Halfshaft Bolt Answers (all threads merged)

[ENZO BTR]

after checking my vin No.1442 he realizes that it will eventually happen to me.(nice of him,,dont you think) he just ordered the parts needed for the upgrade and will call me tomorrow to bring the car in on friday. In response to you guys that are getting the run around at the GT Hotline, I suggest to just get in touch with your dealers and I would imagine that they will do the upgrade NOW...before someone get's hurt un-necessarily in an accident.... Good luck to all of you.

Gino


Yikes! You're fourteen cars away from me (#1456) and I have put in a call to my dealer. They initially said, "We don't have any information on an axle bolt upgrade for the GT" so I replied with, "Well, I do. Here's the part number. Please order it, as well as 12 more outer bolts for the cover pieces." The oil needs changed anyway, and I want them to do a general inspection of the car as well. They are supposed to call me back when they've located a kit.

 

[TEXAS GT]

Well I picked mine up today after having the halfshaft bolts replaced and everything went fine. The dealer said my bolts weren"t loose but I feel better knowing everything is new and tight. I also had them remove the rear wheels and check the hub nuts as well as checking the wheel nut torque all the way around. No problems. The dealer was great about doing the work under warranty even though Ford wouldn't authorize it.

My car is an early '05 #298 and the tranny is around # 490. The car had about 3000 miles on it. I think this problem only applies to later cars.

 

[AtomicGT]

Does anyone have a Ford GT part number on the 6 screws that need to be replaced apparently on each side of the plates after replacing the axle flange bolts? If you do, please post, it will be greatly appreciated as I am going this alone in getting this issue resolved.

Thanks :thumbsup

 

[Neilda]

I've been through the service manual and it doesn't seem to list the part number for those bolts. The 2 output flange bolts simply have a dash against the part number and the output shaft flange (part number 4851) that receive these bolts is shown without the bolts....

 

[isaakgt]

I got a call back from the GT Hotline today with an answer. My car does not have the hardened washers. She said that Ford will not pay for the updates unless I have a failure. She also said that this site has made a bigger deal of this problem and that they have seen very few problems. For me, one failure is to many when it comes to putting the power to the ground. My experience with the Pantera and halfshaft failure is a big and dangerous problem to have at speed. It really makes a mess of things in the engine cavity. I guess it's my problem now. :frown

 

[red gt 1442]

after checking my vin No.1442 he realizes that it will eventually happen to me.(nice of him,,dont you think) he just ordered the parts needed for the upgrade and will call me tomorrow to bring the car in on friday. In response to you guys that are getting the run around at the GT Hotline, I suggest to just get in touch with your dealers and I would imagine that they will do the upgrade NOW...before someone get's hurt un-necessarily in an accident.... Good luck to all of you.

Gino


Yikes! You're fourteen cars away from me (#1456) and I have put in a call to my dealer. They initially said, "We don't have any information on an axle bolt upgrade for the GT" so I replied with, "Well, I do. Here's the part number. Please order it, as well as 12 more outer bolts for the cover pieces." The oil needs changed anyway, and I want them to do a general inspection of the car as well. They are supposed to call me back when they've located a kit.

Enzo, yes our cars were probably built on the same day or so...but I have had no problem with the half shafts to date.....It is only for a precautionary move that the dealer called me....and will do the bolt exchange... Tell your dealer about the failures which seems to effect all 2005 GT's.

Be well......

Gino

 

[LEMANSZ]

Enzo...what dealer are you using?

 

[Craig]

Maybe Ford is right

I think our problem is not catastrophic (we need spell check). No one has lost the half shaft, it just pulls out far enough to disengage the splines and maybe throw some fluid. My guess is that the half shaft can't compress for enough for the flange to come completely out. This is why no one has lost one or had it cause any real damage. It would be an inconvienence but not really dangerous. Maybe we should just politely ask Ford for the list of transmissions at risk to be published, then we could each decide what to do. If they don't publish the list, we could just track the failures on this list and come up with a pretty good guess at the range of Vin's in doubt. I think we know that late '06s and Early '05's are OK, and as we track numbers we can hone in on the cut off, or maybe Ford will tell us if we ask nice as a group. I will pull mine apart in the next week and see if they are hardened. #265

Craig

 

[isaakgt]

The way it looks is that it is probably the later '05 & early '06 cars. It would be nice to know exactly which cars are affected. It's great to know that the halfshafts will not compress enough to cause a problem as they did on the Pantera. I will keep driving mine like I stole it. :biggrin

 

[ENZO BTR]

I've been talking to Santa Monica Ford. I'm bringing the car into them tomorrow for an oil change and inspection, and before that I'll be looking closely at the half-shaft area with the help of a former automotive engineer who now works at Edmunds. We're going to give it a once over before I take it to the dealer. He thinks that -- MAYBE -- if the bolts are at all loose you -- MIGHT -- be able to tell by manually trying to move the half shafts around. You also might not be able to tell anything at all, but can't hurt to try.

I'll let everyone know what I learn.

 

[isaakgt]

Enzo, I have been checking mine for side play and everything seems to be tight so far. Let us know what your engineer friend has to say about it. TI

 

[abolfaz]

The shaft does not come out and is held in place by the outer shaft main bolt.

WRONG. The first time it happened to me (remember me the guy who had this happen twice?) the shaft came completely and was hitting the frame. Perhaps I'm the broken shaft expert?

 

[LEMANSZ]

ENZO...call me via cell tomorrow when you hear something...DB

 

[isaakgt]

WRONG. The first time it happened to me (remember me the guy who had this happen twice?) the shaft came completely and was hitting the frame. Perhaps I'm the broken shaft expert?

I would say you are the broken shaft expert, albofaz. I had my suspicions this is what could happen as I have seen it happen in other mid-engine cars. The way the "Motor Co." is handling this is very strange to say the least.

 

[AtomicGT]

Well, I am caught between to decisions again on this issue. 1st of all, I have to apologize to the Ford GT Hotline people, they did actually call me back an Lynn indicated that my GT already has the replacement washes. I was rather upset and discouraged by the lack of response initially from the Hotline, but they have been courteous and they did finally get back to me.

2nd, in the interim, I had decided to fix the problem on my nickel, ordered the repair kit from my dealer and was interacting with the service manager on what to do. So now I have assurances from the Hotline, that I already have the bolts and washers, yet I have a replacement kit, and the thought that maybe I should double check the bolts ? Rely solely on a report from the Hotline? Continue to be concerend about it? Or move on a start driving the GT again?

Indecision is the full of insomnia! I will discuss with my tech adviser at my Ford Dealership and go from there.

The HOTLINE actually did do the research and did call me back!

 

[dbk]

Atomic, if you have a later 06 I just wouldn't screw with it. You've got the replacement washers and even if you didn't, the odds are slim that they are gonna fail.

Glad they called you back.

 

[PL510*Jeff]

GT Owning

Atomic - I 'll vote for your driving the GT.

And it was very good to hear the Ford folks got back to you with good info on your GT.

Keep the faith Baby!

 

[PHXGT]

Mine broke last night. Went just as described. Ugly sound and then no power. The most stressful part of the event was finding a towing company that new what they were doing.

Phoenix owners: Write this down. John Paul of Hayden Towing was fantastic. He knows what he is doing and keeps the 4 4x4s on his truck. Went smooth and no problems. Keep this info in your car. If you need a tow, call them and ask for him.

 

[K-P Garage]

Just reporting what I was told and saw

WRONG. The first time it happened to me (remember me the guy who had this happen twice?) the shaft came completely and was hitting the frame. Perhaps I'm the broken shaft expert?

My Ford tech actually showed me the details.Without the bolts even in the collar the shaft will not come out of place. I don't remember but didn't you say both sides of yours broke at different times? May be that is why yours came all the way out. Who knows? Point is this. They should all be checked and redone if the incorrect parts are even suspected of being on the cars.

 

[Tungsten]

New Style Washer

For what it is worth, my car is an 06, vin 0314, build date was 12/05 and it had the new style washer. Would it be safe to assume others after that build date are OK? I don't know....
Don