Rear drive shafts

[pmansson]

Has anyone had issues with these?
I sense a vibration from the rear end, and it is not the wheels/tyres or prop shaft.
Just interested in hearing about these parts which seldom appear on the message board.

 

[Bert Poliakoff]

Bearings or diff mount????

 

[Honolulu]

Does the noise change pitch in accordance with speed? What is the pitch? These suggest a source.

CV joints seldom fail if kept greased (just my own opinion of course). This means the boot enclosing the joint must be intact and not throwing grease in a circle under the car. You'll know if/when this happens.

Only bad CV joint I had was 20 years ago on my VW Dasher (with the Rabbit, VW's initial foray into front drive). It would "clunk" when turned sharply at low speed. I took the joint apart, cleaned and reassembled with new grease, and reinstalled with a new boot. I had nothing to lose, so why not? Never heard it clunk again.

But tell us, how you know it's not the dshaft or wheels?

You could, CAREFULLY, set the car up on SOLID stands, and run up some speed on the wheels.