Awful Renault quality.. Who's seen this?

[ditz]

This happened literally doing a u turn in the road, never hit anything, no bumps, nothing.. Can honestly say I've never seen any driveshaft snap there before, it's not even particularly stressed, it's only holding the bearing together!
The casting is flawed looking at it, to say ive lost faith in the other side is an understatement, wouldn't like to be doing that at any speed.. The wheel bearing pulled apart and basically the only thing holding the wheel on was the brake caliper bracket, any chance of getting anything from renault?

 

[Laura]

niiiiice

 

[MartinR]

How the hell?? never seen anything like that before:S

 

[ditz]

Makes 3 of us!! Nobody I've spoke to has even heard of it!

 

[wag1]

That is purely bad luck.

We had a machine snap its crank atjust 2800hours and volvo wouldnt give us a f**king tenner off the new engine

One in a million mate

 

[aucky]

Blimey!

Count your blessings it didn't happen in the motorway.

 

[pastieman]

Wtf

 

[s0fty]

Epic Fail. Never seen that on any car.

 

[Hair Bear]

Someone's been wheel spinning....

 

[Knuckles]

Ops not telling the full story... Who's bird have you been banging?

 

[Dan1587]

Someone's been wheel spinning....

I think I'd have to agree! Lol!

 

[MicKPM]

Not really Renaults fault as they dont make the shafts or any of the castings so prob one of those things. Looks like a stress related failure though and who's to say it hasn't been grossly over-tightened at some point in its history?

Just be thankfull it didn't happen at speed.

 

[ditz]

Lol at the suggestions as to how it's happened. I'll put them all in the letter to renault!

 

[Jaff.]

I would say that looks as if it's been over tightened, no way of proving it tho. Properly scary if that happens at speed though.

And a proper job on that too!

 

[ditz]

Not really Renaults fault as they dont make the shafts or any of the castings so prob one of those things. Looks like a stress related failure though and who's to say it hasn't been grossly over-tightened at some point in its history?

Just be thankfull it didn't happen at speed.

I did wonder about that, the parts not subject to any rotational force as its broken half way down the spline, so it's purely been pulled apart, I'd have thought the nut would strip before the shaft broke even if it was over tightened, well that's what I'd hope would happen anyway. It looks to me like the only metal holding it together is right in the centre of the shaft, meaning it's effectively about 10mm in diameter, nice!

 

[MicKPM]

It's a fairly deep thread though so its got a good grip on the splined section to spread the load over. Other things can come in to play which should also be considered such as heat transfer/thermal bridging leading to premature failure of the material BUT it would have to be a fair bit of heat I'd guess (more than say a sticking brake would generate).

Personally I think it's been over-tightened and left so over time the material has fatigued and eventually failed... But I've not really seen the remains nor do I know the car/service history. I don't think you'll get anything from R UK though unless it's got full history and a recent shaft change.

Mick

 

[JMR]

Good replies Mick.

Bad luck ditz, hope you get it sorted soon mate.

 

[pastieman]

The drive shaft may have been seized in the hub and someone tried to press
It out at some point but failed to get it out... Then Sold it to you and this happens down the line once the bearing gets hot

 

[ditz]

Huh? Can't see how compressing it would make it fracture like that, was all nice and free in the hub flange when I took it out, so I wouldn't have thought that was the case. I reckon it's just shite luck and flawed metal. I refitted the shaft with a new nut(both genuine) and out of curiosity measured the amount of protruding thread on the end of the nut once torqued up and on the part that broke off with a vernier, both were nigh on identical. I know that's not really definitive due to differences in the parts and such but I doubt it was hugely over tightened. Never mind, all sorted now

 

[pastieman]

By putting pressure on the driveshaft using the press could have caused a fracture crack in the metal.... It was just an outside of the box thought !!!

but tbh Fook knows really, never seen it happen

 

[Dan@M.A.D]

I'm 99% sure the nut would strip before the shaft would snap, It's probably an anomaly in the manufacturing process.