How important is a CV boot?

I just had brakes and one rotor replaced yet again on my 2000 Jeep
Grand Cherokee.. The mechanic says i have a torn axle boot and need the half axle replaced.. does the whole thing need to be replaced or can they just replace the boot? and does 300 bucks for parts, labor and alignment sound outrageous? thanks

I just replaced my half-axle on my accord this morning.

The cost of replacing ONE boot is $45
The cost of replacing the half axle is $100.

Since my axle was clicking for the last 2 years (but the boot was fine, it just broke yesterday), I decide to replace the whole thing for $100.

Who know if I just replace the outer boot, how the it would take the inner boot to tear down?

CV Boots
SOoooo important to have your boots ON! Otherwise, dirt will get into your bearings and then you will have bad problems and could even hurt your axle(s). Accident have also occurred because axles can lock up because the bearing are terribly worn from lack of grease and dirt in the bearings. Be careful!!!!!

I was wondering what else could cause the clicking and such if it's not a cv joint. I drove my car home in the snow the other day and when I drove the car next it was making this sound like there was ice or something in the wheel well and it was clunking when I turned corners. The ice grinding sound went away and so did the clunking so I thought it probably was something stuck up in there, but today it started doing it again (2 days later) and was really bad so I've dropped it off at the local shop to have them look at it and I'm afraid I'm in for a major mess. Everytime I have something happen it's always $300 or more to repair. I'm a lemon magnate

the cv boot also is goingout in my car, i drive it a lot and far...you said that the brakes should get checked too? Is it reallydangerous at high speeds? Can it cause a wreck? I don't know much about cars, but i am trying to learn

besides what everyone else said the cv boot keeps all of the stuff out and keeps all of the grease in so that the axle stays greased up not dry. If it is dry then it all wares out.

Am I understanding CV boots correctly? Our situation.
We own a '96 Acura Integra with about 140,000 miles on it. We had it in for recall work, and the Acura folks told us 5 days ago that one of the CV boots has a tear and needs to be replaced. They told my husband all about the possibility of needing to replace the joint and axle. We don't have repair estimates yet, but will call the dealership and a local shop that we like.

The car has been running very good with no noises, popping or clicking.

We plan to sell this car within about a year.

I've read nearly the whole thread, and this is what I understand, is this right?

-- since there is no popping, clicking, the joint is most likely in good shape
-- we can probably get by by replacing the boot only and not worry about the other parts

Is that correct? We'll see what the shops have to say about it. We could make an appointment before the weekend or by Saturday at the latest to get preventative work out of the way and save our costs.

I don't want to put more $$ into the car than we have to, especially since we're planning to sell it next summer.

So, does it seem like we can get by with just the one CV boot? In our experience, the Acura dealership service people are anal about maintenance and will make us aware of every little thing that's even the slightest bit wrong with the car.

Should we consider replacing anything else on this car because of the high milies? It has been performing very well, so there isn't an obvious need in our minds. It has been maintained regularly and well during it's life so far.

Thanks for any insights!!

Re: Am I understanding CV boots correctly? Our situation.


Sounds to me like you've read the thread very throughly and understand perfectly. You are absolutely correct.

If you are planning on selling the car in the near term then I wouldn't do anything to it except for normal maintenance (oil changes, etc..) and replacement of parts as they break or wear out. You aren't going to increase it's value by doing much of anything else.

Dry CV boot cracks.
Well, we took the Integra to our local auto shop today for an inspection. Got the report back that the car road tested fine, and there are dry cracks in the CV boots. The recommendation is to do nothing at this time, since the dry cracks are surface and not leaking.

We'll probably sell this car this summer. What would you recommend about disclosing these dry cracks to a potential buyer? I don't want to scare someone off, and I'm getting the impression that the car is now just fine. Although, a new owner might go through a boot/joint repair down the road if the dry cracks would turn into something worse.

ETA - For the record, the Acura dealer shop recommended replacing both boots + 1 joint, for a total of about $500. I've always had the impression that the dealer shop is anal-retentive about preventative maintenance though.

Thanks!

How much will it cost for CV BOOT and BALL joint
I own a 2002 Honda Accord Coup. I recently went for a car inspection and was told I failed because of Left outer CV boot ??? Right and Left Ball joints?? Brake pull sation?? Can anyone tell me what they are and how much will it cost me??

I have a 96 civic. One mechanic told me they could just reclamp the cv boot for $30. another told me they can replace the boot for $130, and then they must to an allignment for $50. There is no clicking sound or anything. I've been driving the car for a few weeks with the broken boot, so its probably a good idea to replace this as soon as possible. I looked at the boot and I didn't see any tares or anything, but there was grease all over.

I'm not in the area of the reclamp mechanic anymore. should I just go ahead and get it replaced? is the allignment bogus? The allignment feels fine on the car right now, is it possible that removing the old boot could screw it up?

Plan to replace CV boot myself
When I replaced the oil, I also discovered both the CV boot on my '97 Accord (73K miles) were torn. They were OK at last oil change (5K).

After reading all the threads, I think I will do it myself. Read the manual (CD bought from eBay), it requires some type of balljoint seperating tool. This is the only thing I would be worry about. Can I get any type of ball joint seperator tool, or this must be a special for Honda. Where do I go to ask? (Phoenix, AZ metro).

As far as wheel alignment, yes I think it would be wise to do that everytime you touch the steering mechanism.

Hi all,

I have a vw passat and it has around 90,000 miles on it. The service consultant told me that my cv boots were torn. I don't remember it they were the front or back. But, one of them. Anyways, he quoted that it would be around $490 for parts and labor. ($420 for labor and $130 for parts) That sounds really expensive to me, especially reading what others have said. This I think is only for the boots. I was not aware there were joints as well.

Should I look into some other place, or do you think this is what the price is running now?

I am usually a bit scared to take it in anywhere else, but I would do it if the place was reliable. If I did ask for another quote, do I have to take the car in, or could I just call and ask for a quote?

What should I do?

CV Boot or Timing Belt
This is actually my first time in here and I am so glad I found this forum. I really don't know much about cars but I am learning since I own one.

My fiance has a 1993 Lexus ES300 and the timing belt is chapped or chipped and the CV Boot needs to be replaced or repaired. I understand that the CV Boot is expensive if I have to replace the whole thing. Now I work two miles away from my house and I use my fiance's Lexus and he drives my truck. Which do I actually fix first? The boot or the timing belt?

Re: CV Boot or Timing Belt


The short answer: The timing belt.

The long answer: Engines that use timing belts fall into 2 major categories - "Interference engines" and "non-interference engines".

With an interference engine, if the timing belt breaks the valves don't cycle and hang down into the cylinder (becuase the broken belt isn't moving them out of the way). The engine won't stop immediately so as the engine continues to rotate the pistons will rise in the cylinders and crash into the valves. When that happens the valves will get bent and may push through the piston faces. You can also end up with bent cam and crankshafts. These are all MAJOR engine issues so people quite often have to replace the engine if this happens.

In a non-interference engine the valves are designed so that they never interfere with the travel of the piston. If the belt breaks here the pistons rise in the cylinders but never hit the valves so there is usually no damage other than the broken belt.

Your Lexus has an interference engine so if that belt goes you can probably kiss the whole thing goodbye. As a result, I'd suggest getting the belt replaced ASAP.

Well, I just got my two front axle boots, new brakes and rotors on my 1991 honda civic with 87K miles on it for $342.00 . I think I got a great deal. I went to a guy who has been repairing mine, and my families cars for a long time.

Re: broken boots on rear wheels, for a FWD car
I've read a lot of posts talking about CV boots on the front wheels being damaged, for a front wheel drive car. For my car (Corolla), it is a front wheel drive car, but the front CV boots are fine. It is the rear wheel boots that are broken. My understanding is that there is no CV joint on the rear wheels, for a FWD car. Maybe there isn't even a rear axle... maybe the rear wheels on a FWD car spin independently?

A mechanic said to replace just the damaged rear boots - there was no talk about replacing any axle. My understanding is that there is no rear axle on a Corolla, and even if there is, it would have no CV joint since the car is FWD.

Can someone confirm this or post the correct situation for rear wheels on a FWD car?

I've just failed the MOT (UK vehicle inspection) on my Micra (rev 2 or K11) because the CV boot is split. I've got a new boot+grease+clips pack (£9) and will replace it myself

I'm worried about the actual CV joint itself though. Thinking back over the last few months I remember that there's been a noise when I turn sometimes. The noise sounded exactly like Chewbacca moaning (Star Wars) except without the slight modulation he has (also like a rusty or ungreased shaft rotating in a joint), only happened when I turned in a tight circle at low speed (e.g. a U turn in a petrol station forecourt) and wasn't the "rhythmic _clicking_ or _cracking_ noise" mentioned for damaged CV joints but more a continuous hum while I was turning.

I'm going to replace the boot in the next couple of days (more reading of manuals and help pages required first to work out exactly what I need - like do I _really_ need to buy a "ball-joint separator" tool to replace the drive shaft, or can I make do using something else) and need know if I need to replace the CV joint as well. I'll have a good look at it when I replace the boot - but what am I looking for/how can I work out if it's damaged/needs replacing?

Thanks in advance for any help.

edit ---
http://www.aa1car.com/library/cvjoint2.htm

I'm thinking I'm gonna end up replacing the joint

Great site!

I've got a 2002 Subaru Forester that just turned 70,000 last week. Had it in the shop for a new clutch and new head gasket in mid-October, and the dealer said I had a torn CV boot. (I can't recall which one, if he even said, and the service receipt doesn't specify. Eyeballs say it was the driver's front inner.) FYI, the dealer said they pull the engine and transmission out of the car for clutch replacement.

When I got it back and after driving, the car had a slight burnt smell to it. Nothing major, no smoke. I checked under the hood a couple times and saw nothing, and my oil level has been fine.

The car has accumulated a total of 2200 miles between that service and today. About 1100 of that was a round-trip to my folks for the holidays, and another ~250-mile R/T to my in-laws. The remaining ~750 has been generic around-town driving in great conditions.

Well, on the two-hour highway trip to the in-laws: upon arrival the smell was very strong. Popped the hood and there was light smoke. It's the passenger-side front inner boot, split about an inch and throwing grease all over the engine and exhaust manifold. I nursed the car home, and the split is now basically half the circumference of the boot.

Any thoughts on whether the dealer may have split the boot during the engine/tranny removal/reinstallation? There were NO symptoms before they had it, and if they caught one split boot, I have to think they looked at all four.

Why did they not fix it when apart. The CV shaft was laying on the floor during the clutch job...