I just did this on my ’98 528i last weekend and it was actually quite easy. Crawling under the car was the most difficult process. Here is how I accomplished it. Please proceed at your own risk.
Needed:
Safety glasses – lots of crud under the car
At least 4 jack stands (Ramps too if possible)
8 & 10 mm socket – for heat shields
18 mm socket & combination wrench – for drive shaft end at Guibo
13 mm socket - for exhaust mounts, center support, and CSB mount
13 mm combination wrench for drive shaft separation and CV/diff connection
PB Blaster or other break free oil
CV Grease
New CSB
New Guibo flex disc
The entire process, for me, took just over 4 hours with a start late in the day and a damn cold front moving in while I was under the car. I started at 72 and it was 40ish when I finished up.
I got the entire car up in the air to give me maximum clearance. I drove the front up on ramps, then jacked it further to place jack stands under the front sub-frame. This gives you needed clearance on the side of the car to crawl under and the ramps act as overkill safety just in case. I then jacked the rear end at the diff to level the car and placed jack stands at the jacking points. I tried shaking the car before I got under and it was solid as a rock. I also left my hydraulic jack under the diff as a back up for the rear.
Spray the front and rear bolts/nuts w/PB blaster and let sit while you remove the heat shields and lower the exhaust. You may need to spray the lower exhaust mount under the center of the exhaust. I loosened and removed all of the screws on the heat shields before I lowered the exhaust. The large heat shield also has the wires for the rear O2 sensors clipped on, so these need to be released and moved out of the way.
On the ’98 there are two exhaust mounts at the rear of the car. The first is directly before the muffler can and the other is on the passenger side just in front of the rear sub-frame, to the right of the diff. Simply remove the two nuts on each mount and slide them off while supporting the exhaust. Do the rear one first, then the next one and put something under the rear of the exhaust to allow it to lower all the way, but still be supported. The heat shields can now be removed with relative ease. Slide the large one down and around the exhaust turning as you take it out being sure to avoid your O2 sensor lines. The smaller one comes out very easily.
From there it’s pretty straight forward. Disconnect the front of the drive shaft at the Guibo to transmission connection (three 18mm bolts/nuts). The other three connect to the drive shaft and can be removed once it is off the car. Disconnect the rear of the drive shaft by removing the six 13 mm nuts attaching it to the diff.
Then disconnect the center support bearing by removing the two 13mm bolts holding it in place. (Break the nuts loose at the front using the breaker bar and 18mm wrench while the car is in gear to give you added leverage. Put the car in neutral to rotate drive shaft for the best angle on each nut/bolt, then in park to break it loose. You should be able to get to three of the nuts at the rear with each rotation and possibly two at the front depending on the orientation. Also break the 13 mm bolt loose at the drive shaft mid-point while it is still on the car for extra leverage)
You will need to wrestle with the drive shaft a bit to get the clearance needed to remove it as there is a centering pin at the front inserted into the transmission and the CV bolts which need to clear the carrier on the diff. I managed to get the front loose first, then moved it forward enough to remove the rear, then take the whole assembly out the rear.
Remove and replace the Guibo disc by removing the other three nuts/bolts. Be sure to orient the new Guibo correctly with the arrows on the attachment points pointing toward the drive shaft. It goes on either way, but you need to make sure the arrows are pointing in the proper direction and the nuts are on the outside of the assembly. (The nuts/bolts are placed opposite on the transmission side when you re-attach)
The following step is very important!!! Do not separate the drive shaft halves until you mark the orientation with a permanent marker or better yet a small metal scribe. This is important to maintain drive shaft balance. Mark each side of the drive shaft at the same point to ensure the splines are lined up identically when reassembled!!!
Use the 13mm box end wrench to release the drive shaft halves. If you did not break it loose on the car, have fun like I did!
I used a hammer and screwdriver to carefully knock the old CSB of f the end of the drive shaft, then again to carefully put the new one on. A brass punch or chisel would be better.
Assembly is reverse of removal with the exception of repacking the CV with grease as you will surely have lost some during removal and for good preventative measure. I managed to get the shaft back in by putting the rear in first, then the front. Also don’t tighten up the CSB mounts until after you have the front and rear attached to ensure you have it centered properly. Just attach it loosely, then fully tighten in place last.
If I missed anything, please chime in, but the car has been running smooth as butter since I did this almost 1000 miles ago now.
I used this chart for my torque values:
http://www.tpub.com/content/filters/TM-10-4330-237-13P/css/TM-10-4330-237-13P_105.htm
For reference, my old CSB was completely shot with the rubber completely deteriorated and rotten barely hanging on to the bearing which, in comparison to the new, was quite stiff. My Guibo looked fine while on the car, but once removed was much more pliable than the new one and the bolt carriers were loose/separated on one and cracked on all others. I did this repair to solve a knocking upon acceleration I had noticed that was getting consistently louder. This solved the problem as well as removed a lot of highway vibration in the seats I had only just started to notice. My acceleration off the line is greatly improved also as initial grab seems to be much more evident by the tires breaking loose a bit.
Many say that if your CSB is shot then the entire drive shaft assembly should be replaced as the u-joints are likely the cause of its failure, however due to my high mileage and limited budget, I opted to change the Guibo and CSB alone first as the Guibo is done separately anyway and the CSB was only $35. A used d/s starts at around $200 and a reman unit about $300, plus shipping, etc. I’m happy with my decision.
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