Hey guys...i got a 99 xj....d30 with a bad pinion bearing. Got wobble side to side not too bad yet. On the highway it was not liking over 70....but last few days is not liking going over 60. Seems like its feeling like quitting soon, kicker is im on a roadtrip and got bout another 1k miles or so to go. I know it can kill the gears n case and would rather wait til i get home to do it...
Question is this...can i pull the inner axle shafts leaving the outer stubs on(heard the horror stories about that) and still be good to go? In essence making it 2wd and lessening the load on the bearing. Would i need to pull from ds as well? And on that note...to remove the upper section of shaft near the transfer case would i take off u joints or another method? Thanks alot

 

Just pull the inner shafts & be careful. Don't have to touch the D-shaft but you do have to leave the stub shafts in.

1K miles is a long way to go on a failing front axle. I would find a shop or member with a 30 for sale & swap it out.

Either way it sucks. Good luck.

 

It does suck...i would like to keep it, but swapping a new one would cheaper and prob easier...just not on the road. I would like to think about a 100 bucks for a used one with misc parts, fluid, etc. Anyone know how many hrs the job is quoted for? I would think at least 2-3 so at least 300bucks....plus no spare. But like i said...if i can pull the inners and get it back home should be able to line up a front end for when i return. Does the 99 have the hp or low pinion? I keep forgetting...

 

Should be a HP, the LP was introduced in '00 & '01.

 

Hp...gotcha. thanks

 

I never had to 2wd something before...just to clarify...remove the u joints and leave just the stubbshaft attached with axle nut correct? Otherwise the hub willnot be supported properly....

 

So i ended up needing to take out the inners...frt d.s. was vibrating and making noise at the pinion bearing and at the t case. So pretty sure the frt output bearing is bad too. Worth rebuilding the t case or just swap? Np231. Also...is it safe for me to drive prolonged time with the inners out? No issues or safety concerns?