first defender with a lot of questions

[cackshifter]

Try greasing them,if it goes you know what it was. Trouble is if it doesnt, it could still be them

[benji09]

Lol I have been under over in out fixing little bodge jobs another look under it will be I'm not trusting the garage too much ad they left my rear sings half out after they had it on the ramp

[benji09]

There doesn't seem to be any where to grease the uj niples etc

[Peaklander]

Someone might have unscrewed them - if so you will see a small hole in there but it might be full of gunge. If so you will need to fit one to be able to grease.

Other idea about the clunk is that the prop shaft splines might be worn - these are in the slide connection between the two halves of the prop. I have just removed a "clunk" by changing the prop due to wear here. Get hold of one side of that joint and give the prop a good twist to and fro. If there's wear it will come through as a little bit of play. This isn't picked up at MOT as prop shafts aren't an MOT check.

[benji09]

Will give them a good wiggle around and a good luck see if I have missed anything and check to see if there is any missing niples on the uj mite just be easier to replace them and its another possibility eliminated thanks for the help didn't know the niples could be removed al let you know how I get on

[benji09]

Found the culprit the rear uj is bad so I want to change this is there anywhere near keighley that sells these over the counter and do I need a specific type or will one fit all

[simonr]

Go to your local LR Main dealer. They are about £30 which is a lot compared to what you can buy them for - but it's the only way to guarantee that, so long as it's fitted correctly, you won't have to touch it for 50,000 miles or so.

Don't worry that it has no grease nipples. If the seals are good, the grease does not escape so you don't need to put any more in! I find grease nipples are almost an admission the seals are rubbish.

Of course, if you enjoy changing them - you can pick up patterned UJ's for a couple of pounds. I'd buy a couple of spares though.

Si

[benji09]

Thanks is it a one fits all kind of thing as mine is a 1988

[Peaklander]

You're not far from Bradford or Leeds so search online for propshaft repairs Bradford and there's several hits. You could take the prop to one of those.

If you do remove it then you will need x8 nyloc nuts for when you refit it - using new is what's recommended . They are 3/8" UNF so be sure you get these and not metric.

Also you have a Eurocar parts place in Keithley and they stock parts if you want to go there rather than a LR Dealer.

[benji09]

I phoned euro and was quoted £49 Inc vat for one uj

[Peaklander]

That's the gold plated one I think

[simonr]

I phoned euro and was quoted £49 Inc vat for one uj

My £30 could be a bit out of date. It's at least 10 Years since I've had to buy a UJ - though that in itself speaks volumes!

Si

[Jocklandjohn]

Get them here - I did this week:

[Jocklandjohn]

...and just to add that was after reading this excellent blog post on UJ types and quality.

[Retroanaconda]

Last UJs I bought were about £45 each. I also only buy Land Rover ones these days as suggested above. It does have a hole for a nipple, into which I fitted one.

Regular greasing ensures a long life, I do mine with the oil changes so every 6,000 miles. A common problem is that often one journal gets blocked by older/harder grease and so gets starved of lubrication (as the gun pressure just pushes more grease out to the clear ones instead of the blocked one) and eventually this journal fails. You can see this in the page linked above - with one journal rusty worn and the others seemingly ok. One way to help prevent this is to grease after a good run so that the grease already in the UJ is warmed up and should flow better. A higher pressure gun might also help but not tried that myself.

[benji09]

Thanks for the help I re did all four just for peace of mind plus had a really good look at them today and found a couple of the little metal cap things where missing of the ujs both front and rear I wormed the grease up before I greased them in hot/warm water think my next job is going to be the rear a frame ball joint but thinking of getting one already pressed in been told they can be a pain to press out but thanks aging guys for the info and help much appreciated

[Peaklander]

I'm a bit confused about those prices for UJs. I have bought one or two over the years and those prices look expensive. Here's the sort of UJs I would have chosen.