I've driven about 30 miles with an outboard CV joint after it started making a light rumbling, rattling noise at speeds over about 25mph. The boot had split sometime in the last two weeks and the grease has escaped.
I packed it with new grease and it's quietened down a lot. Will it be OK for a bit longer? How long does it usually take before running dry of grease ruins a CV joint?
I don't know exactly how long, but I don't think it's long.
The grease won't take long to escape if you haven't replaced the boot.
If the boot's being replaced, there's a good chance you're as well replacing the CVJ because of the hassle factor.
Make sure none of the grease makes it's way to the brakes too !
Graham
If it's started rumbling then it's knackered.
Thanks. Boot gets changed today. I'll just repack with plenty of grease and see how it goes. Hopefully then it won't get any worse, at least, than it might be now. But I'll order in a CV joint at this stage anyway. They aren't too expensive by the look of it.
I had one done last week, it was £52 to replace the boot and joint - Or £30 just to replace the boot, with the posibility that i might be back next month to replace the joint.
IMHO it was a no brainer £52.
Tom Burton
Further to my earlier post, I have changed the boot - using a stretchy one - and packed the joint with lots of new grease. While there, I had an unsuccessful go at knocking the CV joint off. How is it done safely on the car? I feel I'll be back down there with a new CV before too long. Or might pay someone else to.
Try explaining that after you crash - why do complete idiots knowingly drive a car that has a fault because they can't be bothered having it fixed? Would you also drive with defective brakes or bald tyres?
If you don't know how to fix it, take it to a garage.
What sort of car is it? That may make a difference to how the CV Joint is held on to the end of the driveshaft.
The one I did recently on a Passat was held on by a circlip in a groove in the splines on the end of the shaft. The joint kit came with a new clip so I was rather unkind to the old one in the removal process.
All the ones I have changed (VW) just needed a good belt with a hammer. Hold driveshaft in left hand, hold big hammer in right, hit.
Varies from car to car though.
IF it is a knock off type then the problem is usually holding the shaft still while you get a good whack with a copper hammer. Sometimes it is possible to use a couple of pairs of mole grips to jam the shaft while you concentrate on the hitting, often it is easy enough to remove the shaft, put it in a vice and work from there. make sure there isn't a circlip to release FIRST (common on GM cars)
EG Vauxhauls where there's a bloody great circlip.
Some early Golfs have that too. Well, to be a bit clearer, they all have a circlip, but on the ones I did there's no way to reach it as it's covered by the joint- 9on early ones you dig about in the grease and undo it), so the Haynes BoL issues the above advice. A boot kit usually comes with a new clip, as it inevitably gets damaged.
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