axle replacement B5.5

Sorry to be a pain, but WRONG and WRONG. I am trying to clean up this thread so that we get the facts straight.

None of the BHWs have M14s. They are all M16 according to ETKA.
The very early B5 passat's (1999/2000) with gas engine had the M14 bolts. From 2001.5 onwards they were all M16.

So, for BHWs (2004/5), you need 2x 4B0407643A - M16 x 1.5 x 72mm
And you need to torque them to 140 ft lbs (190Nm) + 180 deg (1/2 turn)

So why does MoGolf's procedure have torque values for BOTH 14mm and 16mm bolts? Sorry, but I did misstate Ft-lbs instead of Nm in my posts.

CharlieT said:

Sorry to be a pain, but WRONG and WRONG. I am trying to clean up this thread so that we get the facts straight.

None of the BHWs have M14s. They are all M16 according to ETKA.
The very early B5 passat's (1999/2000) with gas engine had the M14 bolts. From 2001.5 onwards they were all M16.

So, for BHWs (2004/5), you need 2x 4B0407643A - M16 x 1.5 x 72mm
And you need to torque them to 140 ft lbs (190Nm) + 180 deg (1/2 turn)

Click to expand...

Mo Golf may have been confused. Don't you think it is strange to have two different bolt torques to preload a bearing? That is exactly what that bolt is there for. Charlie is correct.

1854sailor said:

So why does MoGolf's procedure have torque values for BOTH 14mm and 16mm bolts? Sorry, but I did misstate Ft-lbs instead of Nm in my posts.

Click to expand...

Because the Bentley manual for B5s we all use is from 1999 to 2005 models, and so cover the early models with M14, and all the later models with M16.
The TDIs (BHW) were only made from 2004/5, and so only used M16 bolts.
Yes, you incorrectly quoted 190 ft lbs + 180, which likely result in a failed bolt and some disappointment for anyone who tries that.
The correct torque is 140 ft lbs (190Nm) + 180 deg

Mea culpa.

Mine definitely has the M16 and 140 ft-lbs + 1/2 turn is friggin tight! I put new tires on the car saturday and so far for reasons unknown to me, the ASR light hasn't come back on with the Autozone axle. I am rebooting my factory axle just in case. What's the trick to separating the cv joint from the axle. I tried a slide hammer with it hooked onto the used bolt but no workie loosie. Just keep on hammering?

You need to remove the clip under the boot, so the outer joint is not being 'pinched' in place, and then smack it with a hammer.

oilhammer said:

You need to remove the clip under the boot, so the outer joint is not being 'pinched' in place, and then smack it with a hammer.

Click to expand...

I didn't see a clip holding the cv joint under the boot when I got the boot cut off and disposed of. How is it made and where is it? does the whole cv joint come off the axle intact? I didn't see any lock ring in there.

Look closer. You may have to wipe some grease out of the way to see it. I've replaced lots of B5 outer boots over the years, LOL.

Thx Oilhammer-your patience with us "amateurs" must run thin. I need to up my intelligence a notch or two if I'm gonna graduate from my B4. If the B5.5 wasn't so darn smooth and quiet I wouldn't have to.

Haha, no I'm here to help.... even if it does wear my patience thin sometimes .

You may have to give that joint a good WHACK. I lock the axle in a big [non-Chinese] bench vise, bolted to a big heavy [non-Chinese] workbench.

oilhammer said:

Haha, no I'm here to help.... even if it does wear my patience thin sometimes .

You may have to give that joint a good WHACK. I lock the axle in a big [non-Chinese] bench vise, bolted to a big heavy [non-Chinese] workbench.

Click to expand...

With a big heavy [non-Chinese] hammer??

1854sailor said:

With a big heavy [non-Chinese] hammer??

Click to expand...

You betcha!

Are there any hints or tips for getting the passenger side axle out of the hub? Driver side came out in no time, but I can't get the tip of the passenger side axle to clear the hub no matter where I move the other end or where I position the steering wheel. I hate to start disconnecting stuff that will require an alignment when I'm done.

Did you remove the heat shield on top of the axle flange transmission side? That will allow you to move the axle to the side to give you more room to get it out of hub.

I don't think mine had a heat shield. I removed nothing and this is the view from underneath looking straight up:
https://goo.gl/nb9ez2

Mine does not have a heat shield. I've removed nothing. https://goo.gl/iVp5TT

I don't have access to your link.

DeliveryValve said:

I don't have access to your link.

Click to expand...

Sorry. Couldn't figure out how to share it properly from my phone. You should be able to see it now.

Yep, your heat shield is missing. I remember being able to slide the axle flange to the right to what is shown on your picture. It gave me the room to get it out.

DeliveryValve said:

Yep, your heat shield is missing. I remember being able to slide the axle flange to the right to what is shown on your picture. It gave me the room to get it out.

Click to expand...

So to the right of what is shown in the picture is toward the front of the car. I definitely tried that because that area (up and toward the front of the car) seems to give it the most clearance to move, but I will give it another attempt after work tonight.
Although I didn't mention it in my first post, this car is a 5-speed conversion (AFN transmission), and I believe the 5-speed axles are different from the auto axles in some ways. Does that make any difference?

Yes I angled the flange to the right towards the front of the car.
I am not familiar with the manual trans, but I did read it requires specific manual trans axles. So hopefully you have the correct axle there and not an axle that is longer.

OK so after a second night of wrestling with this thing, I finally was able to remove it. No amount of moving the flange end up and toward the front of the car would allow the axle to clear the hub. What worked for me was I put a floor jack under the hub. As I raised the hub, the flange end dropped and eventually it was able to slide out under the transmission.

I will caution anyone who does this to be extremely careful. First make sure the car is safely supported on a good jack stand. Then as you raise the hub (slowly), make sure that you don't lift the hub so high that the weight of the car transfers from the jack stand to the floor jack. That would make for a very unstable and unsafe condition.

Anyway somehow while fighting to remove it I managed to ding the female thread on the end of the axle. I need to hunt back through this thread and figure out what size tap I need to buy so I can clean up that thread. Other than that, I am just about finished.

richmondvatdi said:

OK so after a second night of wrestling with this thing, I finally was able to remove it. No amount of moving the flange end up and toward the front of the car would allow the axle to clear the hub. What worked for me was I put a floor jack under the hub. As I raised the hub, the flange end dropped and eventually it was able to slide out under the transmission.

Click to expand...

I just did this on another Passat. I was even able to do it without unbolting any ball joints!