I hate using one of our 240's which I have not driven for a while. By the time I take it for a spin, there is always something wrong with it that has been ignored for far too long.

The most recent case in point is a blown out driveshaft flex disc. Of course my sweetheart never noticed the "clunk!" whenever she released the clutch innumerable times over the past couple of months. By the time I became aware of it, the rubber was almost completely gone and the heads of the fasteners were worn away to half of their original form.

What puzzles me is that in 30 years of maintaining Volvo 240's, I have never seen a flex disc disintegrate like this. I've seen them with some obvious cracks after as much as 250 Kmi. of use, but still intact. The disc I am talking about was replaced just as a precaution at the time of a clutch job about 25 Kmi. ago. I can't remember the brand, but I can make out on the little bit which remains that it was German.

Has anyone seen anything like this with a quality flex disc?

I am starting to think that a ground hog might have gnawed his way through it because I have caught them scratching the undercoating on the driveshaft tunnel, before.

Any ideas?

Rich