Advise on changing inner CV Joint

[Bolly]

Hi All

Had a pretty big knocking noise under the car last week (2002 A3 1.8T)..Had a quick look and its the inner CV Joint.

Done a little reading (Haynes/Internet/Audi PDF taken from here...) and I went out and got a whole kit from GSF for about £55 (GKN which I assume is better then ok).

Problem is, I don't know if its a job I can do one the drive with average set of tools and a pair of axle stands or is it a garage job!?

Do I need to take off the whole Drive shaft or can I work on the inner CV joint alone?


Any hints or comments, appreciated.

Thanks

Bolly

 

[Vex182]

http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/a3-s3-...7-driveshaft-gaiter-replacement-tutorial.html

 

[Bolly]

Brilliant link...thanks vex182

And thanks to tuffy for taking the time to sort!

But I have another problem. I could not take the driveshaft off the car because I could not take the hub nut off the car. I managed to wrestle the old cv joint off and it was a wrestle ... But now I see that the cv joint that came off is different to what I bought. The one I bought from GSF is round! GKN. Looks like the one in tuffy's thread. The one that came off is shaped like a flower almost. Any ideas why?

Thanks

 

[<tuffty/>]

There are two different types of outer CV fixing... later cars (like mine) got the bolt which is a 17mm allen key type bolt... earlier cars got a 30mm nut

<tuffty/>

 

[rustynlc]

best way of doing the hub nut is to wedge a screwdriver in the vented disc against the caliper and a socket and breaker bar on the hub nut , the screw driver in the disc prevents the disc and hub from turning , just make sure the hub nut is done up to tourque when finished,

 

[<tuffty/>]

best way of doing the hub nut is to wedge a screwdriver in the vented disc against the caliper and a socket and breaker bar on the hub nut , the screw driver in the disc prevents the disc and hub from turning , just make sure the hub nut is done up to tourque when finished,

Gonna have to disagree... the correct way is to have someone stand on the brakes if the wheels are off and undo it then... if you are on your own then jack the car up taking weight off the wheel but leaving enough so it will grip the ground when you lean on the nut...

If you use the method you suggest you will need to secure the disc with the wheel bolts using large nuts (ironically I have used hub nuts) to space them off so they don't screw though and damage the ABS ring as the little screw that 'holds' the disc on won't handle 240nm of torque at all

<tuffty/>

 

[s3dave]

I just undo it before taking the wheel off while it is still on the ground...simples..

 

[Bolly]

I have two problems now...

First of all, I cannot get said nut off. There is not enough 'bite'/'purchase' for the socket. It's almost as though the socket doesnt sit deep enough. I have put a 30mm on it, but I cannot stand on it or anything before it falls off...is there a cap or something that I have not removed???

Another problem that I have it that the part that I removed is a different shape to the what I bought from GSF. Mine looks like a flower ie - it has a flange/lip all the way around. The GKN itme from GSF doesn't. It looks like the one Tuffy displayed in his thread.

I cannot see anything really wrong with the joint. Can I simply, clean it, regrease it and put it back on the car with a new boot? - Will that work? Audi only sell the whole shaft...not the inner joint individually and that is close to £350 inc VAT.

Thanks

Bolly

 

[Rice]

What kind of socket do you have on it? A 12 point socket or 6 point? Standard on the car is a 12 point nut i believe (always has been on my cars), so it may be that you're using the incorrect socket on it?

Chances are that if its started knocking it might be too far gone... But if its that or £350, id rather try re greasing it and stick a new boot on.

 

[Rice]

If youre having more trouble with getting the hub nut off then try burning off the nyloc on the nut. Have you got a new nut to go on?

 

[rustynlc]

worked for me tuffty you know what they say, if it works it works, admittedly i forgot to mention put the hub nuts in but not to far, as for the nut not undoing: big breaker bar, plus a section of scaffold tube on the end of the breaker bar to extend the leverage and abit of sweat should crack the nut off, only if this is the correct method though, oh and just to clarify you should really replace the hub nut with a new one and also thread lock the splines on assembly, saftey first folks,

 

[Bolly]

Right ... Can I have you advises after I give you an update as to where I am ...

The flower design that I keep talking about is refered to as a 'tripod'. I assume it is the assume it is the same on the golf and this is what I found on GSF ebay site.

http://http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Inner-CV-Joint-Kit-VW-Golf-1997-2006-/380787046385?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item58a8ad37f1#ht_1458wt_1199

I nearly bought it, but it is not manufactured by GKN or one of the premium quality suppliers. I decided that as my joint does not look too bad (I cannot see any scores or groves) I will buy the genuine Audi Boot kit and re-build my old unit (following a thourough clean and repack with grease!).

Any thoughts. I hope that I am doing the right thing.

 

[Bolly]

Drive shaft nut is off and taken the thee bolts behind the hub out But the shaft does not want to come out... What am I doing wrong! I put the nut in the shaft...just a little proud! Hitting it with a mallet...no joy!

 

[@udi A3]

Sometimes the shafts take a right good whack to release. my weapon of choice is a large punch or half inch extension bar on the end of the shaft, but do the nut up a few turns first to prevent it going out of shape. hit it hard once rather than not so hard several times.
You will need to refit the three arm bolts to do this.

If its the inner cv joint though cant it come off the box without removing from the hub?

 

[A3_130]

I use a 3 arm gear puller to push the shaft out of the hub if it doesn't knock out easily with a hammer and a small bit of wood.

 

[Bolly]

Thanks guys..Saturday night I finally got the ****** off! I think it was a combination of leaving the shaft soaked in 'penetration spray' for an hour while I had some tea and a good hard 'smack' from frustrations of the day!!!!! it was such a releif! Called a friend who said he had similar problems on a Passat where the heat caused the parts to fuse/weld together!!!!! Anyone seen this in the past?

My problem now is reassembly. I cannot, for the life of me get the shaft to come all the way into the hub. I can't see why?!!!

Help as always will be appreciated.

Many thanks

Bolly

 

[rupe]

You have probably collapsed the inner joint, pull on the shaft to extend it out again.