends greasing until fresh grease flows past the seal. Main trick as has been posted is to attend to it at 5K intervals.

Steve

 

[agaisin]

The service manual recommends lubing with every oil change (i.e. every 5k miles).

 

[splacek007]

NLGI Grade #2 is either moly fortified or lithium based? Is that accurate?

I checked AAPs and Amazon, and it appears I have two choices...lithium based (spiders) and moly (slide-yoke), is that correct? That sounds like it would be ideal.

I think I need to tackle this since I've had the car 12K and never done this...I've had the clunk, but I don't mind compared to other problems I've had in this/other cars. Only when going from Park to Reverse/Drive, and not from stoplights. I requested local shop grease the yoke, but likely used non-moly...I'll try moly-fortified.

Diagram is great for cherry-poppin' virgins like myself

 

[NMuzj100]

NLGI Grade #2 is either moly fortified or lithium based? Is that accurate?

I checked AAPs and Amazon, and it appears I have two choices...lithium based (spiders) and moly (slide-yoke), is that correct?

NLGI Grade #2 is the thickness of the grease. A #1 is thinner and sometimes specified for cold weather operation in automotive drivetrains. There is also a series of 0,00,000 grades that are progressively thinner and thicker grades up to #6.

The Lithium (Lithium Complex/Soap) is the thickener that holds the oil in suspension. Lithium is the most common thickener but there are others Calcium, Clay ect... The important thing to remember with the thickeners is that some are incompatible with others so if you change thickeners you need to check compatibility.

The Moly (Molybdenum disulfide) is an anti-wear extreme pressure additive mixed into the thickener with the oil. It is a dry lubricant with physical properties similar to graphite but stable at high temps. The solid lubricant will not come into play until extreme pressure between the parts has driven out the lubricating oils.

Your Moly grease will likely have a Lithium thickener.

Some don't want Moly in the spiders and prefer an grease without Moly for that application.

You may also see a Performance Classification on the grease. Look for NLGI GC/LB. These are the highest current standards.

 

[hankinid]

The service manual recommends lubing with every oil change (i.e. every 5k miles).

Thanks. Fixed.

Steve