Hi, I'm looking to freshen-up my 97 A6 Avant Quattro V6 Auto "Kardanwell" or rear propeller shaft, also known in America as a basic rear Driveshaft that goes between the rear of the transmission and the front of the rear differential. It transmits the power from the engine to the rear wheels. The AUDI part number for mine is
4A0 521 101D.

I'm not going to pay the outrageous $1350 from the Audi Crime Organization, and I don't want another funky used wrecking yard hand me down.

If anyone out there has had good luck with a driveshaft rebuilder with intimate knowledge of Audi Quattro Driveshafts, and has actually installed and used a one of their rebuilt driveshafts on their car, with good results, I'd like to hear about your experience and source. If you had a bad experience, I'd like to know that, too.

Please, no B. S. Advertizements for your website or business that hasn't got a clue about what I'm looking for here.

THANKS!

 

Try www.blauparts.com. Also, you should get the BentleyPublishers.com Audi shop manual CD, so that you don't make any cosly mistakes. Also, be sure you have new Allen bolts and gaskets for the CV joints, as Bentley says to use new ones. Bentley also says to use an alignment tool when installing the propeller shaft. So, be sure to mark the location of the center bearing mount bolts and shims before removing the shaft.
I don't see why Audi has a U-joint and bearing at the middle of the propeller shaft, as the rear differential and transmission are fixed. You have to lower the rear exhaust, remove the catalytic converters and remove the heat shield to see this over engineering.

 

If the shaft was just one piece, it would look like a jump rope at high speeds. The Chrysler Pacifica has 3 sections, but one of the longest single pieces can be found under the funky Pontiac Aztec because it is 4" in diameter and made of aluminum (keeps bending stresses low enough). Some U-joints are easier than others to replace - may be better to get a shop to deal with staked cups if you don't have the circlip type. The CV joints should be no problem to replace if you can get the parts. The entire assembly should be balanced when done. Buying a reman shaft from the web would be the easiest, maybe cheapest? route.

One thing to do before removing your old one: At each end you should find a mark indicating the heavy side of the shaft (probably a paint line or dot), maybe on the joint, sometimes on the tube next to the joint. Mark the flanges on the transmission and diff in line with this marking so you can install your newly balanced shaft with the heavy spot in the same location. In the factory the heavy side of the shaft will have been aligned with the location of lowest runout on the transmission/diff flanges.

I have intimate knowledge of GKN driveshafts - I worked there as an engineer for several years. I don't know specifics about what they were doing in GKN Loebro in 1997, but it would have been very similar to the rest of the company.

 

The problem with this two piece propeller shaft is that if it is not maintained and aligned properly it will cause more vibration than a single piece shaft. The center bearing and U-joint should have had grease fittings, so that the owner would not have to pay a dealer $1350 for a complete propeller shaft replacement when the grease dies up. It is unreasonable that the center bearing and U-joint are so hard to replace. It is also unreasonable that the flanges are not properly machined, so that there is virtually no runout. It is unreasonable that the sealing surfaces on these flanges are so poorly machined that the seals prematurely fail. It is unreasonable that the center differential fluid level check requires that the catalytic converter be removed.

 

Maybe the UNREASONABLE design is why Audi no longer manufactures the 97 A6 Avant Quattro V6?

 

I had similar problems with mine! and from what i hear its a very common problem after trying a few different things and shopping around for a quality part !!! I ordered mine from Drive Shaft, Auto Parts, Driveshaft, Drive axle, Free shipping. I got the best price i could find and It was in stock. It only took a few days to get it in my hands and the shipping was free and that always helps. At the end of my drive shaft expierience im glad to say every bit of the vibration and shaking I was feeling is completely gone .

 

Partfinder, I just got a new driveshaft from wholesaleimportparts like you did. Install was pretty simple but I get a slight hum or drone noise every once in awhile. Do you think it's not correctly aligned ? How did you line yours up? Thanks for any ideas.