this is what happens when you let a stoner service your car

Discussion in 'General Motoring' started by jim beam, Aug 10, 2010.

  1. jim beam

    jim beam Guest

    on the one hand, i should commend whoever did this for replacing the
    boot and not wastefully replacing the whole shaft. on the other, they
    shouldn't smoke too much weed while doing it.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/38636024@N00/4877171985/

    they forgot to remove the hose clamp. needless to say, the joint didn't
    last long.
     
    jim beam, Aug 10, 2010
    #1
  2. jim beam

    m6onz5a Guest

    If the boot was split before that stoner put a new one on it's still a
    waste of time. The whole joint or axle needs replacing..

    What's a hose clamp doing there anyways????
     
    m6onz5a, Aug 10, 2010
    #2
  3. jim beam

    C. E. White Guest

    They used the hose clamp to compress the clip (snap) ring on the
    transmission end of the axle shaft. I suppose the theory is that this makes
    it easier to plug the axle back into the transmission. You compress the clip
    ring using the clamp. As you slide the axle shaft back into the
    transmission, the clamp slides down the splines as the snap ring moves into
    the transmission gears and eventually "snaps out" to retain the axle. I've
    only done a few axles but never needed to do anything like this. Usually the
    axles can be bumped back into the transmission without an aide like this.
    I've never actually had to do the CV joints on a Honda, so maybe this is a
    Honda specific trick.

    Ed
     
    C. E. White, Aug 10, 2010
    #3
  4. jim beam

    jim beam Guest

    once it starts making its clacking noise in turns, yes. but if you
    catch it before then, and clean it properly [which isn't easy], you can
    indeed replace the boot and successfully repair the driveshaft.

    ideally though, you should replace the boot before it breaks - regular
    inspection allows you to see cracking and how serious it is before it
    breaks on the road and allows joint-killing grit to intrude.

    it's not supposed to remain there - it's to compress the retaining ring
    and hold it closed so you can reassemble the joint. [then it's supposed
    to be removed!] the retaining ring is sprung out and is too large to
    pop into place otherwise. and the rzeppa joint carrier doesn't have
    ramps on it that would allow insertion without a ring compressor - an
    oversight in my opinion.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/38636024@N00/2500122861/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/38636024@N00/2500122865/
     
    jim beam, Aug 10, 2010
    #4
  5. jim beam

    jim beam Guest

    trying to "blend in" ed? do you think such masquerading actually works?
     
    jim beam, Aug 10, 2010
    #5
  6. jim beam

    M.A. Stewart Guest

    Don't forget water and road salt.


    Was the clamp making noise?


    Those balls in the joint were junk, right? Or is it just the photo?

    A couple of the balls looked like a black and white photo of the
    planet Jupiter.
     
    M.A. Stewart, Aug 10, 2010
    #6
  7. jim beam

    jim beam Guest

    if you mean that notchy "clunk" each time it was getting caught in the
    joint, yes it was.

    junk. that is a dead joint i cleaned up for the photo.

    it's a pet peeve of mine that people don't pay attention to joint boots
    and just keep driving them till the joint is unrepairable. if you have
    the tools, which really aren't very expensive and which pay for
    themselves in just one use, boot replacement is quick, simple, and cheap
    on a shaft like this. and a damned sight better than cheapo chinese
    aftermarket replacement shafts that last barely 30k before their soft
    poorly fitting innards start to tear themselves apart. provided they're
    not gritted, the joints on oem honda driveshafts can last hundreds of
    thousands of miles - just keep an eye on the boots and replace those
    boots when they've started to crack. correctly prepared, it takes an
    hour from wheel off to wheel back on.
     
    jim beam, Aug 11, 2010
    #7
  8. jim beam

    N8N Guest

    I don't take the wheels off on VWs unless they are alloys and they are
    such that you can't access the hub nut just by popping off a hub cap.

    Of course, I haven't had to service a CV joint in ages. Last time I
    had one go bad must have been around 2004-ish.

    nate
     
    N8N, Aug 13, 2010
    #8
  9. jim beam

    C. E. White Guest

    That works on a VW because they bolt the front half shafts to a stub axle
    coming out of the tranmsission. Most Japanese and US cars "plug" the half
    shafts directly into the transmission. For these you can't get the axle out
    of the transmisison unless you release the front upright from the lower
    suspension arm so that you can get enough clearance to pull the axle out of
    the transmission. You can't release the upright from the lower suspension
    member unless you take off the wheel. I like the VW system better.

    Ironically, the last time I had to replace a CV joint boot it was on a VW
    and that was around 1995 (when my Sister sold her VW and bought a Honda).

    Ed
     
    C. E. White, Aug 16, 2010
    #9
  10. jim beam

    jim beam Guest

    if it's fwd, you don't need to take the wheels off. just set the
    steering on lock, look at the now exposed boot, then reverse and check
    the other side. couldn't be easier.

    the whole point is that you shouldn't "wait for them to go". if you do
    the boot when it's evidencing cracking, but before it tears, you don't
    have to replace the joints. tools to do the job are cheaper than a new
    cv joint, and boots are cheap too.
     
    jim beam, Aug 16, 2010
    #10
  11. jim beam

    JRE Guest

    You're welcome to the VW system with its internal star bolts that freeze
    solid and strip the star wrenches. I'll take the Hondas every time. It
    might take longer on a Honda than on a VW whose bolts have not yet
    frozen but the Hondas can be *reliably* disassembled irrespective of age
    and you won't need to replace any tools trying to do just one side.

    (On the other hand, the VW brake proportioning system--at least on early
    90's Jettas--is both breathtakingly simple and simply brilliant. Go
    figure.)

    <snip>
     
    JRE, Aug 17, 2010
    #11
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