CV joints on 1997 Civic

I just got a call from a Goodyear shop doing my daughter's Civic's oil
change and the said that both front axle boots, i.e., cv joints are bad
and want $289 each to replace. I declined since I don't have $600.

The car has about 76k and drives perfect wih no vibration or noise.

Is there any good way to check yourself to see if these need replacing?

Thanks guys.

RonT

 

Go to a couple of other shops have them check them out. Let them understand
that you are looking for the best deal it they are truly bad. I just had one
axel done for about $200.00. Would have done it myself but its to cold now.

 

600 for cv's? i paid 115 taxes inc CAD for one installed on my 95 civic

 

Hello Ron,
Two checks are possible but not totally reliable. I assume that the cv boots
are torn/split. Get up under the car and check that. If they have splits or
tears in them, check for grease still inside the boots. If grease is still
present, you might be able to get by simply by cleaning the joints and
replacing the boots. The other check is to listen to each joint as the wheel
is turned. If you hear a clicking sound the joint should be replaced.
Usually, the least expensive route is to replace the entire cv axle. Check
with a reputable parts store for the price on a remanufactured cv axle as
opposed to a cv joint repair kit. A final option, is to take the vehicle to
Sears and have a front end inspection done. When I worked at an Automotive
Center (Sears), there was no charge for this service and you were given an
estimate for the repair work. I don't know if that is still the case. Hope
this helps.

Dave Dodson

 

To clarify: replacing the boots with original style would require removing
an reinstalling the driveaxles, with at least as much labor as the full
replacement. But "split boots" are available that go on the way Dave
describes. Not many shops will do the split boot thing because the
cost/liability is not good They may get the customer coming back and
complaining that it *still* isn't right and want the shop to do the full job
for free to make it right... some customers really are that way. Split boots
are intended for a DIY repair, and are messy but don't require special tools
or skills.

Don't wait too long to decide, because when water gets into the grease it
becomes waxy and doesn't lubricate, causing the joint to go bad quickly.

Mike

 

Ron,

somehow get under the car yourself to inspect the 'bad' boots. make
sure the boots are dry from rain or standing water from the road and
look for deep cracks, or cracks that are leaking grease. if you find
leaking grease then replace the boots. If in fact you need the boots,
as an alternate repair option, you may consider replacing the axles
with fully rebuilt replacements that include a new boot and grease.
It might be cheaper than 298 * 2 for the whole job.

i replaced a boot myself, its a bicht, and messy. too much work for
a DIY job. I did the job and the repair was just beautiful and is
still in operation. I swore i would never do that again but would go
the rebuilt axle route becuase its much cleaner.

I am suspicious because you say there is no apparent noise or
vibration. Your mechanic may just be giving you some preventative
advice, but what if your current boots just looked bad but could last
another 50,000 miles? I cant see your boots, but you have to make
that call yourself. I usually replace my boots if they break and I
have never had a problem with them afterwards since I catch all that
stuff early.

good luck, its up to you.

Tom

 

Thanks guys.

I have a sneaking suspicion that they are OK but will do some poking
around and go from there.

RonT

 

Good idea. It is hard to miss a bad boot - it slings dark grease all around
the area near the inside of the wheel.

Mike

 

Usually the boot cover splits, then dirt gets in, and the joint will
go bad. A common symptom after the joint is damaged is hearing a
clicking sound while doing a tight turn.

As indicated in other posts, common practice seems to be just to
replace the entire axle due to the labor expense.

I have heard of shops telling people to replace both when they detect
one bad one.

On my accord, one boot went out around 110K miles and then the other
around 135K miles.

Its obvious that the rubber is split when you inspect it.

 

I am a convert to that practice (money allowing, of course!) There isn't any
labor saving, but the boots are usually subject to about the same
environment. When one goes the other isn't far behind. Since I do it myself,
it makes sense to beat it to the punch.

Mike

 

I got under the car this morning and the boots are both split and
separated into two pieces. There was grease still on the joints though
so maybe I can squeak by with just a boot repair if I can find a shop to
just do that.

My daughter had to take the car back to college so she is going to look
for a Honda or Japanese car specialist. If that fails I guess there is
always Goodyear.

I have run GM and toyota cars for 180k plus in ten years and have never
had boots or CV joints wear out. I'm wondering if Honda is all that it
claims to be.

RonT

 

CV joint boots are inherently life-limited products (although the CV joints
inside should last the life of the car if they are kept lubricated). The
first front wheel drive car I had was an '84 Dodge, and the boots split at
about 4 years. My daughter's Accord made it about 175K miles and 9 years,
but I was busy and didn't do the other side until it needs it now at 210K
miles and 11 years. My son's Acura had a freshly bad boot (the slung grease
wasn't very dirty) when he bought it at 130K and 11 years. Huh. It's worth
mentioning the Dodge was in Phoenix, while the Accord and Acura have been
cool weather cars.

Mike

 

Ron,

waste no time in getting those busted boots replaced to avoid the
annoying clicking that will remain with the car forever if the boots
are not replaced quick enough.

Tom