Hey all, I'm going to replace my passenger side axle, first time do it myself...It is for a 95 Honda Accord with h22a. So I got the axle for an Accord...I got a few questions. First, it is a non abs, and the guy sold me the axle for abs version, and he said it dont matter. Second, I have a stick shift, do I need to change the tranny fluid after the axle change too or am I safe without doing it? Anything else I need to know. Been searching online for more info but found mostly for accord, and saw a note that said need to change the tranny fluid if do on passenger side.

Thanks

 

The only difference between an ABS axle and non ABS axle is the ABS ring on the outer joint. You will have to drain the transmission before removing the axle or MTF will come out of the trans where the axle goes. You will need a 36MM axle nut socket, a balljoint separator, 12MM, 14MM, 17MM sockets and a torque wrench.

 

Oh, hmmm...I dont know how to refill the transmission oil for manual transmission...Are they hard to refill? I will be looking up instruction as well.

 

First time i see...start pulling out the service manaul. There should be bolt on the side of the transmission..looks like an INWARD bolt..your gonna use the 3/8 socket extension to open it..once open stick a funnel with a long rubber tube into the hole...have someone pour the tranny fluid in from the top while you monitor the amount going in..as soon as you see an overflow remove the funnel and immediately close the hole back up..that should do it. Make sure you get someone else to help you, two is better than one..for this job anyways. I think its a 3/8 extension, and you can use motor oil for the tranny as well too..10-30.
PEOPLE IF I MADE AN ERROR PLEASE CORRECT. THANK YOU.

 

You don't need to drain the transmission, fluid only comes out if the car is lifted up unevenly. The bolt the person above me is talking about is the DRAIN BOLT not the fill bolt, if you fill it through the drain you'll never get enough fluid in there and will ruin the transmission. There are 2 bolts on the case where the axles go in, 1 uses a 17mm socket for the fill and the other uses a 3/8" square drive which is the drain bolt.

If you do lift it in a way in which you lose fluid then you just fill it though the fill hole on the side until it comes out.

MTF works way better than motor oil, I'd only use motor oil if there was no way of getting MTF and would change it the second MTF became available.

 

Don't drain your fluid, and don't use a balljoint fork, those things f* up ball joints.

You will probably want a spring compressor though.

Basically what you need to do is very simple:
jack the car up from the passenger side
pull the wheel off [19mm]
remove the axle nut [36mm?], if you don't have an impact a friend stepping on the brakes helps
compress the spring with spring compressor[s], I usually use two on a spring
remove the bolt [17mm] from the wheel spindle/upper control arm joint, this is a castle nut should have a cotter pin, remove the pin and replace it with a new one when you are re-installing
tap the spindle with a hammer until the ball joint pops loose, wd40 and a little pressure on the upper control arm help this process along
If your brake lines are still bolted to your spindle you should remove these bolts [both 10mm I think]
Remove the lower strut fork bolt [17mm]
Remove the upper strut fork bolt [14mm], its on the back side at the bottom of the strut
Drop the strut fork off the strut, wd40 helps here
Pull the axle out, a good sized flat blade or pry bar help here
Check that the locking clip came out of the tranny with the axle, if not you will have to fish it out

Repeat process in reverse.

Make sure that the axle snaps in when you're putting it back in, if you don't you will find out in the first couple of turns when your car stops moving because the axle popped out ...

Luckily all you need to do is jack it up and snap it in if this happens. They don't usually pop out of the tranny, they pop out just far enough to disengage from the diff.

This should take you 2-3 hours your first time. Once you get the hang of doing them, you can get them done in anywhere from 30 min-1.5 hours depending on the quality of the tools you have available and the condition of the car.

 

Thanks a lot all!!! I did look and asked around last nite, my neighbor said the same thing, try to lift on the passenger side as high as possible and that should avoid the fluid dripping out. I found a picture of the drain bolt and fill bolt, I just hope i wont have to go that route lol. Going to try this in a bit, one major problem would be the axle nut. Dont have a compressor at home, hope the breaker bar will help. Thanks again

 

One easy way to get the axle nut loose is-
Jack up the passenger side, remove wheel, remove the wheel center cap,
put wheel back on, and lower the vehicle
now you can loosen the axle nut easily because the wheel is on the ground and will not spin
torque on the axle nut is 181FT/LB when reinstalling

 

I couldnt get the axle out, guess I have to let the shop do it. I tighten the axe bolt using the 25" breaker bar. I just pulled as much as I can on the bolt, didnt see if it 195ft/lb or not. Am I safe with the way I did it or should I go to the shop and have them tight it more?

 

No need to worry, I think 195 is the wrong spec anyway, truth be told, the geometry of the axle is what really holds it in place, the axle nut just keeps it from moving around enough to pop out of the diff.

just make sure you bang the nut into the groove on the axle end, that will keep it from loosening

I just looked up the spec ... 185 nM which is 134 lb/ft so 195 is definitely wrong.

 

Thanks typemismatch...I know i still need to get te axle change, but in the mean time, dont want it to fall out or something

 

134FT/LB is the specs for a Civic axle nut

for a Prelude & Accord it is 181FT/LB (I edited my previous post)

 

Thanks guys. I just had my axle done from a shop. It wasn't easy, or close to easy on my passenger side axle. But yeah, got those nuts tighten.