Removing E30 axles.

[Nobimmer 694]

Is there an easy way to pull the axles out of the hub without having to bolt everything back together to stop it from spinning?

Have removed it from the diff but can't seem to get it out of the hub. Am a bit reluctant to put it into a vice.

After that nut comes off, do I just jam a dowel into it and smack it out?

Any help would be mint

Cheers

Ashkan

[SIR E30 68]

According to the bentley manual there is a tool that you use which screws onto the hub and pushes the axle out. The axle is on a spline that is pressed in or something.. I encountered this problem yesterday because I have an f'd CV joint.

If you want I can take a photo of the bentley manual and email it to you in high res

Edited January 18, 2010 by SIR E30

[c.robertson00 11]

Im pritty sure John (e30ftw) took his to BMW and they pressed them out for him. He will be able to confirm.

[e30ftw 396]

I managed to smash one out of a 'donor' trail arm I had with a BFH and pipe on the axle.

The broken one that needed to come out in the car was a B*TCH and no matter how may whacks it received from my BFH it ended up going to BMW to have it pulled. I even tryed gear pullers to no sucess. No idea what they used though. But try your luck with a BFH anyways.

[Nobimmer 694]

Have been attacking the sh*t out of it with a BFH but to no avail.

Is there any real point in even taking them apart to swap the bushes in the subframe? I can't see any real reason to to be honest.

[e30ftw 396]

No ? You can remove the trail arm with the axles on them it makes no difference.

[Nobimmer 694]

Yeah that's what I was thinking, while I was bashing the thing.

Jase- cheers for the offer, but I got one.

[e30ftw 396]

Haha just created a whole heap of pointless extra work for yourself. Oh well.

I just dropped the whole subframe/diff/tral arms as one. Then took it apart when it was out. Makes life waaaay easier. But you need a beefy jack to hold it and drop it. Lifting it back I did the same, assemble it all with the diff and jack it up into place and sorted...

[Nobimmer 694]

Yeah I pulled the whole thing out as one too. Was alot easier than I thought it would be. Only problem we really ran into was rounding the allan key bolts on the side of the sill.

[323e30 0]

axles are a b..... need about 15-20 tonnes of pressure to get them out sometimes. I have a 10 tonne press and its only ever worked once for these.

Edited January 18, 2010 by 323e30

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2122]

axles are a b..... need about 15-20 tonnes of pressure to get them out sometimes. I have a 10 tonne press and its only ever worked once for these.

so THATS why i cant get it out...

[*Glenn* 854]

axles are a b..... need about 15-20 tonnes of pressure to get them out sometimes. I have a 10 tonne press and its only ever worked once for these.

Even the genuine BMW tool wont do it sometimes. I designed my own and had it built using a 2 stage 20 ton portapower so we can do it on the car. The tool I designed does all BMW's and includes the bearing remover & installer.... never have a problem now and nothing gets broken or damaged

[Nobimmer 694]

Glenn, I may drop it in to do a wheel bearing after I've cleaned it all up and had the bits I need welded,welded.

Will give you a ring when I get a chance!

[*Glenn* 854]

Glenn, I may drop it in to do a wheel bearing after I've cleaned it all up and had the bits I need welded,welded.

Will give you a ring when I get a chance!

No problem...please call first though...we are friggen busy

[Nobimmer 694]

Will do, might not be for a while though! Have just read the walk throughs on-line and they make it seem like a bloody nightmare!

[*Glenn* 854]

Its not with the right gear and a brain.... hammers are not included

[djs325 0]

Just a quick follow up, are you talking about:

A- Removing the driveshaft assembly that runs from the differential housing into the trailing arm drive flange,

OR

B- Removing the drive flange from the trailing arm.

If A, then easiest to unbolt the 6 socket head bolts from the differential flanges and the large 30mm nut on the end of the driveshaft whilst the car is on the ground or loaded up. I needed to turn down a 30mm socket on the lathe to get it onto the driveshaft nut. Once that nut was undone, I liberally sprayed the driveshaft tip with penetrating lubricant, and from the back side as well. After a few applications and some patience, I then used a wooden dowel and a large hammer to top out the driveshaft. Not too painful.

If B, then you're in trouble. My solution to this problem was the remove the driveshaft as per 'A' above, then remove the rear axle assembly (subframe, trailing arms and differential). Once this was out, I disconnected the trailing arms from the subframe, removed all the components from the trailing arm, and then machined up some specifically sized dowels to push out the driveshaft flanges. This was accomplished with much help from the other guys at TAFE, lots of positioning aids, and a many tonne hydraulic press. This process allowed me to replace the rear wheel bearings and circlips, which eliminated a lot of problems from the rear end.

[Nobimmer 694]

Cheers for that mate, have since sorted the problem.