When I got my first car, a 1976 Camaro Rally Sport in 1983, my father, who gave up driving in 1965, gave me two pieces of advice that I always followed. One was, after the first snowfall, go to a big empty parking lot and practice spinning around and regaining control. The other was to replace worn or broken items in pairs, such as headlights, shocks, etc. His theory behind it was that if one failed, the other is soon to follow.
Does anyone else subscribe to this practice? My wife argues this with me all the time. I just completed doing both half shaft u-joints. The first had failed, the other, which had no issues was replced. With most of the rear suspension removed, it was only then that it was detected that there was some slight binding in the joints (when the opposite wheel was rotated to get access to the inner strap bolts, the assembly would actually move up and down). After removal, they still looked pretty good, but once apart, there was evident internal needle bearing damage. Once it was all together, the car never felt better, a slight harmonic noise had disappeared, which not only confirmed my suspicions, but validated my fathers advice. Thanks Dad.....:seeya:
Does anyone else subscribe to this practice? My wife argues this with me all the time. I just completed doing both half shaft u-joints. The first had failed, the other, which had no issues was replced. With most of the rear suspension removed, it was only then that it was detected that there was some slight binding in the joints (when the opposite wheel was rotated to get access to the inner strap bolts, the assembly would actually move up and down). After removal, they still looked pretty good, but once apart, there was evident internal needle bearing damage. Once it was all together, the car never felt better, a slight harmonic noise had disappeared, which not only confirmed my suspicions, but validated my fathers advice. Thanks Dad.....:seeya: