Corolla CV Axle Boot Replacement

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Last week, I replaced the inboard cv axle boot on a 2005 Corolla with 125k. You will see in the below pictures that the old boot was seeping grease. I rarely see CV axle issues nowadays (and usually I can get approval for a new OE axle) so this was actually the first opportunity that I had to reboot an axle.

Old boot:



In-progress:


Had to order some new pliers in order to get the larger clamp fully tightened. Using needle nose pliers (per the FSM) was a pain.


All done:



Overall, not a terrible job that can be done in 1-2hr. Yes, it is a bit messy, but $42 (list) for a new boot kit and axle nut beats $582 for a new OE axle. However, new aftermarket axle are only a few dollars more than the boot kit so I definitely see why many shops avoid rebooting. But the quality of aftermarket axles has been an issue.

Any tips/tricks on rebooting axles would be greatly appreciated.
 
unless that customer really loved that CV axle, its cheaper to slap on a rebuilt. unless you catch them right away, its hard to tell how long its been like that
 
Rebooting and regrease is the best way if the joint isn't toast, sure quality boots cost more than a new Chinese axle in most cases but you cant beat the quality of the OE joint and axle.
The Chinese stuff is sketchy at best and remans are a nightmare, they many times grind the surface hardening away on at least one joint and to top the whole deal off you loose a good core.

Redoing the old CV axle insures no comebacks for vibration and a perfect fit is guaranteed. Use thermoplastic boots if possible, they will last much longer and take much more abuse than neoprene. Lately I have been using some durometer A 50 poly boots they seem to work very well so far but are hard to find for every vehicle.

OE German car Oetiker style clamps are getting really heavy duty and require a different tool. I use boot clamp strapping with a tool when the new boots don't come with the clamps like the polys.

https://www.amazon.com/OTC-4722-Stinger-Heavy-Duty-Installer/dp/B005J3L4BW

I use approx 7 oz of grease per joint and never had a fail over 100K on many regreased joints and try to place the clamp crimp 180 degrees apart, it is the heaviest part, a little OCD but I try and do everything possible to prevent vibration.
Make sure you clean the qualify the joints well before redoing them, if one has been clicking, rumbling, clunking or vibrating its a done deal before the start.

Edit: If you don't own one buy yourself a CV slide hammer with attachment to remove axles, try to never pry on the case. they don't cost a lot and will save you lots of grief.
 
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I mark the parts so that they go back together the same way. I also always make sure the tripod does not fall apart, many of them are not captive as yours appear to be. Other than that you appear to have it covered - correct clamp pliers and get it clean.

Frankly, replacing a factory axle shaft because it is leaking with aftermarket rebuilt/new junk is foolish IMO... I’d rather reboot a marginal factory axle - it will still be better than parts store rubbish...
 
Who noticed the leak? If it was the customer, I am very surprised. Good for them. Even if it was you guys, the issue was caught just in time.

Never did a reboot before. I am guessing it all needs removed and disassembled?

I can see why shops would prefer a rebuilt CV axle, but you did good by just replacing the boot. Cheap junk is no fun and don't fix what isn't broke. 125k is rather young for a CV axle/ joint anyways.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
Rebooting and regrease is the best way if the joint isn't toast, sure quality boots cost more than a new Chinese axle in most cases but you cant beat the quality of the OE joint and axle.
The Chinese stuff is sketchy at best and remans are a nightmare, they many times grind the surface hardening away on at least one joint and to top the whole deal off you loose a good core.

Redoing the old CV axle insures no comebacks for vibration and a perfect fit is guaranteed. Use thermoplastic boots if possible, they will last much longer and take much more abuse than neoprene. Lately I have been using some durometer A 50 poly boots they seem to work very well so far but are hard to find for every vehicle.

OE German car Oetiker style clamps are getting really heavy duty and require a different tool. I use boot clamp strapping with a tool when the new boots don't come with the clamps like the polys.

https://www.amazon.com/OTC-4722-Stinger-Heavy-Duty-Installer/dp/B005J3L4BW

I use approx 7 oz of grease per joint and never had a fail over 100K on many regreased joints and try to place the clamp crimp 180 degrees apart, it is the heaviest part, a little OCD but I try and do everything possible to prevent vibration.
Make sure you clean the qualify the joints well before redoing them, if one has been clicking, rumbling, clunking or vibrating its a done deal before the start.

Edit: If you don't own one buy yourself a CV slide hammer with attachment to remove axles, try to never pry on the case. they don't cost a lot and will save you lots of grief.



When I worked at Oreilly Auto Parts, many of their reman'd CV axles had very poor axle nut threads. Looke like they disassembled everything and polished the heck out of the shaft and blindly went onto the threads and flattened them out. No way a nut would go on them, but they didn't come with new either. I imagine they were Cardones.

Instead of blaming previously elected officials for our problems, blame Cardone! Lol.
 
I did a dumb one a few years ago. Once assembled the joint does not come off the shaft. You must boil the new boot in water then using an installation tool expand it over the CV joint! Talk about a real SNAFU.
 
Originally Posted By: dlundblad
Originally Posted By: Trav
Rebooting and regrease is the best way if the joint isn't toast, sure quality boots cost more than a new Chinese axle in most cases but you cant beat the quality of the OE joint and axle.
The Chinese stuff is sketchy at best and remans are a nightmare, they many times grind the surface hardening away on at least one joint and to top the whole deal off you loose a good core.

Redoing the old CV axle insures no comebacks for vibration and a perfect fit is guaranteed. Use thermoplastic boots if possible, they will last much longer and take much more abuse than neoprene. Lately I have been using some durometer A 50 poly boots they seem to work very well so far but are hard to find for every vehicle.

OE German car Oetiker style clamps are getting really heavy duty and require a different tool. I use boot clamp strapping with a tool when the new boots don't come with the clamps like the polys.

https://www.amazon.com/OTC-4722-Stinger-Heavy-Duty-Installer/dp/B005J3L4BW

I use approx 7 oz of grease per joint and never had a fail over 100K on many regreased joints and try to place the clamp crimp 180 degrees apart, it is the heaviest part, a little OCD but I try and do everything possible to prevent vibration.
Make sure you clean the qualify the joints well before redoing them, if one has been clicking, rumbling, clunking or vibrating its a done deal before the start.

Edit: If you don't own one buy yourself a CV slide hammer with attachment to remove axles, try to never pry on the case. they don't cost a lot and will save you lots of grief.



When I worked at Oreilly Auto Parts, many of their reman'd CV axles had very poor axle nut threads. Looke like they disassembled everything and polished the heck out of the shaft and blindly went onto the threads and flattened them out. No way a nut would go on them, but they didn't come with new either. I imagine they were Cardones.

Instead of blaming previously elected officials for our problems, blame Cardone! Lol.
with those remanned Cardone ones they expect you to gun the but down with your impact.
 
Working at Lexus & Toyota dealers for the last 20 years I’ve rebooted many of these. That’s the way to go. I’ve seen way too many problems with aftermarket CV axles & would rather rebuild a junkyard OEM one than install aftermarket.
 
New axles are sold at Advance Auto Parts. I installed both axles on my wife's previous car a Sentra. They worked perfectly for many years. I see they still show them online. $69.99 New not rebuilt.
 
Timely thread, my driver side CV axle is doing exactly the same thing. I was planning on getting a reman axle, but reading the quality issues, I think I will go with a re-boot kit. Thanks for sharing!
thumbsup2.gif


By the way, did you re-boot both ends, or just the bad one?
 
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A good quality reboot will cost more than an entire aftermarket axle, but it's worth it. Most aftermarket reboot kits (eg. EMPI, Dorman, Moog) suck because they are made of neoprene instead of thermoplastic. Aftermarket CV axles also use neoprene, which is why they suck. Thermoplastic is what modern OEMs use and they outlast neoprene in every way (abrasion resistance, heat, cold). The problem is that it's hard to find unless you go with the OEM reboot kit. Part of the reason might be because 3M has a patent on the material so it could be hard and expensive for aftermarkets to use it.

I've rebooted my 4Runner several times and so far the neoprene boots are not lasting. The first time, I rebooted with an EMPI kit which lasted 2-3 years on both axles. Both joints basically failed within months of each other. I now switched over to a Napa boot (I think it's made by Mevotech) with a lifetime warranty, but it's still neoprene so we'll see how well it holds up. This was before I discovered that Toyota actually makes an OEM reboot kit with the proper grease too.

Another thing I learned about rebooting is the grease. Most boot kits do NOT come with enough grease. They give a small 100g packet, but the OEM joint in my vehicle actually required 3x more. The grease they give you is generic high moly CV grease on both the inner and outer joints. It's probably fine, but the OE joint uses a different grease on the inner and outer so you have to make sure to clean out the joint fully before packing new grease in there. Maybe the OE dual grease system is better but who knows. I literally have never heard or read anywhere about a CV joint going bad from the grease as long as the boot is not damaged and the joint was not abused.
 
Originally Posted By: nobb
I literally have never heard or read anywhere about a CV joint going bad from the grease as long as the boot is not damaged and the joint was not abused.


That's what the farmer said when the cow died "she never did that before". I have done 2 in the last few months. I still have the axle here I will post some pics of the thing, the boot is okay but the inner joint is toast from lube failure, not abuse.

Many a reman joint has failed without any boot damage and still full of grease, many times they grind the surface hardening away and the joint is "soft" and fails.
 
Looks good man
thumbsup2.gif


Do you have any experience with Raxles? They claim to use new joints and Amsoil synthetic grease. I don't know what kind of boots they use, though.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
Rebooting and regrease is the best way if the joint isn't toast, sure quality boots cost more than a new Chinese axle in most cases but you cant beat the quality of the OE joint and axle.
The Chinese stuff is sketchy at best and remans are a nightmare, they many times grind the surface hardening away on at least one joint and to top the whole deal off you loose a good core.

Redoing the old CV axle insures no comebacks for vibration and a perfect fit is guaranteed. Use thermoplastic boots if possible, they will last much longer and take much more abuse than neoprene. Lately I have been using some durometer A 50 poly boots they seem to work very well so far but are hard to find for every vehicle.

OE German car Oetiker style clamps are getting really heavy duty and require a different tool. I use boot clamp strapping with a tool when the new boots don't come with the clamps like the polys.

https://www.amazon.com/OTC-4722-Stinger-Heavy-Duty-Installer/dp/B005J3L4BW

I use approx 7 oz of grease per joint and never had a fail over 100K on many regreased joints and try to place the clamp crimp 180 degrees apart, it is the heaviest part, a little OCD but I try and do everything possible to prevent vibration.
Make sure you clean the qualify the joints well before redoing them, if one has been clicking, rumbling, clunking or vibrating its a done deal before the start.

Edit: If you don't own one buy yourself a CV slide hammer with attachment to remove axles, try to never pry on the case. they don't cost a lot and will save you lots of grief.




Thanks for the tips, I appreciate it. For axle removal I have been using a long (blunt) chisel against the inner joint, and giving it a quick tap with a sledgehammer. So far, this has been exceptionally effective. I also picked up this overpriced chisel set for unlocking/locking the cv axle nuts:

https://www.sptool.com/product/13000-staked-axle-nut-punches/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93vtGzOgvXU

Originally Posted By: dlundblad
Who noticed the leak? If it was the customer, I am very surprised. Good for them. Even if it was you guys, the issue was caught just in time.

Never did a reboot before. I am guessing it all needs removed and disassembled?

I can see why shops would prefer a rebuilt CV axle, but you did good by just replacing the boot. Cheap junk is no fun and don't fix what isn't broke. 125k is rather young for a CV axle/ joint anyways.


This car was a new purchase, so we are not sure. The axles are quiet and do not vibrate, so they were worth rebooting.

Originally Posted By: nobb
A good quality reboot will cost more than an entire aftermarket axle, but it's worth it. Most aftermarket reboot kits (eg. EMPI, Dorman, Moog) suck because they are made of neoprene instead of thermoplastic. Aftermarket CV axles also use neoprene, which is why they suck. Thermoplastic is what modern OEMs use and they outlast neoprene in every way (abrasion resistance, heat, cold). The problem is that it's hard to find unless you go with the OEM reboot kit. Part of the reason might be because 3M has a patent on the material so it could be hard and expensive for aftermarkets to use it.

I've rebooted my 4Runner several times and so far the neoprene boots are not lasting. The first time, I rebooted with an EMPI kit which lasted 2-3 years on both axles. Both joints basically failed within months of each other. I now switched over to a Napa boot (I think it's made by Mevotech) with a lifetime warranty, but it's still neoprene so we'll see how well it holds up. This was before I discovered that Toyota actually makes an OEM reboot kit with the proper grease too.

Another thing I learned about rebooting is the grease. Most boot kits do NOT come with enough grease. They give a small 100g packet, but the OEM joint in my vehicle actually required 3x more. The grease they give you is generic high moly CV grease on both the inner and outer joints. It's probably fine, but the OE joint uses a different grease on the inner and outer so you have to make sure to clean out the joint fully before packing new grease in there. Maybe the OE dual grease system is better but who knows. I literally have never heard or read anywhere about a CV joint going bad from the grease as long as the boot is not damaged and the joint was not abused.


Interesting. Cardone advertises ThermoPlastic boots for their new HD axles. I looked into getting reman axles from CVJ in Colorado, and probably will for some upcoming cars that I have scheduled, but they use NeoPrene boots.

The boot kit that I used was from the Toyota dealer. It came with a grease packet that seemed like a reasonable amount for the application.

Originally Posted By: slacktide_bitog
Looks good man
thumbsup2.gif


Do you have any experience with Raxles? They claim to use new joints and Amsoil synthetic grease. I don't know what kind of boots they use, though.


Not sure either. Raxles only services Honda/Acura, VW/Audi and Subaru products, so they were not an option for this application. CVJ did offer a reman axle but I wanted to try rebooting since the axle was otherwise in good condition.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Raxles only services Honda/Acura, VW/Audi and Subaru products, so they were not an option for this application. CVJ did offer a reman axle but I wanted to try rebooting since the axle was otherwise in good condition.


I did not know that! I didn't know Raxles only did those three.
 
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