Front Drive-shaft CV - Advice needed?

[Badspell68]

I'm looking to replace the front drive-shaft now that the CV seems to be failing. I have been reading threads with information on excellent replacements sold by Ericautoparts; Anyone have his information or a web page?

What will happen if I continue to drive with the the current shaft until it completely fails and should the CV end of the shaft have a boot on it(mine does not)?

 

[corkey]

this could happen to the cv joint, stranding you till a tow truck arrives,,

if it does this , you cannot drive it ,,

 

[Badspell68]

That gets the point across!

Fortunately that's not the end I'm concerned with, so I must have the terminology incorrect. I replaced the U joint, the end closest to the engine, and I think I am having an issue with the other end, I think it's a constant velocity joint? Can that fail in the same way? I'm getting all sorts of minimal vibration I did not have before the U-joint failed and was replaced.

 

[IZwack]

It probably wont pull apart like that because the driveshaft isnt being stretched like the axle shafts at each and every turn of the vehicle. But if the front driveshaft is really bothering you, remove it and just make sure your parking brake is in good working order to prevent the AWD "creep" while in Park (and try not to park on inclines).

 

[Badspell68]

Will I loose AWD and is the only way to repair it to replace the whole drive-shaft?

Any info on Ericautoparts?

 

[IZwack]

Yes you will lose AWD but it was 60 degrees in the mid-Atlantic today so you probably won't need it . As for repairing the CV, it's do-able at home but unless you're really low on cash, it's probably not worth the time/effort when bolting on a rebuilt one will probably take you 20 minutes. Some info here on rebuilding it:
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=295811&page=2

 

[Badspell68]

Should there be a boot on the thing and would that be at the front or rear?

 

[Badspell68]

Is the picture of a shaft that is connected to a wheel or one of the two drive shafts that runs down the center of the car?

 

[IZwack]

The picture Corkey posted is of the CV axle shaft that goes from the front axle tube/housing out to the front wheel's hub.

 

[Badspell68]

oh, not the drive shaft then. Is the u-joint on the front drive shaft supposed to have a boot on it?

 

[IZwack]

The U-joint on the front driveshaft does not have a boot. But on the other end of the front driveshaft, where the CV is, there should be a boot.

 

[IZwack]

This is what your driveshaft looks like - minus the mud:

This is what your transfer case (BW-4404) looks like with the driveshaft bolted to it:

The "boot" isnt so obvious sometimes, especially when the driveshaft is caked in mud, but if you push/pull the center of the driveshaft towards the CV, you'll see which part is made of rubber.

 

[Badspell68]

Nothing there, Yikes. What does a replacement transfer case, the one connected to the drive-shaft, go for and where does one get a replacement boot?

Also, the CV end of the drive-shaft baffles me...it's not driving anything, so what's that end do?

 

[EvilTheCat]

Nothing there, Yikes. What does a replacement transfer case, the one connected to the drive-shaft, go for and where does one get a replacement boot?

Also, the CV end of the drive-shaft baffles me...it's not driving anything, so what's that end do?

I must not be reading this correctly.
Are you saying you don't have a transfer case?
Are you saying that your driveshaft isn't hooked to anything?
I don't think I'd be too concerned about the boot until you have a trasfercase to hook up to.
Your truck wouldn't move without a transfercase (that is unless it's 2wd), because both driveshafts hook up to it.
You said you have AWD and that there is a cv joint on the driveshaft (which is only equipped on the front ds), so I'm going to assume you do in fact have a transfercase.
Can you post a photo of the thing you are looking at.
I would love to help, but I'm just confused by your last post.

Thanks to IZwack for the stock photo.

Your engine drives the transmission which is bolted to your transfercase which will have 2 driveshafts, one going back to the rear axle and one going forward to the front axle.
The front axle will have 2 axle shafts coming out both sides of it with 2 cv joints on each.
The Front driveshaft will have a cv joint nearest the transfercase (your missing boot location?) and a u-joint on the side nearest the axle.
The rear driveshaft will have a double cardan style set of u-joints nearest the transfercase and a single u-joint nearest the axle.