Outer CV Joint Toast?

Well I went to accelerate while making a left and.... Pop. That was it. I had enough momentum to coast into Tim's and park it. I could feel something turning, which would try to grab, but she would not move at all. I had the wife put it in gear and let off on the cluck slightly while I checked underneath and the driver's side drive axel is spinning at the outer CV joint. Called for a tow and got her in the garage. Now I need to pull it apart tomorrow but could use a few suggestions on how best to proceed. What size socket do I need for the drive axel nut? I took a look tonight and it appears as thought this is not a standard shaped nut. Are there any specific things to be aware of while disassembling? Is there a how to for this? Is there a standard parts list? Any and all assistance is greatly appreciated.

You will need those triple square bits to remove the bolts off the transmission flange, I think its a 30mm socket ( but do a search)

Its fairly easy to change the axle.

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=170946&highlight=change+axle

or this one

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=138801

Thanks for the reply Sher. I called around on Saturday, as it was the only day anything was open this past weekend, and the "Stealership" quoted me $355.00 CAD for just the CV Joint replacement or $750.00 CAD for a whole new shaft assembly with both joints. I asked if this was a dealer item only, as I was not able to find anything online, and was told that I should be able to find an aftermarket replacement. I then checked with my local NAPA store and was quoted $159.00 CAD for a whole new shaft assembly with both joints!!?? I quickly suspected that this could not be the correct price due to the huge difference, but opted to order one in anyway.

Well I scrambled around yesterday to find a 12 point torx (Triple Square), and finally got all of the bolts out except 1 which I had to remove with a pair of vise grips as it had stripped out. I went down to check on the part I had ordered and is in fact the correct part! Installed the new one in no time and away I went for a test drive. How does the Stealership get away with this kind of price gouging? I just can not see this large of a price difference between OE and aftermarket. At this difference, I could replace the shaft assembly 3 times and still not hit the $750 price tag. Oh well, VW loses another sale, due to their own ignorance.

The only issue I had with the install, was with torquing up the new bolts to the flange! The repair manual said to torque to 30 flbs, which I attempted to do, until one bolt broke. I then just tried to ensure that the remaining 5 bolts were tight but did not attempt to torque them any more down. I was not prepared to completely disassemble to remove the broken one so I am running with 5. I will continue to keep an eye on them and check to see if they are still tight after a few days of driving.

Here are some links for parts


http://www.precisiontuning.ca/catalog/index.php?cPath=24

Frisco VW Henry 416-7369-595

The Source 416-742-5559

Yeah i know i have the same problem with my Jetta, keep blowing the passanger axle, so i tried a reman Nappa unit and i blew that in no time so i got a new nappa unit lifetime warranty, just got to put it in...

You can get those triple square bits from Crappy tire or Princess auto.


All dealers are know for robbing you for parts thats how they make money.

You should be ok with 5 bolts for now, but i would replace the broken one.

The dealer prices would reflect at least double the after market price for the part and a generous (to themselves) helping of expensive labor for installation. You are correct, it is hard to fathom. I can only believe that there are too many people who are too scared to do these things for themselves.

Then again, dealership service departments are full of mechanics and parts guys who laugh their heads off everytime a tow truck pulls in with a car in some form of disassembly because the owner tried but couldn't finish the job.

So, go figure.

TigBounce, I am thinking I may need a similar parts replacement. I have been getting vibration on acceleration, and I have been thinking "CV Joints". After replacement, were things smoother?

Just a warning to all that change CV Joints or boots is NEVER let the car rest on the wheel without a joint run through the wheel bearing or you will soon be replacing that side wheel bearing.

Good point, Birdman. Thanks.

Well after I installed the new CV / Drive Axle assembly, and due to the broken bolt issue previously mentioned as well as the fact that I did not know enough to make sure I re-installed the 3 retaining plates, the drive axle came loose from the transmission flange. I noticed a clicking on acceleration and deceleration so I climbed under and sure enough the bolts were loose. I re-tightened but again did not re-install the retaining plates. It was good for about a week or so and once again I noticed the clicking. I kept putting off climbing under to re-tighten, as I had been traveling for work allot and wasn't driving the Bug much, and finally on the way home from work... Bam she let go again. I know, I know, it's my own fault for doing half a job. Well as it turned out another bolt had backed out completely and the 4 remaining bolts just could not hold the torque. I snapped all four in half. The drive axle popped loose and dropped straight down onto the control arm. Lucky me!!! All remained intact and I did not even manage to cut either boot. Had the car towed home, disassembled the drive axle flange off of the transmission, removed all 5 broken bolts and re-assembled. I managed to lose one of the retaining plates but was able to order a replacement through the dealer. After all of this, I was able to fully reassemble, replaced the stretch bolts with hardened bolts, torqued everything to specification and all is back to running like new. Moral of this story, take your time and ensure you do the job correctly the first time. If you break a bolt or something doesn't seem right, take the time to correct it. I managed to get lucky on this instance, but I will not make the same mistake and take the chance on my next endeavor.

You are lucky the drive axle did not thrash around, knocking a hole in the transaxle case I have read about this happening!

Is Loc Tite supposed to be put on these bolts?

--Nate

PDJetta said:

Is Loc Tite supposed to be put on these bolts?

Click to expand...

No, but they ARE supposed to be replaced each time - something that's almost never done... (I've been driving VW's for decades and no garage or dealership has ever replaced these bolts whenever I've had driveshafts or CV joints serviced...)

Yuri.

What's odd is that some of the Bentley manuals don't mention to replace these bolts and some of the manuals do. I can attest that my manual does not have an "Always replace" on the description of the transaxle flange -to-inner CV joint retaining bolts. The same goes for the 2002 Bentley manual for the Golf/Jetta.

These definitely are not the "stretch" type of bolts, because there is not an additional angle turn after an initial torque.

--Nate