Bronco Drive Shaft and U-Joints, what are they?

[broncobase1]

The drive shaft and U-joints on the Bronco are totally different than what I have worked on before. I'm not having any problems, just looking for information on what these are and how they function. Is the joint in the photo a U-Joint or some kind of rubber coupling? What is the advantage over a traditional U-Joint? I also notice a rubber boot in the middle of the drive shaft, what is under this rubber boot?

Thanks

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[ATLBronco75]

Not U-joints, CV joints. Similar to these:

 

[‘21OBX]

The plus is they are sealed to keep crap out and run smoother than a traditional U joint. There is a slip joint under the rubber in the middle of the shaft. My 1950 dodge has something similar lol.

 

[JT58Bronc]

Thank you for this post. I was so wondering about those "U Joints". I have never seen any like that in all my years of working on vehicles. I like the design- enclosed and fully lubricated all of the time. And from the video looks like they are serviceable and can be replaced. They should last awhile......

I learn more and more about my Bronco on this forum.

 

[broncobase1]

Not U-joints, CV joints. Similar to these:

Thanks to everyone who responded exactly what I was looking for. I guess this type of drive shaft has been around for awhile, do Jeeps use it or do they use traditional U-Joints? These joints don't really move that much, should last a long time.

 

[goatman2]

They are all CV joints rather than u-joints and they eliminate any driveline vibrations that can come from u-joints. They are also non-servicable which is what is mostly on newer vehicles. Jeeps since the JK came with CV driveshafts. All IFS vehicles have CV axles. To be determined if it will be a good idea to change the rear shaft to standard u-joint style down the road with bigger lifts. U-joint angles are important to eliminate vibrations while that isn't as issue with CV drivelines.

 

[da_jokker]

Jeep has something similar and it's called a Rzeppa joint (ra-zep-a)

Kind of looks like that to me. They're actually stronger than normal you joints but they have some cons.

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