Replace front passenger side outer CV boot |
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At some point recently I noticed a bunch of grease coating areas of the front-passenger side wheel well. Closer inspection showed a torn outer CV boot. I don't know how old this half-shaft or its CV boots are but I would guess they have seen some days. I think this was just an age-related failure for a handful of nebulous reasons.
I know most people just replace the half-shafts these days since it is an easier job, and it's not too much more money. But I'm pinching pennies as always, and I simply refuse to throw otherwise serviceable things into the landfill for environmental reasons. So I'm going to replace the boot (and grease).
Knowing I'd be doing this job which requires the axle not to come off, I finally picked up some properly modern battery power tools including an impact wrench to make my life much easier. Read more about that here:
BenFenner's giant tool [thread].
For some reason I guess this OEM repair kit does not come with a new axle nut (most of the aftermarket repair kits do come with one) and I missed that fact when ordering it. So without a new axle nut on hand I would have to reuse my old one (don't have time to wait for a new one to arrive). So, lesson learned there.
When removing the axle nut I wanted to keep it in good shape so I actually tightened it a bit to gently un-peen it, then removed it. THis worked well, and really shows the power of that Milwaukee mid-torque impact wrench. The thing is a monster.
The rest of the job went as expected.
No need to remove anything that would cause the need for a realignment like the tie rod end. No need to remove the lower ball joint, too annoying. Just remove the upper strut bolts and swivel things out of the way.
I didn't own the proper Oetiker clamp pliers at the time (I do have some now), so I made do with some generic pliers and a couple of thick staples (construction nails could have worked as well). See the pics toward the end of the album.
The only other tip/trick I have is to pre-bend or pre-close any new c-clip retainers installed onto the shaft so hugs the shaft and snaps into place inside the transfer case(?) much easier. You can actually crush this c-clip during installation if it is too loose. Don't ask me how I know.
Oh, and I took the time to label each bearing ball and its associated cage location so they could go back where they came because I am an absolute mad man (I don't think for a second this truly matters in the greater scheme of things).
Parts:
$47.08 | OEM front outer CV boot repair kit | 31607507402
Pics:
