Ok, I've got a torn CV boot, and I'm trying to get everything apart so I can repack the joint and put a new boot on, and this stupid spindle nut is driving me crazy.

How do I get it off? I'm not sure how it is on other peoples cars, but on mine, part of the edge of the nut is smashed down into a groove in the stud, so as to keep it from loosening while the car's moving, I assume. However, it also makes it impossible to get the nut off if you NEED it off.

I've tried getting some needle nose pliers in there to pull that portion up, but they just slip off the lip on the nut. I've tried sticking a screwdriver inbetween the smashed portion and the groove and pushing it up, but I just ended up with a broken screwdriver.

What's the deal here? How do I get it apart?


[Modified by matt-eg, 10:34 PM 6/29/2002]

 

Anyone? Somebody has to have replaced their CV boots or joints at some point here and had to take the spindle nut off. I'm headed back out to the shop to give it another try. I'll check back in later.

 

take it to any shop with an air impact gun to loosen it, thats what a cv shop did for meand they didn't charge

 

get a stronger screwdriver, mine bent back with my snap-on screwdriver.

 

I just used a thick flathead screw driver and a hammer to unstake it. Then to spin the nut off i used a 4' long piece of pipe slipped over the handle of a socket wrench, came right off...... HTH


[Modified by JV, 7:44 PM 6/29/2002]

 

this trick should work

 

Whelp, got both nuts off... but I broke one 1/2" drive breaker bar in the process, and bent another one all to hell. Jesus, they don't need to be THAT tight... but I'm guessing they've never been removed since the car came off the assembly line, so maybe that's why.

Anyway, bad news though... my mission today was to replace the outer CV boots because the driver's side one was torn... But it turns out I need to have the inner boots kits to replace the inners as well, because I have to cut the clips and disassemble the inners to remove the outers.

But all that doesn't matter, because CV joint that had the torn boot is ruined anyway, guess something got in there in the couple days I had to drive with a torn boot, and now it binds up all the time when I move it around.

<insert stream of obscenities about having to buy a whole new axle assembly here>