4kq driver front outer CV

[Robert Rossato]

Wow, what a kludge job.  There should definitely only be one dished
washer, plus you can see that the previous owner used wheel bearing
grease instead of the proper molybdenum disulfide grease.  I would clean
it all out, disassembly of the joint itself is not that tough, though
the edges are sharp so you may end up with nicked fingers after you're
done.  Buy yourself a boot kit.  They're available for $15 - $20.  It
will have the grease, new circlip, thrust washer, dished washer, and
clamps for both ends.

May want to check out the other CV joints while you're at it.  Who
knows, you may find some missing dished washers ;-)

Bob

> -----Original Message-----
> From: quattro-bounces at audifans.com 
> [mailto:quattro-bounces at audifans.com] On Behalf Of Kneale Brownson
> Sent: Sunday, June 25, 2006 3:32 PM
> To: quattro at audifans.com
> Subject: 4kq driver front outer CV
> 
> 
> Decided to explore the outer CV on the driver side axle 
> assembly I removed
> from my wife's 4kq.  The outer was hanging from the axle by 
> the boot, which
> was full of grease and free of any tears or cuts.  So I 
> pulled it the rest
> of the way off, undid the wire holding the big end of the 
> boot to the CV
> and found:
> 
http://www.pbase.com/kneale_brownson/image/62445683

Third item from the right is the thrust washer that was supposed to be
there, according to the Bentley.  The first two and the fourth and fifth
from the right are what is supposed to be only one dished washer,
according
to Bentley.  The sixth item is the "circlip" I removed from the groove
in
the axle, which is at:

http://www.pbase.com/kneale_brownson/image/62445296

The CV itself is very tight.  No gaps and I need to use a wood dowel in
the
center in order to move it, after having washed the grease mostly out of
it
with a solvent.  See
http://www.pbase.com/kneale_brownson/image/62445817
  It WILL go through what appears to be a full range of movement if I
put a
fair amount of pressure on the dowel.

Can I just get a new "circlip", thrust washer (this one has some nicks
in
it) and dished washer and put this thing back together with the
requisite
90 grams of CV grease?

I'm wondering if the outer came off the main axle because someone put it
back on previously with a used circlip???  After all, they used lengths
of
wire to tighten the boot ends instead of the bands usually employed.
And
why would they have installed three extra dished washers?