Vibrations (Not good).

[Richie0607]

Hi All,

I have an issue with my 2.2D 6sp estate - Driving around town I have no issues but on the local A roads where pace quickens, when cold I have a slight flutter which can be felt right through the car from about 45mph. When the car is warm i.e. driven approx. 10 miles, I still have the slight flutter up to 45mph but this then changes to a full on "shake the car to bits" vibration/judder to the point the X is undriveable and I have to drop down to 45mph to get rid of it. It's not wheel balancing as I can't drive through it and there's no shimmy on the steering wheel.
If I put the clutch in and take the drive/load off the vibration/judder disappears - Clutch out it comes back.

My thoughts are Drive Shaft CV failing and the local garage have had her up on the ramps and there is play in the N/S shaft and none on the O/S so it looks like this is the case.

My next question is, How much is it likely to cost to replace the N/S shaft - I've been horrified to see the prices of them from David Manners and Rimmers (Nigh on £600) a side then I'd need it fitting plus sundries so not much change out of £800 (He holds his head in his hands and sniffs back the snot and tears).

I've seen shafts on ebay for £40 from a firm in Birmingham which some of the X Type Facebook members have mentioned but they're reviews are shall we say "not the best". Second hand - Could be buying a pile of trouble.

Does anyone have any idea what I should be paying and where I can get a warranted shaft from?? I can get the local garage to fit it.

Cheers

Richie

[J44EAG]

There are loads of 2.2D drive shafts on ebay. The OS appears to be rather cheaper than the NS. The OS units appear more commonly listed. It will be a question of trawling listings to find best prices, availability, OE spec and long warranty.

Try Eurojag who advertise in our magazine for good second hand parts. They are good people to deal with.

Andy at Auto Reserve is another good guy in the second hand parts game. He lists on ebay so well worth a look. His prices are very fair.

If you can get your part number off your drive shaft on the car, this will be useful to you. Type the number directly into your browser to see who is selling those parts.

I`d always look at Barretts, Manners, British Parts etc to establish a typical price for any new parts you may need. Grab those part numbers from those sites and again type into your browser. It is quite surprising what you can find at rather lower prices but of equal OE quality or sometimes better.

Mike K