1998 v70 is it possible to remove rear axles permanently ?

[abscate]

Looking at that exploded diagram you definitely need the outer cv joint and stub axle to hold the wheel bearing in position. It would be great if you could find a set of damaged axles to cannabilze the outer joint only.

Pick and pull search…

This rear axle fits 1999 and 2000 xc70 , part 7 in diagram, but 1998 does not show part number, so you might want to stick to 99,00

Obviously the open CV cage needs to be bagged with green bag starboard and red to port

[bronco]

They tend to fail on the front joint due to proximity to the cat, and the center support bearing fails and is a specialist repair like Colorado Drive-shaft in Denver.

Removing the prop-shaft should not affect the ABS. The system is a dumb system with no electronics. Is your ABS/Tracs lights on?

Neil.

The light was on as was pretty much every other light


I come from the early bronco world of 4 wheel drums without power assist so anything beyond not having to correct steering whenever i touch the brake is gravy and having brakes at all in wet weather is a bonus too

[scot850]

If your ABS and STC or TRACS (Your car has TRACS I believe) are on the most likely culprit is the ABS module. They are well documented for failing internally. Look at Matty's website. It is called Mid-West ABS. Many of us have used his services, and he has a great diagnostics help on his website.

The ABS module is under the ABS pump and near the brake booster. Sometimes you can do a simple test I and others have used to see if the module is at fault. Try to wedge something like cardboard between the connectors and the ABS pump body on the top side. This may help to push the wires back onto the contacts enough to prove it is faulty. If the lights go out then you have a likely culprit. It is not a 100% definitive check but can help in diagnostics but be clear, it is ONLY for diagnostics!!

Neil.

[bronco]

this project has been dragging a bit but I am back on it.

Kind of odd but after I got the knuckle off and onto the bench the wheel bearing seemed fine. In the car it appeared defective , the wheel wobbled when spun with the caliper removed .
but I had bought bearings so fine I swapped it out. I thought maybe the axle shaft was an issue but it actually was fine also.

The wheel was wobbling in the way my ford truck bearings would when the lock nuts back off , the drivers side did not wobble .

After removing the hub which was fine , I found the snap ring was rusted to the point it was not removable in the normal way it had to be chiseled out. The new bearings did not come with snap rings or possibly I lost them the bearings have been on the bench for a few years now. I had to bring the knuckle to capeway bearing in plymouth MA and have them measure and hook me up with new snap rings which cost $10 each .

I dismantled the axle shaft to make my stub axle and will put it all back together tomorrow.

In the meantime however I decided to remove the shock and replace it but I dont think its a normal shock , its massive .
Is this a nivomat(sp?) shock? It appears to be fully extended and will not compress , is that what they are supposed to do or is it defective?



I only ask because it is much larger in diameter than any of the replacement shocks I'm seeing online but extended length seems to be the same .

[V50M66]

Yeah, Nivomats. You won’t be able to compress them by hand. If they still work, consider yourself lucky. Magical when new/functional though

[bronco]

the passenger side is put back together with the stub axle I didnt put the ebrake stuff in because the cable is in need of replacement but I bolted the tire on and giving it a spin it rotates much easier than it it does with the axle attached to the rear diff.

Kind of odd because the stub end of the axle basically acts like a spindle now only it rotates instead of being fixed.

seems a little strange but it should be ok.it serves no real purpose except to internally support and preload the wheel bearing and keep it from walking out of the knuckle.

[bronco]

Yeah, Nivomats. You won’t be able to compress them by hand. If they still work, consider yourself lucky. Magical when new/functional though

I just assumed they were no good but if they wont compress does it indicate they may still be ok?

I'll put them back on for a while if they are

I feel like after I get my stub axles in both sides I want to drive the car a bit to see if that whole thing is working out as planned while I wait for other parts like ebrake cables to arrive and whatever else needs replacing on the drivers side

I don't know if I intend to take the rear diff out or whether its structural and needs to remain.

[V50M66]

Rear differential isn’t structural and can be removed no problem as far as I remember, though I think you’ll have to drop the subframe to do so.

You won’t know if they’re bad until you drive the car. If they don’t pump up to the proper ride height they’re no bueno

[bronco]

turns out the drivers side nivomat shock had a dime sized hole in it and all the oil had leaked out.

Potentially that one was non functional and the other was jammed extended

[V50M66]

When new they don’t compress by hand. But yeah, those are shot.

You’ve got a couple options for replacement. Obviously new Nivos are an option, but not wallet friendly. Magical if you haul stuff frequently though.

If you want to retain stock ride height, get a set of non-Nivomat springs (they’re different) and use either S70 AWD non-Nivomat shocks or press QA1 BAR505K t-bars into any P80 FWD shock of your choice.

If you want to lower it, get the aforementioned S70 shocks or make your own AWD shocks and pair them with BNE’s adjustable rear spring perch setup and some Eibach linear springs, then use the front half of a FWD lowering spring kit up front.