'08 3500 144 driveshaft universal joint

I pulled my driveshaft out today, to replace carrier bearing and the front universal is bad. Local parts store have no listing and it's not listed at Europarts. I imagine, I'll have to order it Monday from M-B Dealer. Does anyone have another source? Thanks!

Nhuskys,
They do not sell any sort of "kit" to repair Sprinter Driveshafts.
You cannot get the crosses and needle bearing races out as they are "staked" in at the
factory.
You probably have 2 choices....get an entire new driveshaft from the Mercedes Benz dealer, or buy an aftermarket driveshaft.
Sorry!
Roger

Some form members claim good results & fast shiping with this ...



Shame on MB that a 50 dollar part ruins a 1000 dollar drive shaft.

Thanks guys! I can't believe M-B does stuff like this, on what should be a high mileage vehicle. Looks like the aftermarket one is the ticket.

Nhuskys said:

Thanks guys! I can't believe M-B does stuff like this, on what should be a high mileage vehicle. Looks like the aftermarket one is the ticket.

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In their defense, my T1N has 259,000 miles with OEM driveshaft. (knock/touch wood ) I'm quite certain that Ciprian at over 500,000 is still on his OEM driveshaft also. (knock/touch wood for him too) That said, I agree that it is a bit wasteful to need to discard an entire assembly for what can be an easily replaceable part.

There is a local shop near me who makes custom driveshafts for race cars and other vehicles. They said they can build custom for a bit less than the on-line ones charge and no shipping. If you plan to go with a non-OEM solution it might be worth checking your local sources for reputable shops. vic

Thanks again! Great that some shafts go forever... All I'd like is a simple repair to keep the van going, not mechanical perfection.

A friend of mine who was a Euro car and race mechanic and another friend who was a heavy truck mechanic, both said a good drive shaft shop, should be able to find a solution to repair the shaft. I'll check tomorrow.

I had the same thing happen to me.
Went to an after market drive line company and they where having problems in balancing the drive shafts and would not recommend them.
So $1200 later from MB put on a new drive shaft.
It appears that the 144 WB model have the problems and not the 170 WB which I believe has two steady bearings, mine had 45000 KMS on it and a 2007 unit.
New drive shaft have a different bearing and guard,
Good luck

Contact Drive Shafts of Tulsa - Tulsa, OK.

They sell a tougher complete drive shaft with serviceable u-joints that can be greased at very reasonable prices delivered to your doorstep.

I can be dense sometimes.

EBH said:

I had the same thing happen to me.
Went to an after market drive line company and they where having problems in balancing the drive shafts and would not recommend them.
...Good luck

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They were having trouble balancing a specific aftermarket driveshaft mentioned in this thread?

They were having trouble balancing modified (with added serviceable U-joints) OEM driveshafts?

Because of the OEM design they were having trouble balancing replacement driveshafts which they manufactured?

Thanks. vic

I just received my drive shaft overnight from WIP, but the flanges that mount to tranny output and rear end are round and the ones on my van are a "X". Even if bolt pattern is the same, I'm not sure if they'll mate. I don't have a shop it can sit in, just a place to borrow, so don't want to tear it apart, if it can't go back together.

I can't see how it would work, at least with external Torx bolts it has now. The flanges on the OEM drive shaft on this van are cast and bolts thread through drive shaft flange and tranny/rear axle flange. This one needs cap bolts, like the drive shaft diagram Richard posted in Carrier Bearing thread.

All I recall is they had after market driveshaft on their shelf that had been on a customer unit and they could not get it balanced.
The customer ended up buying one from MB.
Not sure if it was a OEM, I do recall them saying they ordered it from an outside supplier.
The company that I went to specialized in truck drive lines.

My initial doubts about the WIP drive shaft, were unfounded. It bolted right up and works a charm. It looks well made and I would recommend it as a replacement.

Pictures! ... or it never happened ...

This was an aftermarket drive shaft, that was lying on their shelf, that they could not balance .
The company that I went to specialized in truck drive lines.
This driveshaft was from an outside supplier.
There was vibration that they could not get rid of.
The customer returned it and bought one from MB.

wmlog said:

Pictures! ... or it never happened ...

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Some pictures of the replacement driveshaft ends would be nice.

No vibration noticed? Was the new one appreciably heavier than the OEM removed? Weight may have figured heavily (pun intended) into the OEM design lacking replaceable U-joints.

EBH said:

...The customer returned it and bought one from MB.

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I think he was referring to the new install, not your balance comments. vic

I should have taken pics of the shafts. I'll get some of WIP installed and OEM out on the ground. I've put about 100 miles on since yesterday and no vibration. I would say weight is about the same.

I replaced my driveshaft with center support bearing on my 2008 144"WB because of a bearing noise in the center of the van about 2 weeks ago.

I got mine from wholesaleimportparts delivered for $749 with the round flanges and installed it. It fixed the bearing noise, but I heard a spinning propeller like vibration from 50mph on up on the highway. After talking to George in sales at WIPs they overnighted me a new one because it was probably out of balance. I called on a Fri. and got it Mon. The new one had the X style flanges (don't think it makes a difference) which matched the MB flanges. After installing it again, there was no more out of balance vibration. It delayed me from a camping trip by a day, but I'm glad I did it and I learned how to do it and gained some new tools that I might use latter...

Now I have Spicer replacable u joints with a Zerk fitting for lubbing where the 2 pieces of the driveshaft meet.

Hope this helps...I will provide pictures in a write up soon...

The Sprinters are built with driveshafts that are not serviceable. But Automotive Supply can build you a new unit with standard replaceable parts, that way for future maintenance issues universal joints and center support bearings are replaceable. Automotive Supply 734-953-5000 ask for Ed Warner.

Here at Automotive Supply we build and balance complete aftermarket driveshaft assemblies for these vans that are serviceable in the future.. We are a supplier to several fleets that run these vans. Are units bolt right back in without any modifications to the vehicle itself. If anyone is interested contact Ed Warner at Automotive Supply 734-953-5000. We have been doing driveshafts since 1930.

sailquik said:

Nhuskys,
They do not sell any sort of "kit" to repair Sprinter Driveshafts.
You cannot get the crosses and needle bearing races out as they are "staked" in at the
factory.
You probably have 2 choices....get an entire new driveshaft from the Mercedes Benz dealer, or buy an aftermarket driveshaft.
Sorry!
Roger

Click to expand...

Takes obout trn minutes to grind stakes and press out bearing, now find bearing, then restake or make clip channel