http://s743.photobucket.com/albums/x...IMG_0053_1.jpg


Lets see if this works.

 

nice
protects the transfer case output shaft well

 

Both ends fit tight..

 

Well, the guy at allsportperformance is sending me the part equivalent to what is referenced in the link that 96 provided. I hope it is good rubber. I don't live in harsh climates, so maybe it will last longer.

Also, I was looking at the boot the other day, and noticed that the band clamping around the big side is held together by barbs that fit into holes. That's going to be some trick to remove without damage. I think I will need the new bands to fasten the new boot to the shaft.

By the way, I feel so sorry for you folks living in the snow belt. We've had high 70's, sometimes 80's temperatures here in SoCal since the Rose Bowl. There were a couple of rainy days just before, but I swear the city of Pasadena has a pact with the devil to provide us with perfect weather on January 1 every year. That's what the rest of the world sees and remembers about Pasadena.

 

By the way, I feel so sorry for you folks living in the snow belt. We've had high 70's, sometimes 80's temperatures here in SoCal since the Rose Bowl. There were a couple of rainy days just before, but I swear the city of Pasadena has a pact with the devil to provide us with perfect weather on January 1 every year. That's what the rest of the world sees and remembers about Pasadena.



OMGOSH I guess you don't snowboard...I feel for you in the heat..The more powder the better...I actually love the cold..

Dick

 

One of the reasons I bought my Aerostar was to use it on ski trips. It did really well in a number of heavy snow situations including blizzards and thigh-high snow levels. I typically went to one of the two playgrounds of LA; Mammoth or Big Bear Lakes, and sometimes further out like Lake Tahoe or Park City. And you're right, I don't snowboard.

 

No snow here in SoCal, but it does look like it's going to rain for 40 days and nights. I didn't want to chance driving the van in the rain with its cracked dust boot, so I got into it today. It took a few hours, but I have everything taken apart now. Just wondering, is there a way to drop the front drive shaft without first dropping the front axle? Is that also required to replace the starter? I wanted to take a break for a couple reasons.

First, I got cold, hungry and tired. Second, since the front axle is out, I can replace the ATF that's in it now with gear lube, as some folks here suggested. Can I just drain the ATF and refill with gear lube, or do I need to completely flush out the old ATF before refilling with gear lube? Is there a problem with mixing ATF with gear lube?

 

If I remember correctly I got the driveshaft out of my 94 without touching the front end.
I really can't remember..I took the starter out at the same time maybe thats how. also maybe I took the pressure off the left front suspension. HMMM. I'm gonna do my 96 so I'll figure it out..As far as the diff. take the cover off clean all the gook out. use the "right stuff" gasket maker and put synth 80-90 in there and you'll never need to do it again.

Dick

 

Oh 5-10ft snow in the mountains!! out there..

 

I tried to remove the front drive shaft without removing other parts, but just had no luck. I even dismounted the starter, moving it around to give some room to the drive shaft, but still could not get either out.

There's probably some snow up in the mountains around here, but not 5-10 feet of it. Now, at my friend's house up in the Sierras...

Our biggest problems around here now are the mud slides in the areas that were burned during the wild fires that consumed half the Angeles National Forest last summer.

 

Maybe I never did get it out..Anyway The transfercase can be dropped in 15 minutes. A bracket, elec connector and 5 bolts and its out.

 

I may try your approach next time, but I will need a new gasket between the TC and the transmission, since separating them will most likely damage it. Of course, this also requires dropping the rear drive shaft.

 

OK, it's done. I've added pictures to my Aerostar album at my picasaweb site: picasaweb.com/eycchu/aerostar#

I could not get the cover off of the front axle; I tried for half an hour with a wood chisel, but I was worried about messing up the soft aluminum surface. So I drained as much of the ATF as I could, then ran some gear lube through to try to "rinse" it out, drained again, then filled. My install looks just like yours, except I was able to re-use the old band clamp on the large side.

The old boot actually cracked right at its seam. I hope the new one works better; it is a stiffer rubber than the original.

 

Did you use the polaris part because I found it to be softer than the orig..I bought another for my blue van. I'll do it when I'm doing the intake gasket. Non polaris look alikes are supposed to be harder rubberfrom what I here from the dealer.

Dick

 

OK...here is the test Dick.