{"id":30137,"date":"2022-02-03T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-02-03T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/?p=30137"},"modified":"2023-01-13T11:49:54","modified_gmt":"2023-01-13T16:49:54","slug":"two-universal-joints-required","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/blog\/two-universal-joints-required\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Are Two Universal Joints Required Whenever I Do A U-Joint Replacement?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Are you replacing a universal joint on your truck, SUV, or fleet vehicle<\/a> anytime soon?It\u2019s a good idea to get two replacement u-joints instead of one. It\u2019s because you need to replace your u-joints in pairs, even if one of your u-joints has failed and the other one still looks fine. When one of your u-joints fails, the other one will fail soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

How A Bad U-Joint Affects The Other One<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"old<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

U-joints are strong steel X-shaped parts with a single bearing cap at each end. The design of u-joints enables the driveshaft to rotate smoothly while connected to the differential and the transfer case (or transmission). They allow the driveline to flex with minimal friction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When a u-joint fails, the driveshaft moves outside of its normal rotational path. This creates excessive vibration and friction. This not only further damages the failed u-joint, but it also damages the other u-joint. Both u-joints will undergo some damage, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  • Loss of lubrication<\/li>
  • Worn seals<\/li>
  • Extreme wear and tear<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    All u-joints need lubrication. Grease allows the u-joint to move freely. The lubrication also protects the u-joint from corrosion and moisture. Over time, the u-joint begins to wear out, which results in increased friction inside the joint. The increased friction causes heat to build up in the u-joints. When this happens, the grease degrades. The u-joints lose lubrication and their seals wear out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The first u-joint to fail has more damage than the second u-joint. So a lot of people think that the second u-joint is still fine. The truth is, the second u-joint is already starting to fail. So when you need to replace a u-joint, always replace the other one too. If you don’t, the other one will fail sooner or later. The failure of that u-joint will cause damage to the new u-joint (that replaced the first one). It’s always better to replace both u-joints at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Some Vehicles Have More Than Two U-Joints<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \"multiple<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Be sure to know how many u-joints your vehicle has. There are typically two u-joints to replace on either end of the drive shaft. Some driveshafts have a double-cardan joint at the front, which contains two u-joints. So there are three U-joints to replace. It’s best to replace them all at once. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Are you replacing a universal joint on your truck, SUV, or fleet vehicle anytime soon?It\u2019s a good idea to get two replacement u-joints instead of one. It\u2019s because you need to replace your u-joints in pairs, even if one of your u-joints has failed and the other one still looks fine. When one of your…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":5229,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[46,60],"tags":[47,90045],"class_list":["post-30137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-maintenance-tips","category-undercar","tag-u-joints","tag-universal-joint"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30137","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30137"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30137\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30137"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30137"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30137"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}