removing rt4wd

oilspotoilspot Wagonist
in Engine & Drivetrain
On my 91 rt4wd the 4wd is disengaged. The previous owner was having some trouble with the universal joints on the rear drive shaft. So they just took out the rear drive shaft. He swore he had it when I bought the car but now he say's he can't find it.

With that being said.... the rear "pumpkin", is leaking, from where, I haven't really checked into it yet.

So here's my real question. It runs like a champ in 2wd. It doesn't really snow here, and I can't see any huge advantage in rt4wd. Plus it may require a chunk of $$$ to get it up and running again.
Is it possible to remove the remaining 4wd system. Can I drop the front drive shaft, middle transfer dealy, rear pumpkin, and even the rear drive axles? I'm just not familiar with how everything goes together. What I'm hoping is that i can remove everything fairly easily and just have the rear drag along like any other 2wd car.
If it is possible I would probably just set everything aside in my shop in case I decide that rt4wd is something worth the work and $$$.

Comments

  • JakerJaker familEE
    As ar as I can tell, the only thing you'll need to do is leave in the rear axle (CV) outer joints. The bearing/hub/knuckle is held together by the outer joint and axle nut.

    It'd be a shame for that stuff to sit in your shop collecting dust. Sell the rear axle shafts and innerjoints as well as the pumpkin to me :wink: .
  • shenrieshenrie Council Member
    To me the main attraction of the wagons is the availability of awd. If they were only availabe in fwd I probably wouldnt be near as interested in the car period.

    If it were me and If all you need is a driveshaft, find one and bolt it in. The joints on the driveline are not universal. That could have been the problem all along.

    I ran across this problem trying to convert my wagon to b-series. Every shop I went to kept wanting me to redesign the shaft to accept universal joints from a more common place. Namley Jeep. Most in excess of 700 bucks.
  • judebertjudebert familEE
    When I converted to electric, I took out the rear drive train to make room for a battery box. We took out everything: drive shaft, rear diff, axles, CV joints. The outer half of the CV joint is still there, just as Jaker says; at least, I think so: there's this round bolting flange that looks like it might have been where the inner CV joint attaches.

    No problems with the car's brakes or suspension, running every day for several weeks now. Sure, I wish I had AWD just for the fun of it, but I made my decision and I'm living with it.
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