Drive shaft maintenance

The vehicle transmission system is generally composed of components such as the clutch, gearbox, drive shaft, main reducer, differential and half shafts. 

The transmission shaft is installed between the gearbox and the drive axle to connect and transfer torque. Since the gearbox and the drive axle are not on the same horizontal line, but will change the distance and angle according to different road conditions, the role of the transmission shaft is to ensure that the torque output by the gearbox can be stably transmitted to the drive axle under any conditions.

After knowing the function of the transmission shaft, let's look at the composition of the transmission shaft:

The transmission shaft system is mainly composed of several major parts: flange fork, cross shaft, spline shaft, spline sleeve, etc.

Cross shaft: ensure that the transmission shaft can change direction in any direction within the specified angle range;

Spline shaft fork and spline sleeve: ensure that the transmission shaft has a certain elongation dimension. 

The drive shaft assembly has relatively few related parts and the failure is relatively simple.

Common failures of the drive shaft are abnormal noise and vibration. Wear, deformation, damage and loss of dynamic balance of parts can cause such phenomena, so pay attention to the following points when driving:

1. Lubrication and maintenance: There are grease lubrication holes on the cross bearing. Pay attention to lubrication frequently. However, some maintenance-free drive shafts do not need grease. 

2. Avoid starting at a high speed and releasing the clutch suddenly. These two actions have a great impact on the transmission system and can easily damage the transmission system components, including the drive shaft assembly.

3. It is strictly forbidden to overload or overspeed the vehicle, because when the torque exceeds the torque that the drive shaft can withstand, the drive shaft will be damaged and its service life will be reduced.

4. Pay attention to check whether the hanger on the drive shaft is broken, whether the supporting rubber is damaged, whether the fastening bolts and nuts are loose, and whether the drive shaft is deformed. Some faults may cause abnormal noise and shaking in the drive shaft system. 

5. In order to ensure the dynamic balance of the drive shaft, you should also frequently observe whether the balance welding piece is desoldering; when reinstalling the drive shaft after disassembly, pay attention to the alignment of the arrow mark and other issues.

In general, drive shaft failures are usually not complicated, but the cost of the drive shaft is relatively expensive, so the maintenance of the drive shaft is still very important.