Oh boy…on my way to work this morning (around 6:30), I was about 1/2 mile from the exit from I-15 that I usually take to get to work. I was doing about 75 mph in the center lane, trying to pass a few cars before I had to get off the freeway. All of the sudden, my truck started vibrating like hell, and I thought either my transmission or transfer case had blown up–there was a big trail of smoke and dust behind me. Both the regular shifter and the 4-wheel drive shifter were vibrating so badly, I was afraid one of them was going to hit me and hurt me. I got over to the shoulder as quickly as possible and locked up my brakes. I got out of the truck, looked underneath, and my driveline was disconnected from the output shaft on the transfer case, just lying on the ground. The u-joint had broken, but luckily the driveline had stayed partially connected until right before I came to a stop–otherwise, my driveline would have been smashed beyond repair, and it’s likely that my rear axle would have been torn from its mounts as well.
I had to walk about 1/2 mile to the Wal-Mart at the south Springville interchange, where I called my wife collect (’cause I had no cash), and she called my brother-in-law in Springville, and his wife came out and picked me up. They let me borrow their car, so I went to take a closer look at my truck, then came back into town to get parts. All I needed was a new u-joint and new straps and nuts, and I’m heading out now to fix it. Hopefully I’ll be back on the road quickly, but it may not be that easy. The driveline vibrating did something to the oil seal on the transmission, and some oil leaked out. Hopefully it’s not a big deal, but I guess I’ll find out for sure on my way home.