Americas Front Driveshaft CV redesign

[Commodore]

Ineos crew, there is an issue with the front driveshaft CV at the transfer case side. The acute driveline angle generates heat causing the rubber on the CV to rip and spill grease. This leads to failure of the CV joint and ultimately immediate loss of forward propulsion. The failures have been well documented. Do you have plans to redesign this part or should owners start looking for their own permanent solutions?

This is a serious safety concern that needs to be resolved.

 

[MattA]

It's a long drive from here!

All good road trips in Australia are a long drive, I am doing a 3 month trip next year just to have a long drive, basically Melbourne- Darwin and back
Nothing like a road trip and some quality time in the desert
It was supposed to be in a Grenadier but sadly not until the design/ engineering failures are addressed

 

[Tazzieman]

All good road trips in Australia are a long drive, I am doing a 3 month trip next year just to have a long drive, basically Melbourne- Darwin and back
Nothing like a road trip and some quality time in the desert
It was supposed to be in a Grenadier but sadly not until the design/ engineering failures are addressed

But I have to add a ferry trip and book a long way ahead , and tow.
Easier for Reuben to whack an axle on top of his rig and drop it off to me when he next tours Tassy with the 24/7 crew!

 

[NQ94]

Interested how they're changing the caster. The two methods that may be possible to do the job could be they are cutting the axle tube positioning in a fixture sleeving or bracing the tube then rewelding or they are removing the plug welds at the diff housing pressing the axle tubes out then rotating the tubes and then refitting with the aid of a fixture for the new position.

 

[Clark Kent]

Interested how they're changing the caster. The two methods that may be possible to do the job could be they are cutting the axle tube positioning in a fixture sleeving or bracing the tube then rewelding or they are removing the plug welds at the diff housing pressing the axle tubes out then rotating the tubes and then refitting with the aid of a fixture for the new position.

Rueben does like to talk so hopefully I can learn some more in the next week or so.

Further to this, JRace Industries in Townsville put up a video on Facebook and Instagram this week to showcase some Grenadier suspension work they are doing. I grabbed this still image. Looks interesting.

2.6K views · 45 reactions | The Ineos Grenadier developments continue. Progressing now with new products and our larger GVM approvals coming soon! #jrace #ineos #grenadier #australian4wd #4x4australia #overlander | JRace Industries

The Ineos Grenadier developments continue. Progressing now with new products and our larger GVM approvals coming soon! #jrace #ineos #grenadier #australian4wd #4x4australia #overlander

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[Clark Kent]

Rueben does like to talk so hopefully I can learn some more in the next week or so.

Further to this, JRace Industries in Townsville put up a video on Facebook and Instagram this week to showcase some Grenadier suspension work they are doing. I grabbed this still image. Looks interesting.

2.6K views · 45 reactions | The Ineos Grenadier developments continue. Progressing now with new products and our larger GVM approvals coming soon! #jrace #ineos #grenadier #australian4wd #4x4australia #overlander | JRace Industries

The Ineos Grenadier developments continue. Progressing now with new products and our larger GVM approvals coming soon! #jrace #ineos #grenadier #australian4wd #4x4australia #overlander

www.facebook.com

View this content on Instagram

View this content on Instagram

View: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DP_B7LmERF_/&ved=2ahUKEwj3t52t376QAxWle_UHHdxCHSwQwqsBegQIFBAE&usg=AOvVaw2s28lV1lZvJULkKHqDZ8uz


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We're currently in Townsville visiting our son. JRace are 5 minutes away so I'll go visit them on Monday.

 

[cmurray]

Interested how they're changing the caster. The two methods that may be possible to do the job could be they are cutting the axle tube positioning in a fixture sleeving or bracing the tube then rewelding or they are removing the plug welds at the diff housing pressing the axle tubes out then rotating the tubes and then refitting with the aid of a fixture for the new position.

Apparently they are putting the able on a jig, grinding the welds off that hold the axle tubes into the diff housing, rotating it then welding it back up. DMW have dealers all around Australia. Apparently they will replace the whole front axle on an exchange basis.

Regards
Craig Murray

 

[Krabby]

It's a long drive from here!

Not as far as from here.

 

[Tazzieman]

Not as far as from here.

I'm sure someone over your way owns an angle grinder and welder

 

[Krabby]

Perhaps. But I can’t bribe them with Foster’s.

 

[NQ94]

Apparently they are putting the able on a jig, grinding the welds off that hold the axle tubes into the diff housing, rotating it then welding it back up. DMW have dealers all around Australia. Apparently they will replace the whole front axle on an exchange basis.

Regards
Craig Murray

If they are doing exchange housing hopefully there is good quality control particularly for people who send in a brand new housing expecting a brand new housing/assemblies in return because once modified Ineos will likely void any warranty for the axle and diff.
The other thing to consider if rewelding with the diff assembled in the housing if the earth for the welder is in the wrong place there is the risk there will be arcing across the bearing rollers to the race which will cause shortened bearing life. I would like to see the process before committing.

 

[Commodore]

Apparently they are putting the able on a jig, grinding the welds off that hold the axle tubes into the diff housing, rotating it then welding it back up. DMW have dealers all around Australia. Apparently they will replace the whole front axle on an exchange basis.

Regards
Craig Murray

This is by far the best solution. A year ago I suggested to John at AO that he build a jig and offer this service on an exchange basis but he didn’t think it would be necessary and that it could be solved with a driveshaft modification. It might be worth talking to him again.

The was common on older solid axle trucks with lifts. The bronco world knows all about it.

 

[Dokatd]

So what is anyone willing to pay for this service? It's a very easy process that I have done too many times to count. And Ineos gave us great bushings at the end of the tubes for alignment. Certainly some serious stuff to consider, but not Rocket Surgery by any means.

So what would people expect to pay for this. Let's say as an exchange axle. You send housing and a modified housing comes back to you with any other necessary components.

 

[HeavyFoot]

So what is anyone willing to pay for this service? It's a very easy process that I have done too many times to count. And Ineos gave us great bushings at the end of the tubes for alignment. Certainly some serious stuff to consider, but not Rocket Surgery by any means.

So what would people expect to pay for this. Let's say as an exchange axle. You send housing and a modified housing comes back to you with any other necessary components.

Can you give a ballpark range of cost for a service like this? Is this in the 2-5k range or 10-15k?

 

[Dokatd]

Can you give a ballpark range of cost for a service like this? Is this in the 2-5k range or 10-15k?

Closer to the latter.

 

[Commodore]

Closer to the latter.

For that kind of money we can have a custom Dana 44 axle build to our exact specs.

 

[Shopkeep]

For that kind of money we can have a custom Dana 44 axle build to our exact specs.

Wait and see what the actual price is before you write it off.

 

[Commodore]

Wait and see what the actual price is before you write it off.

I don’t think it will be that expensive. It won’t be cheap but it’s 100% labor. What’s it going to take 20 hours?

 

[Shopkeep]

I don’t think it will be that expensive. It won’t be cheap but it’s 100% labor. What’s it going to take 20 hours?

No idea, but I would wait and see before making too many assumptions. As it’s an Australian project we don’t know what the scope of it is. Consumer protection laws in Australia are stricter and more open ended in terms of length than other countries (i.e products must last a reasonable time not a defined manufacturers warranty period). Is it just DMW doing it on their own as a commercial project to make a buck and sell their suspension upgrades? Or is Ineos involved, supporting and possibly subsidizing it?

 

[Dokatd]

For that kind of money we can have a custom Dana 44 axle build to our exact specs.

No doubt, which is why I am loosely intending on converting to C303 portals or worst case Dana 60's.

I don’t think it will be that expensive. It won’t be cheap but it’s 100% labor. What’s it going to take 20 hours?

Shops have to make money. Cutting and turning axles takes time and space. Time and space that can be spent on quick turn profitable projects.

All the custom work I did was basically loss leader work. I had to install stupid bumpers and lifts on every day trucks to keep the lights on. If I wasn't running trucks through my shop and was tinkering on custom projects or niche stuff I would have completely lost my ass. So when I stopped to do custom stuff I had to charge good money just to cover the loss of regular work.

This is the reality of pretty much every aspiring off-road shop. It starts with a grinder, a welder and some grit and then you end up selling stuff like Jackery battery stations and camp stoves to pay the bills.

My shop dissolved into a Line-X bedliner franchise that I probably made more than 20X revenue on over producing custom Rover parts and trucks. Largely because I priced my custom work for what I thought was fair and reasonable not what it needed to be to sustain itself. Those are two wildly different numbers.

I do hope someone finds a quick hack to do this for cheap, but I wouldn't put money on that bet. It may not be hard, but it will take skill to make it work and money to mitigate lost income and liability.