I have a 98 GC fulltime 4x4 w/ABS.
I have a split boot on the left front cv axle and want to replace the whole axle while I have it out.(115K cant have much life left in it!)
Have been told many different stories on what needs to disassembled to remove the old one.
Drop tie rod pull brakes,axle nut and rotor pull ball joints?
Pull brakes,rotor,ties rod, and 3 bolts holding backing plate/spindle.
Some say it can be pulled by only dropping the tie rod ans swinging spindle gives enough clearance.
Dont wanna drop anything unnecessary.
I'm baffled....any info would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks:
Rich

I don't see any replies...try Clymer, or Haines.

Ray

Sorry man I have no idea, but if I hear or see anything Ill come back and post what I know.

I just did a 97, using the Haynes manual from Advance. Pretty easy job compared to many other vehicles - no need to fool with ball joints. Remove wheel, cv axle nut, brake caliper and rotor. Remove 3 bolts from back side of steering knuckle, and entire bearing/hub assmbly coomes off with rotor shield (one side was stuck, though). After that, the axle slides right out thru the big hole in the knuckle. Hardest part is getting the axle tube clean so you don't push crud into the diff with the new axle. My problem is that the ABS quit working - the ABS sensors see the "teeth" ("tone ring" is the manual's term) on the CV joint. I compared the old and new CV joints. The teeth and the diameter of the ring are the same. I fear that the rebuilder magnetized or demagnetized the teeth, and the sensors no longer work properly. I hate to get more axles and change them in hopes it will work, but I know the ABS is the problem, the axles were the only thing changed, and the teeth on the CV joint are the way the ABS senses wheel speed.

Yup,c842517, is right I have replaced CV axles in JGC's and in the XJ's. Same process, the only thing you will need is a torque wrench that will torque the nut to 175 ft lbs., oh and recommend either using an inmpact gun to remove the nut or a a 1/2" breaker bar with a pipe to break it loose. After the nut is loose, its a piece of cake. The nut size is 36mm, and the bolts that hold the bearing on are torqued to 75 ft lbs. Good luck.

Just found out Chrysler uses cv joints with different numbers of teeth on tone ring for different cars. Advance Auto parts did not ask for VIN, therefore probably does not know this can be (I wonder if the rebuilders know). Old axles (cores) probably gone by now, so best alternative may be to get known good axles (assumed good) from dealer, or at least go there and count teeth, compare to axles from Advance. Man, I shouldn't be having to do this! It should be interesting when I go back to Advance and try to convince them these otherwise good axles are wrong....... and get a refund after using them for 2 weeks...... and do the job all over again......

I just did a 97, using the Haynes manual from Advance. Pretty easy job compared to many other vehicles - no need to fool with ball joints. Remove wheel, cv axle nut, brake caliper and rotor. Remove 3 bolts from back side of steering knuckle, and entire bearing/hub assmbly coomes off with rotor shield (one side was stuck, though). After that, the axle slides right out thru the big hole in the knuckle. Hardest part is getting the axle tube clean so you don't push crud into the diff with the new axle. My problem is that the ABS quit working - the ABS sensors see the "teeth" ("tone ring" is the manual's term) on the CV joint. I compared the old and new CV joints. The teeth and the diameter of the ring are the same. I fear that the rebuilder magnetized or demagnetized the teeth, and the sensors no longer work properly. I hate to get more axles and change them in hopes it will work, but I know the ABS is the problem, the axles were the only thing changed, and the teeth on the CV joint are the way the ABS senses wheel speed.

If your tone ring is the same diameter and has the same number of teeth then the axle and tone ring are not the cause of your ABS problems.

The tone ring is not magnetic. It is the sensor that uses the proximity of the teeth to produce an AC signal to the computer and the frequency of that AC signal (Hz) is what tells the computer the individual wheel speeds.

Either the sensor(s) are adjusted incorrectly or there is a problem with the sensor or the leads that connect to the wiring harness. You cannot cut the leads and resolder them either as that will change the resistance of the wires in the leads and affect the signal to the computer.

JD

If your tone ring is the same diameter and has the same number of teeth then the axle and tone ring are not the cause of your ABS problems.

The tone ring is not magnetic. It is the sensor that uses the proximity of the teeth to produce an AC signal to the computer and the frequency of that AC signal (Hz) is what tells the computer the individual wheel speeds.

Either the sensor(s) are adjusted incorrectly or there is a problem with the sensor or the leads that connect to the wiring harness. You cannot cut the leads and resolder them either as that will change the resistance of the wires in the leads and affect the signal to the computer.

JD
Thanks! I assumed the tooth count was the same after measuring the tooth crown (.080") on old and new axles - I didn't actually count, and at the time I wasn't sure the count could be different. Later on, I realized they could have used the same tooth profile with longer gaps to produce a different tooth count (with gears, this cannot be). I still don't know what tooth counts are out there. The gap between the sensor and the tone ring is small (about .040 -.060"), but there doesn't seem to be much adjustment anyway (the sensor mount bolt hole doesn't appear to be slotted). I rotated the sensors slightly to decrease the gap, since the mounting bolts are off-center a little. I'll be counting teeth soon, since I'm sure I didn't damage the sensors.... I wonder, though, if the teeth are now magnetic (and should not be), if that would saturate the sensors......

Finally, it's fixed! We took the wheels off to count the tone ring teeth, and there was a tooth missing.... Apparently, the rebuilder had been pretty rough on the tone ring - several teeth were beat-up looking (actually, the whole axle looked pretty rough). One tooth must've been broken and just hanging on, or we would have noticed it before installing it. No force is requred to remove or install the axles, so I know we didn't do it. Hard to believe, but that one tooth missing was nearly making the car unstoppable unless the ABS was disabled by pulling the fuses......

Advance gave us another axle - no hassle - and now it works fine. The latest axle they gave us looks much better - looks like a new axle and new tone ring. Of course, changing it out again was a hassle, but now everything works.......