Hello,
I have e320 4matic 2002, recently started to hear clunk sound and I figured it was the front drive shaft. The problem is i do not have money to replace it right now.
Is there any possible way to disable the awd and drive on 2wd ? Is it a problem to drive on 2wd ?
This is not a permanent solution I am doing that to protect my car from further damage because of the drive shaft until I get it replaced.
I never heard of anyone disabled the front wheel shafts, I am also interested to know if it can affect the transmission some how.
Maybe @MAVA would know.
The 4matic has 3 open differentials, with no way to lock them. One way to force 2WD is to weld the front two halfshafts or the front driveshaft so they don't move.
Other way is to swap the transmission from a 4WD to 2WD transmission....not exactly feasible in your case.
Make sure the noise is in the front and not coming from the transfer box as 4-matic's are known to loose the output gear on the input to the transfer case due to lubrication-no oil in the transfer box..
There's no switch to turn off 4matic. Verify that it is the CV axle and get a cheap chinese made one and fix it. A quick web search found them for $100 or less.
Look in the stickies or search the web for DIY instructions on how to change it out or pay an indie to install it.
Bolting or welding front shafts would give double speed to the rear wheels.
Sounds exciting, but central differential is not design to work 100% duty and probably would not last long.
So coming down to Earth, as Fred pointed, front axle cost about cost of fill-up, so if you have money to fill up the car, you should have it for the part.
I am not fan of Chinese axles as for years I am waiting for somebody coming back with report that they last for more than 20k miles, but they are the option.
Front driveshaft is tricky.
Very low demand for it did not make aftermarket, while dealers want $$$$$
Few members reported good luck with local shaft rebuild shop.
Good luck
Front driveshaft (not CV axles) is around $350 for generic new replacement (see eg Amazon).
However . . . you hear a clunk. That's going to need further diagnosis. You don't really know that a replacement driveshaft is going to fix the clunk, do you?
Amazon listings, like eBay listings, are whatever the Seller wants to present: It's not truth.
I presented that one as an example, not as a recommendation. Too many people were reading "front driveshaft" and assuming "axle with CV joint". I linked a picture of an actual (maybe) front driveshaft that purportedly fits the OP's vehicle.
I buy quite a lot of stuff via Amazon (enough to justify my Prime membership), and the rate of lying in the descriptions is fairly high.
I bought lot of household items in last 2 months from Amazon and 3-5 days delivery is hard to beat, while I had no disappointment.
That said few years back Amazon send me W210 rotors in wrong size and corrected the error by sending me the same size again.
Coming to driveshaft, having a choice of buying new " NO BRAND" part and have my original shaft rebuild at local shop, I would definitely go for 2nd.
Let me repeat the above. Several members reported buying Chinese axles for their cars, but none of them come back with report of passing 20,000 miles on them.
I keep asking regardless
There are alternatives that make sense and those who don't.
One of the members waited for DS alternative and when his original shaft broke - it deployed all his side airbags, what basically totaled the car.
That said, I just bought Behr visco clutch for my SL500.
Made in China.....
But I trust Behr order quality parts in China, not the cheap, cheap stuff most of US suppliers prefer.
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