2006 E83 Drive Shaft U-Joint

[JustinConte]

So my car has recently been making an awful clunking sound and I finally located the source of the noise. It's the universal joint on the end of the drive shaft that attaches to the transfer case. I will attached a video of the noise and location. My main question is can the universal joint itself be taken out and replaced or does the entire driveshaft need to be replaced?

[dragonblue24]

No, if it is the original shaft then you have to replace it. I just had to do mine...

But you can find aftermarket ones complete with center support bearing and guibo for around $250 so not too bad.
And those can be rebuilt should there be a problem in the future.

It's pretty straightforward and took me about 90 minutes to do all in all.

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[dragonblue24]

I found Ebay to be the cheapest and it shipped from close by for me.


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[JustinConte]

No, if it is the original shaft then you have to replace it. I just had to do mine...

But you can find aftermarket ones complete with center support bearing and guibo for around $250 so not too bad.
And those can be rebuilt should there be a problem in the future.

It's pretty straightforward and took me about 90 minutes to do all in all.

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Ah I see thank you for the info. I'd rather have asked before just getting the U-Joints and finding out I wasted the money. Did you go Ebay or can I find something from like FCP or Rock?

[dukedkt442]

The u-joints can indeed be removed and replaced. I just removed the 168k u-joint on my '08. HOWEVER the yokes on the rear shaft changed shape with the LCI, so that in the '07 and up shafts, the yokes would need to be milled square. Because of that, I ordered a brand new drive shaft from Driveshaft Specialist out of Texas, that comes with a new carrier bearing and serviceable Spicer u-joints in the middle and end, with external retainers. For the '04-'06, remove the old u-joint, and install a new joint (with inside retainers) from Rockford Driveline, the joint you'll need is ~ $27 and shared with a 7 series, IIRC. My new shaft from DS is better than the stock BMW design ever was, and was only $525 shipped and assembled. I would never do a cheap rockauto or ebay special driveshaft, "you get what you pay for."

IMG_7958.JPGIMG_7959.JPGIMG_7960.JPGIMG_7962.JPG

[dukedkt442]

The new DS unit. Spicer is the SH!T when it comes to joints. Fun fact: the carrier bearing on these is shared with a '90s Ford Ranger.
Attachment 678888Attachment 678889

I actually had only pulled shaft out to inspect it while I was replacing the giubo. The carrier bearing at nearly 170k was fine; the u-joint showed some wear, so down the rabbit hole I went.

https://youtu.be/x89WMuVua38

https://youtu.be/mK2N5A8OrTk

[dukedkt442]

I just reread the original post; I completely missed the part about it being the front driveshaft. The front shaft can be purchased from DS as well, or the u joints removed in the same fashion as the rears. It looks like the front shaft yoke would need to be machined so the inside faces are square, but tough to say for sure. A driveshaft shop would charge $120 to swap u-joints and either weld in the caps, or weld in retaining washers to retain the caps.