Dear All,

I'm trying to remove the propshaft on my W123 300D

I've been following the instructions on

http://www.peachparts.com/Wikka/W123DriveShaftSupportBearing

And the ones in my Haynes manual. (Both are quite similar)

I've got all of the bolts on the flex discs (at both ends of the propshaft) out
I've also undone the 41mm and 46mm big bolts - pulled back the rubber cover and got the large nut off of the front propshaft section
I've also removed the centre bearing retaining bolts

The rear wheels are off - the axles have been removed and the rear diff support has been removed. I can move the diff - and thus the rear subframe up and down into any position I like (well more or less)

And can I get the propshaft out? Can I b***er...

Has anyone ever had a propshaft stuck like this before?

I can yank the rear propshaft section forwards and backwards - it moves on the splines forward of the centre bearing but it won't come loose from the diff.

Is it hammer time? (I'd rather not - I'm not always a good shot!)

Does anyone have any advice - any help will be greatly appreciated.

get a crow bar in between the flex disc on the diff and the tri-yoke flange on the end of the shaft. I can take a lot of force to get it out. Work around it, the only things holding the shaft to the disc are those three bolts.

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1983 240D 3.0T 4-speed manual, now sold

1989 Subaru GL Wagon 5-speed Touring Edition

X2, get a pry bar between the flange and the disc. they tend to stick real good.

I just had mine off last week when I replaced the rear bushings. I left the disc on the Diff and pryed the shaft off the disc. I had it out last yr when I worked on the transmission. amazing how stuck in a year it can get.

Charlie

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there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works

OP's driveshaft isnt stuck - he just need the extra distance to get it out.

You can get extra distance by lifting the transmission itself. Put a jack (with 2x4 or similar) under the transmission pan and lift up.

I remember it getting easier with the transmission jacked up a bit.

The prybar makes it easier to get the last bit of compression, as JEBalles suggested.

Mark the front and rear driveshaft sections (as the FSM and Haynes say to) now, just in case they come apart. They need to go back together on the same splines (at the center).

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'85 300D, 'Lance',250k, ... winter beater (100k on franken-Frybrid 3 Valve Kit)
'82 300D, 'Tex', 228k body / 170k engine ... summer car
'83 300TD Cali Wagon 210k, wife's car

Thanks for the encouragement - I attacked the propshaft today and it came out in the end.

My flex discs were well and truly stuck - a little bit of rust will do that I suppose



It took for ever to get them out - my pry bar is too big for working under a car on axle stands (oh for a 2 post lift). In the end I used a combination of penetrating oil - the discs are to be relaced anyway - and an old screw driver. No grazed knuckles this time though!

The tip about raising the transmission (or alternatively dropping / raising the diff) helped a lot too - thanks go out to you all...