CV Boot Repair
 

Hi Everyone - I just had an oil change completed on my X5 N62 w/ 79k and the mechanic noticed the the driver's side outer CV boot is ripped so obviously we need to do the repair.

Now, I am no way mechanically inclined so I need someone to do this job and got quoted by a local BMW indy $600. Seems like a lot of $ to me. So, I have this Mercedes indy who's very good. I spoke to him about the job and he's will to do it but he said he remembered from an X3 that he had an issue because the "axle needed to be removed" and he didn't have a special tool?

Guys, like I said I'm not technical at all but is there a special tool need to get the outer CV Boot/axle off to do this job?

Thanks to all who answer.

There are multiple threads on this in this forum with DIY quoting 30min timeframe, short answer is NO you dont have to remove the axle

Even if the axle has to be removed, it doesn't need any special tools, that any mechanic doesn't already poses.

Second that. Easy to do either the 30-min way or the book way with conventional tools. He might be politely trying to back out of his commitment for whatever reason. I wouldn't push him at this point, but do call around to other trusted Indys for a better quote.

There are several way to remove and replace the CV joint axle boot.

You can remove the axle off the car and replace the boot on the bench.

You can pull the cv joint off the upright and use a special tool to pull the cv joint off the axle and then replace the boot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOh43Wkmqnc

You can separate the axle from the inner joint and remove the tripod joint from the axle and then replace the axle boot.

Hey everyone, thanks for all the feedback. I really don't think he's trying to get out of the repair - money is money. I just think he was being cautious based on the X3 experience. This guy's a very experienced mechanic but he just happens to specialize in Mercedes. As such, he may not be aware of certain specifics regarding this CV boot procedure.

For instance, I needed a CV boot on a MB e430 4matic and he literally did it in 10 minutes - totally straightforward.

If he is a pro, and does this for a living, he will have no issues with the e53 at all. Seriously, this will be nothing new to him at all.

:iagree: The labor isn't difficult... just a little time consuming. It's not easy to manhandle suspension sections on an e53. :cool: The axle doesn't need to be removed from the vehicle and no special tool is needed to perform the service. What does the $600 quote from the indy include? Just the boot replacement?

How much less will this Mercedes indy charge? I couldn't imagine him charging less than $450 for the boot replacement using aftermarket parts.

Thanks for the info.

The BMW indy was charging for the boot plus labor. I think his price was very high unless I'm missing something as I'm not sure how many hrs the job calls for. I can't imagine what his per hr rate is but let's say he was gonna charge me a $100 for the boot, then he wanted 5 hours labor? Not sure.

With the Mercedes indy, I got the part from my local BMW dealer. The "kit" cost $41 which included the lube and the clamps. I'm not sure how much this guy's gonna charge me but I'll let everyone know when I pick up the truck tonight.

Thanks

i just called a random indy here in Brooklyn, $120 labor. WTF is your guy even charging that price for?

I dont know any indy that would do a boot replacement for $120 in So. California. That's dirt cheap. Hopefully that price also comes with quality service.

The book gives 3 hrs for an axle service. $600 is relatively high but the dealership rate is about $740 for the job. If you can get it all done for under $450 by a professional, consider yourself lucky. :thumbup:

Yea called my Indy. $90 plus parts. There are a billion shops around NYC. Brooklyn is absolutelly over saturated with them.

How do they stay in business with so much competition?

The population density of NYC makes it so I guess. Just like all the fast food around here. Everywhere else I have been, the food, like Chinese was significantly more expensive.

I read somewhere that if you take all the people in the entire world, stick them into Texas, you will get the population density of NYC.

Unlikely. Less people own/drive cars in NYC compared to other heavily populated states...Let alone drive BMW's.

Regardless, I couldn't see any professional charge $90 plus parts for an axle boot replacement. That would put the shop at a loss unless the owner trafficked a batch of highly trained technicians, willing to work for pennies on the hour, using discount grade hand tools, while only having sun light to illuminate the work area.

Hey Everyone - I got my X5 back from the Mercedes indy that did the work. Unfortunately, I can't give you a specific amount charged for the work b/c I also had the ball joints done on a e430 4matic that I own. Now, I paid $40 for the BMW CV Boot Kit (from the dealer) and the guy charged me $340 labor for both the cv boot and ball joint repair (I purchased the ball joints separately from the mercedes dealer).

So, a the total cost for labor was $340. Now, the mercedes indy did tell me the cv boot job was not easy and he did pull the axle out (I wasn't there so I'll have to take his word for it). But considering the BMW indy wanted $600 just for the cv boot job, I guess I'm way ahead of the game. Thanks to everyone who helped me out with all the info in this thread.

Ha. You clearly have not sat in traffic anywhere in the 5 boroughs. I don't know where you get your info from. The sheer population here, no matter how few people have a car, at 8 million people, and registration rate being at 46%, you are talking about 4 million cars, in an area a fraction of the state.

https://dmv.ny.gov/statistic/2015reginforce-web.pdf

Little pdf summary for you.

Unless you are mistaken, and thinking a CV boot takes 4 hours, in which case you are wrong. When I bought my car, I brought it straight to my indy, and watched him do both my CVs in 40 min.

As far as sub par tools. I know that snapon truck owners here, live in houses that would blow your mind. I have never seen any of my mechanic friends use anything other than Snapon or Mac. Shit I have a nice array of SO myself.

Oh by the way, my alternator housing bracket cost me $400 with me helping. How is that for you? Done at OMG Motorworks, a BMW specialty shop, albeit owned by my friend, but still.

Oh and according to Forbes, NY is number 3 in most expensive cars sold. I think you need a fact check. With BMW being the number 1 luxury brand. I see more BMW per minute than most see in a day.

Forbes Welcome

That being said, look at what Tom paid below. I am sure he got hit with quite the markup by going to "Benz" specialist. Seriously, CV boot is not rocket science. If anyone pays even close to $200 for one, I would call that being raped.

That being said, look at what Tom paid below. I am sure he got hit with quite the markup by going to "Benz" specialist. Seriously, CV boot is not rocket science. If anyone pays even close to $200 for one, I would call that being raped.[/QUOTE]

I'm not sure if I was "raped", but I'm sure I didn't get a "deal" on the 2 repairs. I know he may have had a little difficulty from the standpoint of not being familar with the X5 and thus he may have done the rapair the longer way instead of the shortcut way that's been documented on the forum. Anyway, the job was completed (hopefully correctly) and now maybe I'll get a price break from him when the passenger side boot goes (or at least I'll check prices with Slick beforehand).

Thanks

Wow, that's a really cool stat. I figured I would fact check it with some quick googling. Here are the results of that:

NYC population density: 26,403 / sq mi
area of Texas: 268,580 sq mi
pop of Texas if it had density of NYC: 7,091,317,740
pop of the world 7.125 billion

So yes, it is not only cool, but also correct. Nice. :thumbup:

BTW, for those of us in the rest of the world, dumb question maybe, but when people say NYC, what exactly does that mean? Manhattan? 5 boroughs? Something else?

I treat it as 5 boroughs when talking to non locals. When I'm talking to someone local, we talk specific boroughs. To us, its all the same shit, no matter what borough you are in. We are always in traffic. Except for nights and very early mornings, even then, night construction might get you. There is always something going on somewhere. During the day, in the city, it can take me 40 min to get .1 mile. I sometimes wish I can put plywood on a motorcycle lol. Parking hurts the most around here.

And back on the shop topic, yea Tom, I wouldn't call you getting raped either. Considering all that was done, you got a decent price. If you would have come down to Brooklyn, you would get a better price, but its hard to find a spot that will take you right away. You usually end up waiting for hours around here.

I know it is off topic, but it is something that interests me. As early as the 1960's, it was seen that the boundaries between cities spanning from Washington DC to Boston had grown together to form a single "NorthEast" Megalopolis of 52 million people (2010 data). It is completely arbitrary where you draw the line... The classic suburbs have become very urban in their own right and the new suburbs extend even farther.