Broken Axles

[Black5spdZ]

Hey guys i am new to the forum but am on my second z34. I recently purchased a 5spd with a new motor clutch and axles, it ran fine for a week until i took it to the track. I wanted to run it once with rimes so i pulled up light went green dumped the clutch and shattered the left axle. figured no big deal put in a new one a few hours later lined up a race dumped it at 3000 on the street same problem same axle any ideas????

[93CutlassSupreme]

maybe stop dumping the clutch?

 

fwd cars don't take extreme abuse very well.

[Black5spdZ]

i agree but i had previously dumped it many times once i broke it at the track it broke again the next time the car has 255/45/17s on it also. It has a cai, exhaust,chip, bored .030 over, gasket matched, and lowered in the front

[93CutlassSupreme]

i wouldn't dump the clutch at 3 grand on any fwd car

 

 

you're not in a '70 Chevelle SS 454 with a 4-speed Muncie and a 12 bolt posi.

 

a fwd drivetrain just won't take that abuse, nor was it designed for it.

[93CutlassSupreme]

dumped it at 3000 on the street same problem same axle any ideas????

 

[Black5spdZ]

I know it sounds like i beat the piss out of it but how else are you supposed to get a good launch with that size tires, besides i know people that put fwd cars through a lotttttttt more than that and have never broke an axle, i dont know if it could be a bad mount possibly???????

[GutlessSupreme]

besides i know people that put fwd cars through a lotttttttt more than that and have never broke an axle,

 

Bet ya they don't drive 3300 lb grandma cars either, though.

 

Revving the engine to 3 grand and slamming it into gear while trying to instantaneously move 3300 pounds and of course you're going to have issues...

[Guest TurboSedan]

so i pulled up light went green dumped the clutch and shattered the left axle

 

what do you mean by "shattered" the left axle? was it one of the CV joints that blew? you'd need to be putting ALOT of power down to break an axle or a CV joint for that matter unless they were installed incorrectly. i would expect the diff to blow out before an axle. i would suspect bad engine/trans mounts.

 

93CutlassSupreme is talking out his ass again. maybe he should sell his car and go buy a rust bucket G-body.

[Black5spdZ]

it actually didnt break at the joint either time it breaks right where it goes on the output shaft, it ends up in like ten pieces. i am replacing all of my mounts also. i dont know what it makes for power but judging by the cars i have raced it should run a high 14 but it also has 255 45s on it and they hook up pretty hard

[GutlessSupreme]

rust bucket G-body.

 

Where's the love?

[Guest TurboSedan]

Where's the love?

 

i used to own a G-body, and i liked it....until i bought my Cutlass and realized how much of a piece of shit it really was. i owned an '81 Malibu Classic Landau coupe. it came with a 3.8 Chevrolet V6/TH-350C and i swapped in a 350 Chevy/TH-700R4 from my '85 Impala 9C1. i installed Belltech drop spindles and rear springs, Belltech Nitro-drop shocks, PST polygraphite front suspension, Dunlop 245/50s, blah blah...then i finally realized it was a rust bucket piece of ancient technology and never looked back.

[DaveFromColorado]

bad engine/trans mounts will cause a vibration thru the axels and destroy the CV joints. Also, if you're getting ANY wheel hop due to tires, suspension or anything like that, then perhaps you'd better correct that problem. Bad bushings on the control arm can cause too much play in the axels too causing this problem.

 

dumping the clutch at that RPM should simply break the tires free of traction and let 'em spin till the car catches up with them (so to speak) I'll look into that, also, if you're getting the torque wrong on the bearing, you may be causing a drag thru the system.

 

check the suspension, and every rubber/poly bushing in the system.

 

--DaveFromColorado.

[THe_DeTAiL3R]

Yeah those are some pretty wide ass tires you got on it (good for racing )

 

And workin' around my car those axles aren't that wide :shock: I think some HD ones would be a good idea as posted above.

[GnatGoSplat]

You might need to have custom solid axles made.

The ones on these cars are hollow and not designed to take the kind of abuse you're dishing out.

[Black5spdZ]

yeah i agree the car should be able to handle it on the street i could understand it at the track, i never had a problem with breaking it until it it broke at the track then it broke right away after that.

 

Does anyone know where i can get hardened axles????????\

 

I haven't had any wheel hop problems yet but it does hook up really really well, but so did the 3.1 z24 with a 5spd that i had, stock it had a 2.0 60ft and ran a 15.2 with 150,000 miles on it and that never broke an axle.

 

I appreciate the input i think i am going to replace the mounts and try to fins some hardened axles

[Guest TurboSedan]

might ask Curtis Walker what he's using for axles. i've heard he's blown a few axles, not sure what he's done to correct the problem or what.

[slick]

I bet you could go to a quality machine shop and have them fabricate one up. Atleast the one i worked at over the past summer could....

[midnight rider]

yeah i agree the car should be able to handle it on the street i could understand it at the track, i never had a problem with breaking it until it it broke at the track then it broke right away after that.

 

Does anyone know where i can get hardened axles????????\

 

I haven't had any wheel hop problems yet but it does hook up really really well, but so did the 3.1 z24 with a 5spd that i had, stock it had a 2.0 60ft and ran a 15.2 with 150,000 miles on it and that never broke an axle.

 

I appreciate the input i think i am going to replace the mounts and try to fins some hardened axles

 

 

Take a torch to them and heat them until they start to glow. Dump them in cold water. Rehaet them and let them cool on their own. Should harden them enoughtto take the abuse of any FWD Street Racer. I know it worked on the axles i had in my mazda truck. I was running the stock rear in behind a 383 Stroker and turbo 400 combo with 50 series tires. I snapped two of them before a friend showed me that. Its still going on those axels.

[slick]

yeah i agree the car should be able to handle it on the street i could understand it at the track, i never had a problem with breaking it until it it broke at the track then it broke right away after that.

 

Does anyone know where i can get hardened axles????????\

 

I haven't had any wheel hop problems yet but it does hook up really really well, but so did the 3.1 z24 with a 5spd that i had, stock it had a 2.0 60ft and ran a 15.2 with 150,000 miles on it and that never broke an axle.

 

I appreciate the input i think i am going to replace the mounts and try to fins some hardened axles

 

 

 

 

Take a torch to them and heat them until they start to glow. Dump them in cold water. Rehaet them and let them cool on their own. Should harden them enoughtto take the abuse of any FWD Street Racer. I know it worked on the axles i had in my mazda truck. I was running the stock rear in behind a 383 Stroker and turbo 400 combo with 50 series tires. I snapped two of them before a friend showed me that. Its still going on those axels.

 

 

Yeah, but the more you harden a metal, the more brittle it becomes....

 

Just get some solid axle's made.

[midnight rider]

yeah i agree the car should be able to handle it on the street i could understand it at the track, i never had a problem with breaking it until it it broke at the track then it broke right away after that.

 

Does anyone know where i can get hardened axles????????\

 

I haven't had any wheel hop problems yet but it does hook up really really well, but so did the 3.1 z24 with a 5spd that i had, stock it had a 2.0 60ft and ran a 15.2 with 150,000 miles on it and that never broke an axle.

 

I appreciate the input i think i am going to replace the mounts and try to fins some hardened axles

 

 

 

 

Take a torch to them and heat them until they start to glow. Dump them in cold water. Rehaet them and let them cool on their own. Should harden them enoughtto take the abuse of any FWD Street Racer. I know it worked on the axles i had in my mazda truck. I was running the stock rear in behind a 383 Stroker and turbo 400 combo with 50 series tires. I snapped two of them before a friend showed me that. Its still going on those axels.

 

 

Yeah, but the more you harden a metal, the more brittle it becomes....

 

Just get some solid axle's made.

 

Thats why you cool them quick the first go round, then let them cool on their own the second. It adds more strength to them. If i remember right the process is called tempering, but its been along time since i was in shop class.....lol

[93CutlassSupreme]

 

93CutlassSupreme is talking out his ass again. maybe he should sell his car and go buy a rust bucket G-body.

 

 

really?

 

 

show me ANY w-body that is worth as much, or puts out as much brute power as the car i mentioned.

 

btw, it wasn't a G-body.

 

 

once again,

 

[sl3196]

Why don't you trade in the cutlass then?

[93CutlassSupreme]

here we go again

 

why don't you check out this thread, where THE EXACT SAME SMARTASS REMARK WAS MADE

 

http://w-body.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19410&start=30&sid=2a84a6dcbe7e5268f438b570c444bd67

[Guest TurboSedan]

gee, i wonder why people make these remarks? here we go again is right. all you do is bitch about your car, FWD sucks, you make these stupid comparisons to '70 Chevelle Super Sports, blah blah blah.

[midnight rider]

I can't stand FWD either, but damn, I'm not bitching every 5 min. Be thankful you have a car to drive and enjoy it for what it is.