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I am needing to get my two piece driveshaft shortened and a new flange welded on to facilitate my gs6-53 swap.
Since I am getting my driveshaft butchered, I was wondering if anyone here has had there stock two-piece upgraded. And if so, what exactly was upgraded?
I had a one piece DSS shaft and hated it, so sticking with the two piece is game plan for now.
I have a stock 6 bolt driveshaft currently.
What are the most common failure modes?
From what I have seen;
1st) The front half main tube seems to be the most common part to twist. Going to a beefier wall tube may help here?
2nd) The splined shaft to mate the front half to the rear has been known to deform. Not sure if anything can reasonably be done here.
Past that, the stock rear CV seems to be pretty stout.
u owe my mule an apology
I would look into getting someone to make you a new shaft using the stock front and rear yoke, thicker tubes, and a larger center slip yoke. They make this kind of stuff all the time for trucks, just have to find a shop that knows what they are doing and leave the car with them
86 325es, 2.8L m50, S476sxe, ProEFI 128 ecu, e85, solid rear axle, TH400 trans, 28x10.5w slicks, zip ties, popsicle sticks, tape
best time 9.06 @ 151.8 mph, best 60 foot 1.30
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Yup, best bet Raji, is find the most redneck people possible (think big ass mudd trucks with alchoholed engines pushing 1000hp) THEN tell them hey weld some shit, make some thicker and balance that shit. Then boom indoatructable redneck shaft done.
Seriously though previous post is legit.
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Years ago there was a member named Colby cobbs who was going to make custom 2 piece drive shafts for everyone - all trans and diff options. I think he may have made one or two. Not sure what happened to him.
Chikinhed had the front half of a stock shaft modified and posted a picture a few years ago. Of course that won’t help the splines in the middle, which I have twisted before. He recently posted that he was working on another modified version of the stock shaft.
I have a foam filled DSSone piece. The foam reduces the singing. I shortened mine for the 6 speed, which reduced vibrations a bit. It is better now at 100+ mph. It still is not as nice as the one piece carbon fiber shaft with guibo that I have in my E90M3, but it is better than an empty 5 speed DSS chromoly shaft.
Since it is possible to shorten a stock shaft like Chikinhed did, maybe you could buy a used F10M5 or X5M shaft, shorten it, and weld on ends that fit your trans and diff. I’d like to see something like that but have not yet. Retain the guibo and you might not have any issues.
I am wary of running a CF shaft on the E36 unless I am certain there will be no movement. CF absorbs vibration better than steel but will shred if it rubs. Expensive failure. There is so little clearance at the rear of the E36 that I would worry. Plus we know the sheet metal there can flex. Chikinhed has shown that. Fix the movement and run solid mounts, and the CF should be ok.
Aluminum needs to be larger to get the strength and there is no room for larger. Maybe you could change to a fuel cell and cut/section the rear of the chassis to run a 3.5” aluminum shaft.
If you don’t launch on drag radials, you can get buy with less shaft. I think they break most when launching where torque multiplication is greatest and the wind up and shock is greatest.
Last edited by pbonsalb; 02-25-2020 at 08:01 AM.
oem import direct
for the gs6-53bz, just get the front half from a 335i since it already has the flange and just shorten it. It should fit your current back half.Originally Posted by rajicase
96 M3, GT4094R, Arrow Rods, CP Pistons, Elring HG, cutring 87mm, 10 mm ARP studs,MS3pro, EMC Intercooler, n54 6 speed with Motiv twin disk, ZT-2 wideband, Zionsville Radiator, X-brace, H&R springs with bilstien shocks, QTP electronic cutout, Line Locks, stock exhaust 455rwtq, 453rwhp at 14 psi 91 octane.......684rwtq, 681rwhp at 24 psi running flex fuel E60 at time of dyno tune.
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Contact Driveshaft Specialists of Texas: 1-866-455-6622
They've done a good job shortening d/s for E46 6-sp swaps into E36/8s & and made up the 1-pc shaft I used for the E36/LS3/T56Magnum swap.
I'm calling them today to get another shortened shaft for an E36/7 6-sp swap.
Good prices and reasonable shipping: http://www.driveshaftspecialist.com/...ContactUS.html
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Yup, I've had this done several times, works great. I shortened and sleeved one for a friend as well, checked the runout in the process, they did a nice job.
Member
^^^^^^
Nicely done. Good work!
Member
Nice!
Im going to drop my stock driveshaft off today and see what happens. Plan is to shorten the front half and add the 335i flange. Going to talk to them about a full custom two-piece option as well, for later..
Member
Most good driveshaft shops can effectively shorten or modify the existing shaft. Hopefully you have no problem!
Member
twisted spline.jpg
This happened to me. I doubt a 105mm front flange would have helped. But maybe you could shorten a stock shaft that is known to support 750 rwhp without breaking and weld your diff end onto it. Most of those shafts would have the correct front end, though I think there is also a 110mm front end. Would have to relocate the center support bearing, but that is probably doable.
Cantry Member
I’ve only had the front flange twist and crack, not the center splines. Good job Phil!
Sleeps with his eyes open
You can get the parts you need from driveshaftparts.com
CVJ029 1 $70.00 $70.00
MSABMW 1 $25.00 $25.00
TYBMW 1 $15.00 $15.00
GUM81 1 $12.00 $12.00
Then buy some 2.5" x .120" wall 4130 tubing. 4130 isn't a great material for this application, but it's readily available and priced OK.
You can reuse the front 3 bolt flange and turn the OD flange down. Or we're making some beefier 3 bolt flanges for the e36 or larger diameter guibo option.
The weak point is still the universal joint but honestly they seem to hold up pretty good. You can even make it a single piece but it's going to vibrate in 2.5" or 3.0" diameter even at the lengths needed for a 6 speed.
1 piece and 2 piece
Near- thicker 4140 flange, Far-factory flange cut off driveshaft
Last edited by Kevin325i; 03-01-2020 at 11:14 AM.
Member
^^^^
Great information. Thank you for sharing.
Fast lookin' but slow movin'
237 rwhp N/A power
Member
Where was your two piece drive shaft made?
The biggest issue I am having right now is that nobody in Alabama is willing to touch a BMW driveshaft. The closest place I have found that is willing to modify my DS is 3 hrs away in Atlanta.
Sleeps with his eyes open
I made the two piece.
Call around to a few places that do truck stuff. Anyone that was a speed/car shop basically told me it wasn't possible blah blah blah.
Look for the bro dozers.
Member
Awesome!
Cantry Member
How much are the flanges you are making?
'97 M3, Estoril blue, 2 dr, euro 6-spd, EFR 9180 divided T4 .92 IWG, RK tuning, CP 8.5:1 pistons, Eagle rods, Schrick cams, L19 11 mm ARP studs, O-ringed block, Supertech stainless/inconel valves, Supertech springs & Ti retainers, ported head, S54 oil pump/pan, 80 lb. injectors, OBD1 intake manifold, Steedspeed twin scroll T4, 3.5" SS exhaust, eBoost2 EBC, HFS-4 W/M injection, AEM Failsafe, Zeitronix data logger, Racelogic TC, OpenOBC w. ethanol %, Ireland Eng. engine mounts, UUC black tranny mounts w. enforcers, UUC twin disc feramic, ARC-8's, MCS 2-ways, Z3 rack, Rallyroad strut bar, X brace, Eibach sway bars, Ground Control LCAB bushings, Bimmerworld RTAB's, Powerflex subframe bushings, 210 4-clutch LSD, Stoptech BBK, titainium shims, steel braided lines, brake cooling ducts.
u owe my mule an apology
Great info! That 1 piece shaft looks frightening!You can get the parts you need from driveshaftparts.com
CVJ029 1 $70.00 $70.00
MSABMW 1 $25.00 $25.00
TYBMW 1 $15.00 $15.00
GUM81 1 $12.00 $12.00
Then buy some 2.5" x .120" wall 4130 tubing. 4130 isn't a great material for this application, but it's readily available and priced OK.
You can reuse the front 3 bolt flange and turn the OD flange down. Or we're making some beefier 3 bolt flanges for the e36 or larger diameter guibo option.
The weak point is still the universal joint but honestly they seem to hold up pretty good. You can even make it a single piece but it's going to vibrate in 2.5" or 3.0" diameter even at the lengths needed for a 6 speed.
1 piece and 2 piece
Near- thicker 4140 flange, Far-factory flange cut off driveshaft
You should make the two piece ones and sell them. People would eat them up for $600.
86 325es, 2.8L m50, S476sxe, ProEFI 128 ecu, e85, solid rear axle, TH400 trans, 28x10.5w slicks, zip ties, popsicle sticks, tape
best time 9.06 @ 151.8 mph, best 60 foot 1.30
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SIGN ME UP FOR ONE IF THAT'S GOING TO BE A THING.
Member
So funny. I surprisingly haven't had issues with any of my stock BMW driveshafts yet. However, 15 years ago when I had a 460 in my 79 Bronco on 44" Boggers, there was a big 18 wheeler repair shop close by. Every time I went with bigger axles, I just grabbed the ends I needed and they welded a tube in between them for me. $106 for material and labor. (PA 6% sales tax) Is that what they refer to as the good old days?
95 turbo 330ti. 01 maxpsi m3 e85. 01 m5. 01 m coupe. 03 AIM 996t e85. 06 x3 w/Meyers plow and winter daily. Prussian Motors is hiring!! prussianmotors.com/jobs
Current e39t LS Turbo swap: https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...LS-e39-Touring
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These guys are spectacular and 30 minutes from me. They just built the shafts on my M715, LS6, 4L80 with 203/205 doubler transfer case on Rockwells. When you run 46x16 tires you need some beef. Price was super reasonable and they have a huge inventory. They keep the over head low and prices down. Always eager to figure out a solution to a problem.
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Going to trailer my car to Atlanta next week to get a custom driveshaft made..
Plan is to do a two piece driveshaft with a new rear CV and upgraded 0.120 tubing.
Thinking about replacing the front 3 bolt flange/flex disc and using a 1310 U joint with an adapter like this. Any thoughts?
https://www.drifthq.com/products/drift-hq-custom-driveshaft-u-joint-adapter-for-bmw-n54-gs6-53dz?variant=31766752788527
oem import direct
If you're going for a two-piece drive shaft why not just use the stock flex disk? less road noise.
96 M3, GT4094R, Arrow Rods, CP Pistons, Elring HG, cutring 87mm, 10 mm ARP studs,MS3pro, EMC Intercooler, n54 6 speed with Motiv twin disk, ZT-2 wideband, Zionsville Radiator, X-brace, H&R springs with bilstien shocks, QTP electronic cutout, Line Locks, stock exhaust 455rwtq, 453rwhp at 14 psi 91 octane.......684rwtq, 681rwhp at 24 psi running flex fuel E60 at time of dyno tune.
Member
Ive bent that front 3 bolt flange on two driveshafts now. Was thinking this would be a stronger alternative.
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