How many of you Spider owners out there know what a flex donut is?  Congratulations to all you guys who do.  But my next question to the guys who know, when is the last time you replaced it?  This is one crucial area in your drivetrain that you definitely need to keep track of.  It is almost important as if not more important than your timing belt.  Think about it.  If this baby lets go, you're in a world of deep trouble.  Just like you know if your timing belt lets go you're in a world of deep trouble. 

For anyone who cares, the flex donut is a rubber octagon with 6, and I say 6, mounting bolts and nuts.  It is what drives your rear end, or makes your wheels spin if you will.  This little stop sign has a tendancy of wearing out.  After all, it is spinning as fast as it can spin to get those little ponies of yours up and running at the speeds you want them to go.  It is not the easiest of parts to replace beneath your car, but you first timers can do it.  And you old pros know what I'm talking about, I hope.

The easiest way to remove your donut is to get your car up in the air, and I mean all four wheels up in the air so you're able to spin your driveshaft to meet with the six bolts that you need to meet with to take them off.  Now, others will say to do it a different way.  But believe me, you don't want to go there.  I learned that the hard way when I first tried the other way some 15 odd years ago. 

The outer bolts that hold your driveshaft to the flex donut are the easiest ones to get out.  But understand, you need 2 19mm wrenches and you're going to, depending upon how long the donut has been there or how many lbs it has been torqued to, you might need a little bit of strength.  But you take out the three facing the rear of the car first.  This will enable you to then remove the carrier support bracket, which is 2 13 mm nuts, as well as the safety bar, which is also 2 13 mm nuts.  Understand also that your e-brake cable might be in the road because you want to lower the driveshaft down from its normal position.  This will enable you to get to the three remaining nuts and bolts.

Now understand something, there is only one way and one way only to take those final three bolts out.  You have to do them one at a time, and I would suggest first of all breaking loose all three of the nuts so you're not fighting yourself in a  few minutes.  The best way to both break the nuts loose and remove the bolts is take a 19mm close socket wrench, place the bolt and nut you're taking out at 9 o'clock if you would be using that as a left direction.  The reason I'm telling you to take them out at that position is that first of all, you'll be able to get the socket on the nut that you're about to remove, and once you do remove the nut and bolt, that bolt then will have to push through that 9 o'clock position due to to the fact that it can't come out anywhere else.  All bolts have to come out at the 9 o'clock position.  (I neglected to tell you that when you go to loosen up your nuts and bolts, put the car into gear, then your flex donut will not move and you'll be able to break both the nut and bolt loose.  Upon doing so, take the car out of gear, move the driveshaft so that the nut and bolt are in the 9 o'clock position, put the car in gear, and remove that one, etc.  This way you're not fighting yourself trying to make your wrenches work.)

A new flex donut will come with a metal band around it.  It is to keep it from flexing while you're installing it into your car.  So when you have everything setup and tightened down and everything is ready to go, then you remove the metal band.  Bingo!  You've got yourself a new flex donut, you can feel a little more peace of mind while you're driving down the road with your little Italian pony and your girlfriend or wife by your side, or just you alone on that country road you like to drive on.  There are some pictures you're going to see and I want you to note something: you guys can look underneath your car and you can say "well, my flex donut looks good to me" but the only way you'll be able to tell is if you take it off.  And for $30, which is the cost of this part, it is well worth it.

First picture, old, new.  Second picture, cracks and excessive wear.  Third, the same.  This you see when you take it off.  You can't see when you're under your car, no matter how good you look.  If you take this baby and twist it, you will see what cracks are really like.  And this particular flex donut is probably about 2 years old at the most.  Different climates, different driving styles, the way in which you store your car, so on.  Just change these up every two years just the same as you would change your timing belt every 20,000 miles.  Hope you listen to me, I'm thinking about you.

Driveshaft carrier support bearing and housing.  After you've changed your flex donut, this is really the next on the list.  You'll be able to see this baby under your car if it is worn out.  Just locate it, go up and push on the driveshaft and you'll see the ring of light around this rubber carrier.  You want to change this out, man, due to the fact that your driveshaft being two piece, this particular part keeps it balanced the way it should be and not moving around like a spoon in a coffee cup.  If you ignore this particular part of your drivetrain, I'd like you to know that by your driveshaft moving irregularly, it is putting strain on your tranny and/or your rear end.  With that, you guys out there might wonder why certain things happen within your tranny.  Or all of a sudden your rear end takes a dump.  It is not the easiest piece to replace, you'll pull your hair out a bit, but for somewhere around $50 and a six pack of beer and about 3 hours after you've taken the driveshaft out of the car, you could install it.  Remember now, if you're going to do this yourself, you go as far as notching or marking your driveshaft large and little so that you know when you put it back to gether just where it should be so your balance is correct.  Anyhow, you'll have replace your U joint also, and if you have to rejoin it at the split, then you might as well replace it at the rear and you will not believe how your baby will hum.  And not from being out of balance, but from riding down the road with peace of mind.

Let me know if this helps you, let me know if you need more info, you know you can go to our store and find these parts or once you get to our store and want to email us, feel free to do so.  This is a love affair more than a business.  Good day, my little Italian olives! 

David