Yesterday when i was changing out my front brake pads, i noticed a crapload of grease with lil rocks stuck in it slung all over the inside of my wheel and on my brake components. turns out my cv boot is torn and i figure the grease and what not is flying around.. but its only the passenger side so thats good. Not sure if i should take it off and try to repack it... and maybe ghetto fix the boot if theres no way of JUST replacing the rubber boot. also could there be possible damage to the CV in which case the whole assembly would be better? My car drives fine and makes no weird noise or clunking...


EDIT: I do see replacement boots online, i worded it poorly, im more concerned as can i JUST put the boot on? im not entirely sure on the process of how i can restore/ replace teh grease inside of the joint..

 

rule of thumb- if it's split enough for grease to come out, you must assume other things have gotten in and caused wear.

surface cracking without open holes or leaking grease is what you want to see when you plan to replace the boots.

it's usually better to replace the complete CV axle (half-shaft) if it's split. if you've got the right tools handy and you're good at using them, you should be able to slide a new axle in in the driveway in about an hour.

to give you an idea of what it takes to replace boots:
-pull the axle out
-set it up in a bench vise so that the inboard joint is on top. cut the metal band and remove the inboard joint "bell." (carefull theres going to be a lot of grease!)
-remove and clean the three bearings.
-remove and clean the retaining clip and the Y-shapped bearing holder from the shaft.
-now you can remove the inboard boot by sliding it off the shaft. then remove the outboard boot likewise.
-install the new outboard boot without damaging it on the shaft. before seating it on the outboard "bell," fill it with fresh grease. tighten the new straps (you'll need a special tool for this).
-same story for the inboard; install reverse of removal and add grease before clamping straps.

pretty involved..!

 

god damn... ha that is a bit much... taking the axle out in the first place is gonna be a pain i feel... crap ha. Personnaly do u think its worth doing just the boot? or should i spill the extra dough for a full axle? Im seeing the axles priced at around 95-130... what is a fair price?

 

personally i wouldnt just do the boot....because odds are about a month or so down the line itll go bad and leave you stranded.....do the axle

 

If it is a recent tear, just redo the boot to save money. I'm all about saving as much money as possible. Make sure you put back everything to the way it was and re-grease it and it should be fine. Been going on mine for about 10 months now and no problems. If the tear is old, replace the axle.

 

i really have no idea how old the tear has been there though... ha. would it be bad to clean it all out the bearings and all as stated and hten grease it?

 

That'll work. Make sure you use CV grease.

 

If you are not busy now, I would replace the half shaft now. Why spend the time to do just the boot? What happens when you break down next week and are too busy? You'll be kicking yourself in the butt.

 

Because there isn't anything wrong with it right now other then the fact that it has a tear? Unless you go out and buy OEM (we all know how expensive that is), you are likely to encounter a problem somewhere down the line with remaned. axles also. Why fix something that isn't currently broken?

 

well, I have had a just world of fun recently with axles.

Mine seized up on me on the interstate heading up to school. Do not, and I repeat, do not buy any sort of remanfactured axle from any local auto place. Buy a new one, whether it be aftermarket or OEM. I just put down 850 bucks on completely brand new OEM axles for both sides so I don't have to deal with it anymore.

Now, for the boot, you could take the axle out, cut the boot off, and look at everything, but odds are, it has been split for a while, and the damage has already begun. The easiest way to tell is if it really smooth slimy grease inside, that is good, but if there is a bunch of gritty grease, that is basically grease that has been contaminated with dirt and such.

Now, snap on does make a boot expander for their universal boots. I used this tool today on a gen 1 Odyssey for doing a new boot as it was a freshly torn boot and all the grease inside was good. Basically, they make the boots so they can be expanded over the whole axle assembly so you dont have to take it apart at all. And they have boots that come in a few different sizes to suit a certain need. It was really really cool, but it comes at a price of 300 bucks just for the air tool and like 36 bucks per boot.

I recommend the axle replacement, but like I said, only if it is brand new. When I get my new axles in, I am doing a thread as to what can happen when the axle seizes when I take it apart.

 

dang that made me nervous ha. i looked at it tonight, kinda popped my head into the fender and pulled the boot back some waht and with a flashlight looked into the CV joint, from what i could tell/ felt its "clean" grease ha if there is such a thing, but it still felt smooth and uniform in viscosity with no debris felt. So i might just get a new boot in there after all and inspect and clean it all when its off. As far yours seizing.... i cant even imagine what thats like... i imagine it screeching to stop with some mad pull... did the wheel spin out of your hands or something?

 

spoken like a true moron......a torn cv boot is a broken axle....why change you oil if your cars running fine?......its called looking ahead.....as i said b4 replace the axle

for 850 id stick with the remaned ones.....the hell with that

 

Dude...isn't there some company in florida that makes strengthened axles for that price? That's outrageous.

 

You think just because the boot is torn that the axle is broken? I'm not even gonna try.

 

For what it's worth, years ago when front wheel drive first came out and axles were expensive and not readily available I used to replace torn boots because it was the cheapest alternative. Now that most auto store stock a full line of affordable re-manufactured axles, to me it's the way to go. I personally haven't encountered any problems with re-manufactured axles, but if that's something that bothers you, and cost is not a consideration, then go with the expensive OEM axles.

 

im not one for half assing things....so i would just replace it

 

If you haven't decided what to do yet, I'd strongly recommend replacing the axle. They're under $100 at Autozone and they have a lifetime warranty. I know people prefer OEM but if you can't afford it, you can't afford it.

2 piece aftermarket cv boots are ****, in my experience. That, and you have to do almost as much work to get them properly filled and fitted as if you just pop the axle out and replace it.

As far as the comments about the axle being broken.. Well, it's a risk you may or may not want to take. If you need info on how to do the swap, I'm sure it's not much different than the 4th gen front end.

I just did my driver's side and it took me longer to get the axle from the store than to swap it out.

Passenger side requires a little finesse, and it's good to have help as the front spindle and calipers can be heavy.

Good luck!

 

Well see what happens, and I will explain in much more detail when I write this thread up about axles so people can really so what is going on in there, but the bearings are digging grooves into the driver, and that is the dreaded clicking sound you hear when you make slow hard turns. And eventually, if the bearings have enough time to keep "clicking" meaning the axle has not been changed out, it will start to actually get stuck into this groove that has been dug. I was driving straight down the interstate doing 55, and my steering would pop to the right about 15 degrees every 10 seconds. So it was definitely a little scary cause I was worried about the safety of everyone around me, so I immediately pulled off and all.

Now, the axle is not broken, as everyone is saying, the axle life has just been dramatically reduced since the boot tore. I can show you a broken axle, come check out my car haha. But, you do what you think is right for situation. I always recommend doing new axles, just because putting new boots on an axle, unless its like the snap on one I did, takes a lot of time and its so messy, and then a few weeks later the axle starts clicking and you need to take the side of the car all apart again to get the axle for a new one to go in. Now you guys can buy the remanfucatured ones all you want. I mean, if they work for you, then good, I am happy for you, but I have had a terrible experience with them, and the axles that seized, one was only a year old, and one was 4 months old. Quality product my *** dude. That's why I went ahead and just went OEM. Because those axles will last. A long time. Sure it costs a pretty penny, but after that experience that night, I do not care, I am not going through axle crap again.

Just my 2 cents. Good luck with it dude, whether you want to go with a new axle, or just a boot.

 

I have plenty of time to do the axle... ha im just a highschool student who gets **** for hours at his job ha. But i might go with just trying to go with the $8 boot replacement for now and just check often and listen carfully for a lil bit after the procedure... unless upon inspection the bearings and all are shot and looking bad...


thanks though for all the info, im looking forward to that thread though tamad.. and some pics ha

 

i am waiting on the inboard joint to come in, it was back ordered from Honda, but yeah, I cant wait either to see what that axle looks like inside, I know it is not pretty, not at all.

I mean I dont get much money either, I save as much as I can, but do what you think is best, and that is the best way if you go the boot route (checking it every so often). Just keep listening, like take really sharp and slow turns, like in a parking lot, music off obviously, and you will definitely hear it. And try and not drive your car anymore until you get that new boot.

 

yeah definitly. But after the new boot is on and what not, taking those sharp slow turns, if the joint is bad and all didnt go well i will hear a clicking noise? but i guess ill know for sure when i just do the boot and take a peek at it all

 

oh yeah, you will hear it. no doubt.

 

raxles.com IMHO the best out there untill you start going high performance...

just replace the whole axle before you go through all the trouble then 2 months later your car clicks and shakes

 

i can vouch for raxle axles. I have had them on my accord for 45,000 miles and all is good, plus you get a lifetime warranty (under certain conditions), I think i got my axles for 220+ for both axles

 

As I learned about halfshafts in class, I learned that they have about 8 hours of life with no grease after the CV boot is torn.

If your axle clicks already, then no point of replacing the boot. It'll still click even if you re-pack the joint with new boot. Thats what I learn in Auto Tech class.

If your axle clicks while turning then its your fix joint(outboard joint) that is bad. If your axle clicks while rolling in a straight away, its your plunge joint(inboard joint) that is bad. Just a heads up.