Greetings folks,

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to remove a passenger side driveshaft from a manual gearbox? I've read many threads about it and its meant to come out pretty easy but my experiences have been anything but.

The intermediate & driver shaft came out easy but the passenger one has been a nightmare. I got some mates on board (some of which are apprentice mechanics and experienced home DIY modders) and we've tried every trick we can think of - we'ved doused it in WD40, used multiple prybars/pinchbars etc, force and even taking apart the driveshaft itself. We ended up removing wriggling the manual box out of the car and tried all our triicks again all to no avail. My mates were pulling so hard that they basically broke the shaft pulling it out with the spider assembly and leaving the cv joint ("T.J Case") inside the transmission.

Is there a circlip we don't know about that is prevent the shaft from coming out? If so - how do we remove it? or is there a certain special spot the prybar needs to go into to get the shaft out?

Otherwise are there anymore trips/tricks/tactics anyone has to offer with this? Its driving us mad.

I've now taken it to a driveshaft repair workshop and they refuse to touch it. They do not want to accept liability if they break the transaxle while trying to remove the seized driveshaft. They suggested I buy a full driveshaft, take it apart and hook it up to what's left of the driveshaft currently stuck in the gearbox. One of the onsite mechanics shoved his finger in there and told me that the CV joint is fine and can be reattached to a driveshaft.

So what do we think? Should I just do the above and not worry about it?

Thanks everyone for helping! Very much appreciated :)

Kind Regards,
Aidan

Any way you can get a slide hammer on it? I pulled one from a 5sp auto box, it had a groove about 5mm in from the end with a wire expanding ring type spring. The shock might be enough to pull it just past that point. If you do get it out and see a groove but no wire clip, I'd be going in there with a torch and tweezers and making sure it didn't leave the spring in the trans.

all from a 5sp auto box

http://picturestack.com/15/9/WGkDSC0008QYv.th.jpg (http://picturestack.com/15/9/WGkDSC0008QYv.jpg)
d/s intermediate shaft trans end - no clip ring


http://picturestack.com/15/9/t8SDSC0009y1r.th.jpg (http://picturestack.com/15/9/t8SDSC0009y1r.jpg)
intermediate shaft bracket - has dowel pins. That's where I got stuck for a while looking for the last bolt =|


http://picturestack.com/15/9/YFUDSC0010TK1.th.jpg (http://picturestack.com/15/9/YFUDSC0010TK1.jpg)
p/s trans end with clip ring


http://picturestack.com/15/10/VwPDSC00128Rq.th.jpg (http://picturestack.com/15/10/VwPDSC00128Rq.jpg)
end view of clip ring

Heh heh... I just had to turf a tippy box as it was totally unusable after I bought it because the passenger shaft was siezed in place. The best way youll get it out, didn't work for me as it's suspected that the shaft was bent inside my box, is to get a specialized driveshaft puller. They come in sets, they're basically crowbars with specific angles on the end to hook around the shaft. The one I used allowed me to get massive force on the shaft that no other tool would.

Cheers for that Timi.

Unfortunately I do not own a slide hammer and I can't think of anyone who might have one. I'd assume mostly panel beaters and PDR's would have these tools. They are quite expensive too - that being said I can see that they can be hired so it might be worth grabbing one for a day.

We did try and rattle the shaft with a air compressor & rattle gun and it didn't work. The CV joint does move slightly in the transaxle but its only about 1cm of play.

Re: 5sp drive shaft removal - to my knowledge the 5sp & 4sp auto driveshafts differ. I wonder if the 4sp still had that clip ring/circlip? According to the manual the passenger side driveshaft does (although the manual doesn't differentiate b/w 4sp & 5sp driveshafts) and it provides no details on how to remove it, other than jamming a prybar between the shaft and the transaxle - something we've done heaps.

Heh heh... I just had to turf a tippy box as it was totally unusable after I bought it because the passenger shaft was siezed in place. The best way youll get it out, didn't work for me as it's suspected that the shaft was bent inside my box, is to get a specialized driveshaft puller. They come in sets, they're basically crowbars with specific angles on the end to hook around the shaft. The one I used allowed me to get massive force on the shaft that no other tool would.

Lol seems like I'm not the only one!

I sure hope the shaft isn't bent inside the box :( ... how would be the best way to tell? The remaining part of the shaft (mostly the CJ/TJ joint) turns properly. Although there is a bit of freeplay where I can move the cv joint a bit forwards and backwards a slight bit (around 0.5-1cm's worth).

We used a cheap prybar set from Superdodge Auto and today I used a pinchbar and the bars were bending before the shaft would give way. I might need to look into getting a slide hammer but at $100+ it seems a bit expensive for a gamble. I'm considering trying to find another mechanic to see if they're willing to have a crack. My fear is that they could destroy the box and of course how would I prove that?

slide hammer is the way to go

Don't pay too much to hire on for a day, they are about $80 at a trade tool shop for the kit all stacked in a cheap Chinese toolbox. My worry is that they have an axle puller plate but only a small claw to grip the CV housing.

Sigh, another mechanic who can not remove a drive shaft, perhaps this apprentice should look for another vocation, removing drive shafts for any apprentice should be a 2 second job

You simply use a lever to pry the shaft out of the box, it is not possible to bend a shaft inside a box and add to that you never pull ont he drive shaft, that is one of the most stupid things you can do, it will never come out like that.

If you use the correct pry bar it will come out easily, I have some cheap prybars I purchased whle at MMX to assist a couple of members, these were the wrong angle and made us really work to get the shafts out, the ones I have here get the shafts out in a second

If you decide to get someone else to do the shaft removal, you need to accept that if there is any damage to the box is your issue as all the mucking around you have been doing may have now damaged the joint or the spline in the box. There has only been 1 situation where I could not remove a shaft and that was when a diff had collapsed inside an auto box and totally destroyed the shaft going into the box

Mine was the box that I spoke to you about Mal, the box was from a crashed car, the driveshaft dude that I showed basically looked at me and said "that is screwed." lol

all i ever used was a large flat head screw driver, if its being persistant, put your other hand on the drive shaft closest to the box, adding preassure to what ever your using to pry it out with and wriggle the shaft with your other hand. there is no need to buy shaft pullers, slide hammers, or anything over $20 to do the job

Thanks everyone for all your responses!


Don't pay too much to hire on for a day, they are about $80 at a trade tool shop for the kit all stacked in a cheap Chinese toolbox. My worry is that they have an axle puller plate but only a small claw to grip the CV housing.


slide hammer is the way to go

Looks like I'll need to get my hands on a slide hammer. Are the ones on eBay any good or should I talk to a proper trade tool shop? I can't seem to find any for under $120-150.



You simply use a lever to pry the shaft out of the box, it is not possible to bend a shaft inside a box and add to that you never pull ont he drive shaft, that is one of the most stupid things you can do, it will never come out like that.

If you use the correct pry bar it will come out easily, I have some cheap prybars I purchased whle at MMX to assist a couple of members, these were the wrong angle and made us really work to get the shafts out, the ones I have here get the shafts out in a second

We've all tried to lever out the driveshaft using a variety of prybars, pinchbars and crowbars. Originally we tried to remove it while the gearbox was attached to the engine but we couldn't get enough leverage and good access. After we removed the gearbox we then tried and it still would not come loose. We've been mostly prying from the top as there as the bult of the transaxle casing is above the opening for the shaft. Underneath the shaft we didn't get enough leverage.


If you decide to get someone else to do the shaft removal, you need to accept that if there is any damage to the box is your issue as all the mucking around you have been doing may have now damaged the joint or the spline in the box. There has only been 1 situation where I could not remove a shaft and that was when a diff had collapsed inside an auto box and totally destroyed the shaft going into the box

I do understand that a mechanic cannot ensure that I have made no damage but I'm a little concerned when they outright refuse to cover me at all. This basically gives the mechanic free reign to do anything he wants and then blame me. I'm quite certain we haven't done anything else than your average mechanic would. We were not banging it with a hammer or anything like that. The worst thing we did was rattle it a bit with a ratting gun to loosen up the driveshaft. The car was sitting stationary for a good 6-8 months so it could've got seized. We've all tried prying out this TJ joint and various angles and it doesn't seem to budge. We've used a variety of pinch/pry/crow bars and they end up bending. I'm just running out of ideas and patience and having no confidence from a mechanic doesn't help either.

Where someone has made an attempt to remove something like a shaft OR the shaft has been stuck in the box, it is impossible to get a mechanic to be in any way responsible for any damage done. Personally, if I was to attempt to get this out, I would make it crystal clear from the word go that if there is any damage, is a risk YOU take. After all, why should a third party be responsible for a $700 gearbox when they are charging you prob $30 to try and rectify an issue you have yourself had????

The worst thing we did was rattle it a bit with a ratting gun to loosen up the driveshaft.
:io:


This is straight from the workshop manual.
http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/5377/71973480.png

:io:


This is straight from the workshop manual.
http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/5377/71973480.png

Thanks for that Savage. I did read the service manual (got a copy for myself) and we tried to follow those instructions. I can see the shaft has a circlip but it seemed to provide no instructions on how to remove it other than using a prybar.

But looking at the diagram again I think I may have found a potential problem; the prybars we're using....

We were trying to get the shaft off using these type of prybars:
http://www.hand-tools.us/images/pictures/pry-bars--4pc.-set.jpg

Yet the prybar in the service manual image has anouther bend on the tip that is in the opposite direction. That tool would probably bust off the circlip.

I'll try and get my hands on that type of prybar and see if I can get it off. Is it only available through Mitsubishi?

Does anyone have one they're happy to lend out? I'm happy to offer a 6pack to say thanks ;)

I think the one that's been the biggest pain for me was the passenger one that I've tried getting out of my TE when TZABOY needed one for MMX.

Yes they're a pain but in the end a pry bar is always going to be the best weapon of choice. Get the car jacked up a bit more so you have more leverage, yes I know you have the gearbox out but leaving it in there would have been your best bet because it's not going to move when you lever on it. Now that it's out I would probably suggest hooking it up to an engine stand and have many people stand on the stand legs so it doesn't move.

The prybar has to have the right angles so when you lever it the force is applied to where it's needed to pop the shaft out. It'll literay pop out.

There's even a bit of the gearbox that's been moulded for people to lever from.

I think the one that's been the biggest pain for me was the passenger one that I've tried getting out of my TE when TZABOY needed one for MMX.

Yes they're a pain but in the end a pry bar is always going to be the best weapon of choice. Get the car jacked up a bit more so you have more leverage, yes I know you have the gearbox out but leaving it in there would have been your best bet because it's not going to move when you lever on it. Now that it's out I would probably suggest hooking it up to an engine stand and have many people stand on the stand legs so it doesn't move.

Unfortunately I don't have an engine stand. I do have a engine hoist that I've made a frame for. I do however how have some strong mates so I'll get them to give me a hand in holding down the gearbox. I'll try using my prybars but they don't seem to work too well. I can feel them bending a fair bit.


The prybar has to have the right angles so when you lever it the force is applied to where it's needed to pop the shaft out. It'll literay pop out.

There's even a bit of the gearbox that's been moulded for people to lever from.

Well I did call mitsubishi to try and see if they sell the prybar in the manual and they don't. I will have a go with my prybars underneath the gearbox but I'm not holding my breath. Honestly, I've had 3 guys all try to get this darn thing off at different angles and with different approaches. Unfortunately nothing worked.

Might get the old Wd40 out as well - is there any significant risk if I got a large amount of it into the transaxle?

No use with the WD40 as the shaft has a seal and the inside of the box is lubricated, the issue you are having is you are using the wrong tools and levering the wrong way

I will happily do this for you for $30, you drop the box up here and will not take long as long as you have not damaged anything, I can always back off if I feel there is too much pressure being used

Fantastic Mal! For $30 I'm not even going to bother with trying to remove this myself. I'll pay in cash ;) and yes I do understand that of course you're not going to assure a gearbox that I've tampered with.

I'll try swing by before 5pm but it may be a bit difficult since I'm working till then. Otherwise - can I come by on Saturday morning?