I have an '01 f250 psd 4x4. I want to replace the u-joints in the rear driveshaft. Is this a very hard process? Does anybody have napa part numbers for the u-joints? Is there a link to a tutorial for this process anywhere or is it pretty straightforward?

 

It's pretty straight forward. Just mark your shaft and the U-jiont holder so when you put it back together they're in the same spot(balanced).

 

I have done probably over 1000 u-joints in my life without an issue. The rear ujoint on my X had to be destroyed to come out, bent the tube and had to have a machine shop straiten it out.

 

I'm planning of dropping my driveshaft soon to regrease the slip joint. I want to also look at my u joints because my truck shutters on takeoff. What am I looking for?

 

U-joints fail in one of two ways. They wear the bearing needles and races internally and develop looseness (sometimes caused by failed grease seals), or the lube dries out and they get tight.

To check for looseness, I start by looking for signs of a lot of grease blowing out. The one that is greasy is usually the bad one. Then block the wheels, put the tranny in neutral, and twist the drive line at each joint looking for free play. There should be zero visible free play in a U-joint. Don't mistake pinion gear lash for a U-joint problem.

For tightness you are going to have to drop one end of the shaft so that you can fully articulate each joint. Generally if you just wait around, the tight joint will become the loose joint. The tight joints are most commonly an issue on front 4WD axles, not so much on driveshafts.

Trey, your issue sounds more like a driveline angle issue due to your lift. Ford even says that some shudder on take-off on the F350 is normal. So you might have to just live with it, otherwise try shimming your center carrier bearing a bit lower.

 

I'm ok with the shuttering. Just makes me feel like I have more power under me I just wanted to make sure theres nothing to be looking out for while I'm down there.