is the Guibo the cause of this???

[vandor]

No ideal why someone would keep arguing that this can't happen in normal driving. Here's another example on what guibo failure can do. This happened on an old diesel Mercedes, which I'm pretty sure was not going 150 mph and likely was built from thicker metal than a Spider. The driveshaft cut clear through the transmission tunnel.

http://dieselgiant.com/Mercedes%20flex% ... ailure.htm

[RRoller123]

holy moly, don't want any part of my body near that.

[DieselSpider]

Some people just can't let things lie....
Give it up, Diesel. Bottom line for me is that a Guibo change after 30 or so years is probably a good idea whether you have a vibration or not - and regardless of whether you regularly drive 45 or 70 mph on a regular basis. If that sucker lets go, no matter how fast you're going or what fuel you're using, the result is not going to be pleasant.

Just wanted a straight answer instead of the runaround. Was that level of damage from normal lawful driving on a public street or from being pushed passed those levels potentially on a race track. I found I no longer have a Guibo on mine anyway but did not get a straight answer whether what was being presented was on a car being driven on a public road at lawful speeds.

Remember I was questioning the level of damage on what was obviously a fairly highly modded race car really being what you would experience while driving the legal posted speeds not whether the Guibo should be replaced on a regular basis. I have yet to see that level of damage on a street car driven the legal speed limit even in wrecks where the car was flipped over the guard rail during a front drop of the drive shaft.

[Ramzi]

I apologize if my answer was in any way vague or a runaround. Certainly never my intention. But I believe the below quoted post directly answers your previous post. I think this subject has been adequately addressed.

I personally have never experienced a catastrophic failure.... but have experienced the dreaded telltale of hearing a clunk and spotting a black rubber object in my rear-view bouncing down the highway.

Although torque more than horse power can produce a premature failure of a guibo, neither the guibo or its shrapnel cause the damage. The majority of the damage is caused by the forward section of the driveshaft 'stricking' the transmission shifter extension and tunnel. At that point the torque/HP are no longer a factor.... the only thing that matters is the speed at which the driveshaft is rotating - and that of course a factor of the speed at which the car was traveling when the entire unit fails.

The transmission tunnel damage failure in Csaba's link did in fact occur in a race car - but visually the damage was the same on a street car. I know of 2 such failures on average HP street cars while driven on city streets. These examples are of course the extreme - generally a total guibo failure will just knock off the shifter extension before the driveshaft cuts the tunnel... We have sold plenty shifter extensions over the years for just such a repair.

To err on the side of caution is probably best when it comes to these sorts of parts.

Ramzi
Auto Ricambi

[azruss]

I have seen guibos with cracks and chunks out of them and still work fine. It is similar to looking at the warplane torn half to pieces with holes and you wonder how the thing could fly. The real issue here is what kind of damage can be done at failure. This and the timing belt fall in the same category. If either fails the damage becomes extensive, expensive, and a danger to life and limb. Yes, you are putting far more stress on the guibo with a race car and could expect a higher failure rate. This doesn't mean that driving your fiat like a little old lady on Sunday gives you a free pass. the beauty of the guibo is a physical inspection can tell you whether you are ready for a replacement. For our application, age plays a major factor in the reliability of any rubber part, guibo included.

[toplessexpat]

I think the moral of this tale is that:

If you inspect your guibo and it's got chunks missing out of it, and you know it's 30 years old .... replace it

If you inspect your guibo and it looks perfect and you know it's 30 years old ..... seriously consider replacing it

If you inspect your guibo and it's got chunks missing out of it, and you know it's been replaced recently ..... seriously consider replacing it, looking for guibo-elves that are nibbling at it, and contact your parts supplier

If you inspect your guibo, and it's looking perfect, and you know it's been replaced relatively recently ..... then consider yourself fortunate, but look out for pieces of rubber bouncing in the rear view mirror and/or mysterious clunks from somwhere under the centerline of the car....

For one, I replaced the guibo, universals, center bearing when I got my cars.... you can't guarantee the provenance and it just seems to made sense.

A

[4uall]

[toplessexpat]

I'm English ... we specialize in such matters

[DieselSpider]

I apologize if my answer was in any way vague or a runaround. Certainly never my intention. But I believe the below quoted post directly answers your previous post. I think this subject has been adequately addressed.

To err on the side of caution is probably best when it comes to these sorts of parts.

Ramzi
Auto Ricambi

[/quote]

Then I will ask again a bit more clearly (I had move on to this previously)- If the tunnel is that fragile then does it on even a street car behove one to consider a shaft hoop at least on the front section of the shaft to keep it from cutting through especially if one has a higher torque than stock engine or should one possibly consider reinforcing that section of the tunnel to mitigate any chance of this result from a failure of the Guibo itself or its mounting bolts or in my case the modified yoke connection at the transmission? This is ultimately what I am trying to dimension especially since I have a modified drive line and do not know the qualifications of those whom originally did the work. I do not question whether an old or damaged Guibo was unsafe.

Some I have read hold that this is one reason why the torque tube was inherently safer.

Has anyone got any examples of tunnel reinforcments or hoops having been installed on a Spider to mitigate this type of damage?

[mikeb1223]

Wow really Lol this is still going on... Its been a few weeks since I got my kit with a HiPo Guibo and I am loving my car now it cruises beautifully about 70

[AriK]

Wow really Lol this is still going on... Its been a few weeks since I got my kit with a HiPo Guibo and I am loving my car now it cruises beautifully about 70

You are welcome! That's what we are here for...some simple advice

[mikeb1223]

Thank you Arik lmao yeah simple "wink wink" lol

[AriK]

Wow really Lol this is still going on... Its been a few weeks since I got my kit with a HiPo Guibo and I am loving my car now it cruises beautifully about 70

Mike,
I ordered the hiPo guibo kit as well because the regular stuff was out of stock in January. Car is still in storage so i didn't get to compare the both. Have you compared your new and old guibo? Heavier? Stiffer? Does it look like a beefier unit? Will it buy more time for change interval? I didn't buy it for racing or power beatings, but i figured i'd spend the same money on a HiPo rather than wait for the regular unit and pay separate shipping.