Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Good news - this is the last major thing to do before the engine etc goes in (I know not in the way, just want to have the conversion the CV set up done first).

Bad news - it appears these can be a bugger to get out. From the reading I have done here I apparently need a slide hammer to pull these off, and I wanted to ask if there is any specific type you would recommend.

I got the clips off pretty easily, so time to get serious about the hubs.

Thanks!

If you take a heat gun and warm the housing around the bearing prior to removal, they will come out much easier. I just did this in the last couple months.

I have a heavy body shop slide hammer at my disposal, not sure what others are using.

Thanks Mike - just warm or get the housing pretty hot?

Appreciate the tips.

I do the following for my Climax Elites and Elite/Elan differential axle removal.

I use some 250 watt heat lamps, suspend the differential from a suitable stable source (lift, vice, etc), via a rope on the axle, pillow underneath and read the latest un abridged edition of War and Peace. It only requires 10 to 20 minutes for the diff to drop smoothly. The reverse is needed to install the axle and bearing. Do not hammer it in. The alternative is to secure the diff and case, hang some weights from the axle. Not complicated and only .0015 or so expansion of the alloy housing will release the grip on the bearing. Cheers. Mike.

If you are considering reusing the bearings, the word hammer and bearing should not be used in the same sentence.....

--- Former SKF employee.

Thanks gentlemen, appreciate the coaching.

I used an old intermediate drive shaft, three old rotoflex bolts and a heat gun. I wouldn’t say that it was easy but it worked.

Thank you for the idea Pete.

When I bought my CV axles from DBE, Ken told me the output shafts would come out easily. They didn't. So I went the slide hammer route.

The first pic in this thread shows the setup I used: viewtopic.php?t=43193&p=305424

The specific slide hammer was a loaner from Autozone. I had a shop make up a plate to adapt it to the intermediate shaft (which had threads at the attachment end), which was bolted to the output shaft of the diff. I removed the strut from the lower a-arm so I could move it out of the way enough to get the slide hammer in. No issue with the bearings, since I was planning to replace them anyway.

If you'd like my plate, PM me, it'd just cost you postage.

Never one to pass up the opportunity to botch a goofy Heath Robinson/Rube Goldberg tool to use on my Elan, I made a diff bearing puller. Using wood, some appropriate nuts/bolts/washers, a length of threaded rod, and the head off an old hammer (found in a local second-hand store).

This was, no surprise, very cheap. It also allowed me to make something small enough so that it's possible to pull the bearings with the diff and strut still in place. At the time I thought I'd only use it once, to change a leaking seal. Since then I've had to use it another couple of times.

It's, err, rough, but with the diff cover warmed up it works perfectly.

Nick

I changed my diff seals and bearings with body on and diff in situ last winter.
Wheel off, small spring compressor to compress strut spring until driveshaft shaft is parallel, remove doughnuts /drive shaft, remove diff output shaft circlip. Attach small and short homemade slidehammer, heat diff casing for a few minutes with hot air gun and a couple of goes with the puller and out she comes.Not that much of a struggle. Removing the circlips I found the hardest thing they are quite strong and can be rusty. Good circlip pliers needed.

Alan.

Thanks for all of the responses and clever ideas.

So it sounds like I don’t need to get the differential housing that hot, more just warm?

A but of trial and error needed really, you won't do much damage with a hot air gun but I definitely would not consider using a flame, oxy/acetelene or similar. The danger of course is damaging the case in the circlip groove area if you just keep banging away with the slider hammer if it doesn't come out easily.
Don't be frightened of it. Just keep the heat going around and around the bearing area as necessary until it comes.

Good Luck,

Alan.

Good morning/afternoon/evening gentlemen. I am happy to report that after a good bit of coaching from a number of you and a little bit of perseverance I’ve made substantial progress here.

I ended up, as several have suggested here and elsewhere on related topics, using the disassembled axle shaft as my puller and then simply inserted the bolts with nuts to an even level and then use the hot air gun on it for about three minutes and then was able to tap it out with a minimum of force.

Having written this I fully expect the other side to be 10 times more difficult – grin.

Thank you again for all of the help - and quick tip of the hat to our local SoCal members here for making an extra effort to be of assistance.

Apparently the car wasn’t listening very closely because this one was only twice as difficult.

Posting the (AS) removed a picture in case someone in the future finds this wants to give it a go