Driveshaft Stuck?

by 73sssb Mon Mar 26, 2018 10:18 pm

1973 Chevelle

Hopefully you all can see the picture. Attempting to remove my driveshaft and I took the four bolts/two brackets off but the thing won't budge. Rear is off the ground and the car is in neutral. Do I just need to hit that circle that is facing the tire with a rubber hammer as hard as I can? New to this so any tips are appreciated.

I don't want to go gorilla on it if I'm missing something. Engine and transmission are coming out soon but I wanted to remove this end first.

by fasrnur Mon Mar 26, 2018 11:01 pm

A pry bar between the yoke and u-joint should do it sir. Give it a good tug. You won't break anything.

by clanceman427 Tue Mar 27, 2018 6:26 am

Just be careful that the 2 caps that are in stuck the yoke don’t slide out. Once you pry the driveshaft free use your thumb and finger to hold the caps on the u joint. Or else it could come off and all the little needle bearings could fall out

by bracketchev1221 Tue Mar 27, 2018 6:59 am

fasrnur wrote:A pry bar between the yoke and u-joint should do it sir. Give it a good tug. You won't break anything.

Spray it up good with some penetrant and then stick a big pry bar in there and go for it.

by 73sssb Tue Mar 27, 2018 8:44 am

Thanks for the fast responses everyone. I will tackle this tonight.

Just to be clear, the part that the four screws came out of stays attached to the rear portion, correct? And the horizontal cylinder shaped piece (the one with the "circle" I referenced) is what I'm popping out? As it pops it, be sure to keep the parts together so internals do spill out.

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by bracketchev1221 Tue Mar 27, 2018 10:13 am

Yes the part with the four holes stays. There should be a big nut right in the center of the yoke. Pry between the big nut and the cross of the driveshaft joint.

by 73sssb Tue Mar 27, 2018 9:13 pm

Ok so I got the rear out... But unlike every video I've seen, the shaft will not slide out of the transmission.

Am I missing something? I believe it's a Hydra-matic (3 speed).

When I go to tug on the driveshaft it moves very little and I hear a metal bang and it stops moving... Like it's caught on something. Trans was in neutral and there is no way of me telling if it still is now (not sure if that affects anything). I was literally under the car with my feet planted in the crossmember pulling backwards - no additional movement. Feeling defeated once again!

by 73ss Thu Mar 29, 2018 5:13 pm

Doesn't matter what gear it is in. It should come out. It shouldn't take much effort. If a PO did neutral drops or something with the car it may have twisted the splines making removal near impossible. I had that once on a demo derby car. Never did get the driveshaft out. I wanted to keep the trans for a core (TH-350) and scrapped it with the rear yoke still stuck in it.

by 73sssb Thu Mar 29, 2018 6:05 pm

That's exactly what I'm going to have to do. Wanted everything pulled so bad I just pulled the transmission out the back with the driveline attached.

Looking to upgrade to a 4 or 5 speed - just a bummer because I was hoping to sell the auto.

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by brownbomber77 Fri Mar 30, 2018 10:17 am

Have you tried whacking the yoke with a hand sledge to get it out or using a propane torch to heat it up? Honestly, if they're so old that they're stuck with each other, $10 per U-joint I would say is a solid investment, so who cares if they get banged up a little.

by SSTOOLMAN Fri Mar 30, 2018 3:33 pm

Very remote possibility it has a truck transmission in it and the yoke is bolted to the trans output shaft. look at the yoke with a flashlight in past the u-joint and see if there is a head of a bolt in the recessed area. It wouldn't be the first time someone put a truck transmission in a car but usually they just plug the hole, from what your describing maybe the bolt isn't treaded all the way in and that's where your getting the movement and then the bang of it stopping against the head of the bolt.

by 73sssb Fri Mar 30, 2018 3:38 pm

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'll have to take a closer look when I have a minute. Too excited to work on the fun stuff so it's in a pile of old parts now. Might not look at it again until the car is up and running.

Looking to make a somewhat daily driver out of the Chevelle so the 3 speed had to go anyway! When I decide on a new transmission I might try to pull the old driveshaft to save a few bucks if I can re-use it.

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