drive bolt disaster

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goodbuzzman1

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so i had the day off today so i set about installing my new lowering springs and my new big brake setup... talk about falling at the first hurdle...

i put the breaker bar on the main drive bolt as you do....gave it a twist and it loosened. normally after twisting these a bit they screw out fairly hand but no. after 2 or 3 more 90 degree turns it was clear that the bolt is twisting and threading insde the drive shaft. i decided to abort and go home and have a cry. i see no option but to angle grind the bolts off and replace the cv joints.

i always said with this car i would use genuine parts but audi are quoting me €125 per cv joint.

is there any suppliers who provide an oem standard cv joint that wont fall apart?

cheers
 
Are they clockwise or anti as its very strange you had this issue, never happened to me.
 
goodbuzzman1 said:
so i had the day off today so i set about installing my new lowering springs and my new big brake setup... talk about falling at the first hurdle...

i put the breaker bar on the main drive bolt as you do....gave it a twist and it loosened. normally after twisting these a bit they screw out fairly hand but no. after 2 or 3 more 90 degree turns it was clear that the bolt is twisting and threading insde the drive shaft. i decided to abort and go home and have a cry. i see no option but to angle grind the bolts off and replace the cv joints.

i always said with this car i would use genuine parts but audi are quoting me €125 per cv joint.

is there any suppliers who provide an oem standard cv joint that wont fall apart?

cheers
Click to expand...

Are you absolutely sure the bolt is twisting etc?
I replaced the drivers side outer driveshaft boot a few months ago on my A3 and I don't think the bolt had ever been removed before as I didn't think it was ever going to come out!
It was really really difficult to undo (ie very tight until it was completely out) , and when the bolt was removed the reason was clear, there was evidence of a lot of thread-locking compound on it, I presume from the factory!
If you do end up requiring new driveshaft joints I'd recommend GKN ones, the factory-fitted joints are GKN.
If you buy GKN ones from the likes of Euro Car Parts they'll be a fraction of the price for the same item from Audi (although in a different box!).
I'd still have another go at the bolt first though!
 
Nessy said:
Are you absolutely sure the bolt is twisting etc?
I replaced the drivers side outer driveshaft boot a few months ago on my A3 and I don't think the bolt had ever been removed before as I didn't think it was ever going to come out!
It was really really difficult to undo (ie very tight until it was completely out) , and when the bolt was removed the reason was clear, there was evidence of a lot of thread-locking compound on it, I presume from the factory!
If you do end up requiring new driveshaft joints I'd recommend GKN ones, the factory-fitted joints are GKN.
If you buy GKN ones from the likes of Euro Car Parts they'll be a fraction of the price for the same item from Audi (although in a different box!).
I'd still have another go at the bolt first though!
Click to expand...
How difficult are you talking? I mean I'm really leaning hard on a 2ft break bar and they are only just moving
 
Soot1 said:
Bad luck ole boy, hate seized bolts as well. Eurocarparts have been selling GKN CV joints at £75 each recently (plus you'll find an extra discount code on http://www.hotukdeals.com/vouchers/eurocarparts.com, check their website for your particular model.
Also try Mike on our Parts Request button.
Click to expand...
I took the plunge. Including discount I got both cv joints shipped for €130. Brilliant!
 
goodbuzzman1 said:
How difficult are you talking? I mean I'm really leaning hard on a 2ft break bar and they are only just moving
Click to expand...

Some of these hub bolts have tightening torques of 148 lb ft plus a further 180 degree turn , I'm not surprised you had difficulty with a 2ft breaker bar tbh.
To loosen mine I was using a 6ft scaffold pole!!!
 
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Nessy said:
Some of these hub bolts have tightening torques of 148 lb ft plus a further 180 degree turn , I'm not surprised you had difficulty with a 2ft breaker bar tbh.
To loosen mine I was using a 6ft scaffold pole!!!
Click to expand...
Are you serious??? Holy crap. Well I've ordered the replacement cv joints. I will feel more comfortable tackling the job knowing I have spares in case it goes tits up. If the bolts come out then happy days I'll send the cv joints back
 
Nessy said:
Some of these hub bolts have tightening torques of 148 lb ft plus a further 180 degree turn , I'm not surprised you had difficulty with a 2ft breaker bar tbh.
To loosen mine I was using a 6ft scaffold pole!!!
Click to expand...

I use a 5ft scaffold tube and a 600mm breaker bar to shift those buggers


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Scaffold bars are popular bolt shifters in many a diy garage, mine included. You can also use a blow torch on those buggers to help loosen their grip. I heat the area and spray with penetrating oil as it's cooling down, sometimes two or three times in succession is required, they will come apart eventually. Be careful where you use the torch though.
 
I reckon not, the threads are gone. Grind that one off and try the heat treatment on the others.
 
goodbuzzman1 said:
And would the bolts be that stiff for a few full turns?
Click to expand...

Mine were.
They were the tightest driveshaft bolts that I'd ever encountered.
When the bolt was fully out it was evident that a copious amount of thread lock had been used.
A few minutes work with a wire brush cleaned most of the compound off.
Because the bolt with the boot kit wasn't identical to the bolt removed ( I didn't have a suitable socket for the new one ) I ended up putting the factory bolt back in, but it easily threaded in now that it was clean...
 
Just a little update. I ordered new cv joints as I was convinced I'd have to replace them. I had to replace my outer cv boot today so I got a Long 5 foot bar to remove the drive bolt. I used said bar to remove the bolt, I had to use the 5 foot extension on the bolt 90% of the way and I finished it with my regular breaker bar...... the bolt and the cv joint were perfect. I still can't believe it. Sure enough there was loads of thread lock on the bolt. I have NEVER had to use this much force to remove a bolt. So if you have to remove this bolt to do a job and you think it is threading itself to death... keep on twisting!
 
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