The little rubber donut aka the "Axle Vibration Damper"on the drivers side front axle broke loose from its connection and is free-sliding on the axle. Now, I DO have a shuddering/vibration in 2nd and 3rd gear when accelerating at a normal speed. I have to think this weight being loose is the issue, correct?

I had an Acura TL that had the same exact feeling, and new aftermarket axles took care of the issue. I understand aftermarket axles are not tremendously reliable and that bothers me. But what also bothers me is the price of Honda axles (can you even get them anymore?).

There does not appear to be any way to re-secure but I did find in my research that some Accord and other Honda guys cut them off with no ill-effects.

Being that there is a vibration and its almost 100% coming from the axles, how do i know which axle is causing the issue? Passenger CV boot lost its clip to secure it to the shaft and was puking grease so I rep-secured it.

Any and all help appreciates gents and ladies!

 

Well, for a start, I'd say cut it out if it's spinning around on the axle. That most likely is exacerbating any felt vibrations. Worst case scenario is that the vibrations increase, but most likely they will decrease.

IIRC most aftermarket axles don't even come with the dampener.

 

I'll cut it out this morning. What would you recommnd I use? I have a dremel, sawzall and hack saw.

 

Your choice, choose wisely and don't cut the axle in half

 

Haha, thanks for the positive encouragement. Although, that may not be a bad thing lmao! Factory axles are $$350+ so thats out lol. Aftermarket here we come!

 

Did you already cut the damper off? If you haven't and you still want to try and secure in place I'd suggest finding where on the axle that the damper broke free from, place it there, and then wrap a radiator hose clamp around the axle above and below the damper to hold it in place laterally. The clamps are so light that I can't imagine it would add much additional weight to the axle shaft, but just to be safe you could mount the clamps so that the screws are 180 degrees opposed to each other.

 

Good call Matt but I did cut it off yesterday. Started with a metal cutoff wheel on my dremel then ended up running to the local hardware store to get a new disk for my pneumatic cutoff wheel. Its off and although the vibration is still there, its not quite as pronounced. Can I run it without the damper without further damage to the axle? If the car already shakes from an axle going, I may as well get a new one to replace it. Any recommendations to what aftermarket brands to go with?

 

I've never used them, but there's a company called Raxles that's supposed to be top-notch for AM axles. They don't have a configurator on their page so you may have to give them a call to find out what's up. I've heard they sell about the highest quality axles you'll find outside of OEM and race-specific hi-po stuff. If you check them out, let me know what you find! I've actually always been curious about their pricing structure.

 

Just did a quick search and couldn't find Raxle brand for Gen1 CRV. I will give them a call soon to inquire.