Quote:
Originally Posted by e*clipse
Ok, I had a meeting with Jesse at High Angle Driveline about making a spool and some halfshafts.
To make a long story short, perhaps I was oversimplifying the problem...
In my case, I'll need a Mitsubishi Eclipse halfshaft to mate with the front wheel's spline. I may get lucky and have a driveshaft from another year Eclipse, or a Mitsubishi Lancer fit that output spline. They all have different lengths - left side, right side, AWD, FWD, etc. etc. This is actually good - it gives lots of options.
Cutting the Mitsubishi Eclipse halfshaft in half and doing the same with a Toyota Highlander, then sleeving and welding them together isn't a particularly good solution. There's a good chance they are heat-treated and the weld has a good possibility of failing in fatigue.
On the inboard side, the Eclipse uses a tripod joint, where the cup is attached to a splined shaft that goes into the differential. Of course the splines of the MGR are not compatible...
Something that has a flange that would bolt to the 4 bolt MGR output would be most desirable. Something that has a tripod joint output and the right spline would be silly lucky.
We all have this problem - we all need some form of halfshaft that can connect to our various vehicle types. Does anyone have any ideas for a shaft with a tripod joint (or other double CV joint) that can bolt to a flange?
It would be nice to solve this problem once, as far as designing and making custom parts.  |
Hey E*clipse
In my case it won't be a problem for the first go round as the Geo Metro shafts are smaller than the Toyota shafts. The outer CV spider of the Geo is held onto the end of the shaft via splines that have an inside locking ring groove machined in. All I have to do is cut the ends off the Toyota shafts, turn down the OD, machine splines, then a locking ring groove and then reassemble the shafts. The new shaft will be Geo on the outer CV and Toyota Highlander on the inner. The Highlander is wider than the Geo so there is plenty of shaft to use.
I would suggest disassembling the outer CV for the vehicle you are going to use and see if you have the same options. This link shows exactly how the Geo axle is dismantled for boot replacement and inspection. This is not a Geo shown but it is exactly the same build.
| Repair Guides | Automatic Transaxle | Cv-joint | AutoZone.com
The six ball bearings in the outer CV are a bugger to get back in place but not impossible. So unless you need to clean and regrease them just pop the shaft out and wrap them up to stay clean. I did some poking around and it appears that the Mitsu CV is built the same way... Check your shaft diameters and see if you can just have the outer end of your stock Toyota shaft modified. All you need is the outer CV for the Mitsu minus the shaft. Get the Toyota outer shaft end resplined to fit the Mitsu spider.
If not then you could simply use an axle from a bigger front wheel drive car that is larger in diameter and longer and cut it down and respline both ends, one to fit the Mitsu and one to fit the MGR. I am not sure how all of them are built but the majority of the ones I have torn down for boot replacement were pretty much the same.
Cyruscosmo