right side front axle
 

Does the right side front axle have a long section about 14" beyond the inner Cv joint? Vehicle is a 2002 3.0i X5.

Thanks. My CV joint boot is cracked and I opted to replace the entire axle.

Yes, it has to pass through the oil pan and into the front diff which is on the drivers side. Here's what it should look like.

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxMj...U9GIu/$_57.JPG

the one I got from autozone for the front right has been doing just fine.

I think you got lucky. I bought a pair from Advanced Auto and the splines were so bad they wouldn't even slide in - seems like a common problem here. I returned those and got GKN axles. When the rears needed it, I watched some youtube videos and rebooted them myself. Messy fun!

You are indeed lucky. I would never buy new chinese axles.

You shouldn't ever technically need to replace the axle unless you let the boot rip completely open and spew grease everywhere and grit gets inside the sealed joint.

If you catch the boots before they tear open for replacement, and just repack with fresh grease and a new outer boot (the inners never tear), your OE axles will outlast the X5's body, for what its worth.

If for some reason the OE axle boot rips and gets inside the joint, you can try a quality rebuilding shop, or I would honestly just get a new GKN axle only.

Preventative maintenance is key here, it doesn't take long to go under the X5 every 6 months and check the visual condition of the outer boots.

I tend to stay away from advance auto. they have seriously gone down in quality.

I got the axles from autozone before they stopped doing the unlimited time limit on the $20 rewards points. so about 2 years ago? now days I use o'reilly.

the cv joints were among the items I used to negotiate the price of the x5 when I bought it. both were noticably clicking. these two front autozone cv joints have been going just fine the past two years and have a lifetime warranty on them. didnt notice anything wrong with build quality.

I generally use the parts stores, ebay, or rock auto on all my cars for years. I've had a couple bad water pumps and alternators and such but overall I guess I have been extremely lucky. *runs to knock on wood* lol.