[s-cars] CV Boot Recommendation

[Joshua van Tol]

I would add that even if a rebuilt half shaft is cheaper, I'd *still*  
re-pack. The reason is that most (90+% in my experience wrenching)  
rebuilt half-shafts are unmitigated junk. You're getting a half shaft  
that someone else wore out, and a rebuild company "rebuilt" using  
whatever procedures they imagine might work. The manufacturers of CV  
joints don't typically offer re-built joints, and for good reason.  
Once they're worn out, the process to restore them to like new  
condition is almost as much work as building a new one.


On Sep 11, 2006, at 3:01 PM, David Kase wrote:

> Clean and pack. No need to replace it unless it is
> a) making noise
> b) it costs more to do just the boot.
>
> The outer CV can be easily removed on the Audi's I have dealt with  
> but I
> never did an A4.  If you find you can remove it easily, just clean and
> repack.
>
> The key here is CLEAN!  Clean the joint, then clean it again.  When  
> you
> are sure its clean, clean it one more time.  If there is a single  
> chunk
> of stone or hard material in there, it could toast the joint.
>
> The joints are PITA to clean but just keep working it around and  
> around
> and eventually all the grease and crap will come out (get all the  
> grease
> out as that is where the crap hides).  I would highly recommend  
> getting
> use of a parts cleaner for this.
>
> Good luck,
> Dave Kase
>
> Brian Powell wrote:
>
>> What is it all of a sudden? 100+k miles without a single problem,
>> well-maintained and now the wife's A4 is giving me grief and keeping
>> me from my S6 projects.
>>
>> Changing her oil yesterday, I did my normal inspections and found  
>> that
>> the outer CV boot for the front, passenger side has a small tear in
>> it. I noticed because a little glob of grease was coming out of it. I
>> squeezed the boot and found there seems to be a good bit of grease
>> still in there. I used my grease gun and put more in.
>>
>> So, the question becomes, should I replace the CV or just remove the
>> boot, clean and repack the grease and put on a new boot? Or should I
>> just save time and get a rebuilt half-shaft?
>>
>> The problem with the clean and repack is I'm not sure what type of
>> press I would need to separate the CV from the half-shaft so that I
>> could replace the boot.
>>
>> Basically, I need suggestions and howto's. Searching the recent
>> archive, I found a bit of discussion about this, but it seemed that
>> some advocated replacement, others clean/repack.
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Brian
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>>
>>
>
> -- 
> David Kase
> Engineering Manager
> PDQ Industries
> 717-656-4281
> 717-656-8749 (f)
> www.pdqlocks.com
>
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