Drive Axle

Well I made the big mistake of ordering an empi passenger side drive axle as I had some minor vibrations during upper rpm range. Well this new empi drive axle is 10 times worse! Mechanic said it is definately a defective axle. Needless to say I ordered it online from the US and I am not going to bother sending it back etc etc. To the garbage it goes! Anyhow, anyone have any experience with any other brand or should I stick with oem? I can only imagine how much an oem replacement is going to cost (sigh). Anyone have a part # I can look for prices online? I have an '01 Jetta.

Your best bet might be a good used one. OEM at a discounted price. You can get one from a 2.0L car with lower mileage for between $50-$75 assuming you have a MKIV car?

www.car-part.com

To quote Dieseldorf:

Do you know what kind of car you have ???

That said, you can find a nice used OEM one at a junkyard unless you have one of the more rare models (Phaeton ???)

If you're able to re-build your old drive axle with an aftermarket CV joint, that's also a way to go...

Yuri.

Well when I had the work done originally I neglected to get back the old axle which may not even have been oem, not sure. Car had 240,000 kms on it then. I will check with some local junkyards as mentioned and see what I can come up with.

What type of transmission and which side?

I did a quick search and there are dozens of them for both TDI & 2.0L in Southern Ontario. But as I said, if you can find one from a 2.0L car, it will probably have fewer K's.

The EMPI axles are Chinese, as are all of their CV boots. If you still have the original shaft, buy some OEM quality GKN joints and you'll be good as new. Most people have gotten lazy and just keep buying the crappy half-shafts. I recomend joint replacement with OE qaulity parts.

Wingnut said:

But as I said, if you can find one from a 2.0L car, it will probably have fewer K's.

Click to expand...

What is the year range that uses the same drive axle as my tdi if I am searching for a 2.0l version?

SheeB said:

What is the year range that uses the same drive axle as my tdi if I am searching for a 2.0l version?

Click to expand...

2000-2004

Excellent. Thanks for the help. I am on a search now too see what's local and pricing.

I have a used axle off of an ALH TDI. I have no idea what side it's from or what the condition was, but it's yours if it's usefull. I will ask Kack as he gave it to me, so he will know it's perks. I have kept it wraped up and greased inside. I went with the vr6 upgrade instead.

All new shafts in the market are chinese made. There are no more good quality rebuilt units left. Every one want cheap parts which is forcing the suppliers to look for cheap=low quality parts. EMPI shafts are crap. Nine out of 10 have some issues. Some even come with no grease under the boot.

buying new CV joints is expensive but you will end up with a quality shaft

Sheeb, if you need a part first try to source it out locally. these EMPI axles sell no more than $110 here in canada! Why would you order it from usa when you can source them out from a local shop?

I agree, I have read up on the EMP shafts, I almost bought one on autopartsway.ca for $95 shipped. Glad I didn't.

That axle I have has a ripped boot. Could be repaired, but I don't know anything about it.

Maybe someone else could chime in. But sounds like it's the same idea as what you have.

As mentioned before there are lots of used axles in good condition out there. The source has lots of them. Vr6 axles are never a bad choice either. Just remember you need the flanges for them also which can add up.

Precisiontuning said:

Sheeb, if you need a part first try to source it out locally. these EMPI axles sell no more than $110 here in canada! Why would you order it from usa when you can source them out from a local shop?

Click to expand...

I had placed a large order with many other things substantially cheaper south of the border. If it was just the drive axle I would have definately stayed local! Buyer beware, I did not know empi was THAT crap quality!

Sigh, oh well cost me $100 in the end...

Got to price out these GKN joints and see what they are worth but I have been in contact with Raxles to inquire about pricing.

Where can i locate these joints? I don't really know if it's the joint or not. I haven't heard any tell tale clicking like usual on my past fwd cars. When i put my car up on a lift i could move the left drive shaft; it had some play in it. Its making some really nasty sounds when I turn the wheels and today while i was on the freeway it was making some rumbling and then faded away a couple seconds later. I already replaced my control arm bushings, tie rods and ball joints.


Has anyone replaced one of these? What does it entail? I have a small selection of tools and limited work space. I don't have the money to spend on an OEM drive shaft. I enjoy eating three meals a day.