Split Driveshaft boot

[Kieran]

In the middle of another job, I spotted today that the nearside driveshaft gaitor has split. Unfortunately it's the gearbox end, not the hub end. /Grrr

It must've happened fairly recently I think - I've been poking about under there lots recently, and mercifully the joint hasn't run dry - When I poked my fingers in, there was still a fair bit of grease in there. Either way, Ariadne is once again disabled untill I sort it out.

So, I've read up on the various driveshaft threads, but I'm not sure what I need to do. Obviously I need to replace the boot, but should I go for a 'split' boot, or am I looking at faffing about removing the driveshaft and finding a supplier for a complete new joint/driveshaft?

What would you peeps do?/help

[WildCards]

Cheapest, most cost effective long term option.

[Axeboy]

A new driveshaft, as in one from Mo...

Not a hard job, but thats what id do.

As for just replacing the boot, i have no idea :)

[Gly]

new boot... bit more effort involved, but cheaper (i would assume... its only a boot)

remove the driveshaft completely...

you will be able to leave the cup in the trans...

just cut the boot completly in half....

pull the bearing out of the cup. its only held in by the boot, and shaft legth keeps it in place.

the bearing is joined to the the shaft using a split ring. so no worries about it falling off/apart

when its out remove the split ring. the bearing will then just slide off.
remove the remaining half off the boot.

put on new boot, put bearing back on, refit split ring...
repack the cup with grease,
refit the bearing and cup, cable strap the boot the the cup, and your done

/edit for some typos

[Subaru ETA]

yup take the shaft out... you can get the boots which are cut in half and you glue them together but wont last long.... gly explanation is on to it....its just a very messy job so wear gloves!

[stuartturbo]

GLY is right K the drive shaft is no diff to any other car.
I managed to do both mine with the inner still in the box.
removed Hub end (wheel bearing time for me)
and split the drive shaft in situ
This is probably not the Haynes way by mole grips on shaft against strut and a few mallet blows to joint and they had parted company.then slide new boot up shaft

by the way Mitsubishi want full unit shaft and both cv joints region on £500 and six weeks.

[The Vee]

think it's all been said. New boot, but not one of those split, glue together crappy things. I got a pair for mine from Mitsi - was £70 odd quid but did include all greases, clips etc. Expensive - yes, but should last.

[Kieran]

think it's all been said. New boot, but not one of those split, glue together crappy things. I got a pair for mine from Mitsi - was £70 odd quid but did include all greases, clips etc. Expensive - yes, but should last.

Cool - thanks peeps - Mitsubishi it is then!

Right - time to learn how to pull out driveshafts!/help

[stuartturbo]

Cool - thanks peeps - Mitsubishi it is then!

Right - time to learn how to pull out driveshafts!/help

no real skill just a copper/rubber mallet
Seeing as you can do most stuff boots are easy
Other than a stubborn bolt you should have no issues
depends how you do it but you may not even need to disturb outer joint in hub
worst bit is going to get tracking checked after LOL

[bernmc]

Just for the record (as you're going the 'genuine item route' it doesn't matter): I can't remember if it applies to the inner driveshaft boot as well as the outer, but the split & glue-type replacements are not suitable for the VR4. Reason is the mating serface on the CV joint isn't a simple cylinder- it's got three scalloped areas which are mirrored by the boot.

If you have a look at the pics in this thread (http://www.clubvr4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10966) (stunningly excellent as usual), you'll be able to see the scallops in the CV housing.

[Kieran]

Right, okay - I think I've worked out in my head what to do - which means the chance of sucess is MUCH higher! /yes


Couple of final questions.

StuTurbo - You say you 'split' the driveshaft in situ - does this mean you pulled back the inner CV boot and pulled the shaft and inner tripod joint out of the green scalloped casing?

Also, with regards to the tripod bearing, I presume I need to remove this to get the new boot onto the shaft - I remember Marcus saying (in reference to Ritch_W's query on a Pug 206) that you can end up with needle bearings everywhere - is this the case for the VR-4?

[psbarham]

Right, okay - I think I've worked out in my head what to do - which means the chance of sucess is MUCH higher! /yes


Couple of final questions.

StuTurbo - You say you 'split' the driveshaft in situ - does this mean you pulled back the inner CV boot and pulled the shaft and inner tripod joint out of the green scalloped casing?

Also, with regards to the tripod bearing, I presume I need to remove this to get the new boot onto the shaft - I remember Marcus saying (in reference to Ritch_W's query on a Pug 206) that you can end up with needle bearings everywhere - is this the case for the VR-4?
if you pull the drive shaft out and remove the drive cup , you should see a circlip on the end of the shaft that hold the spider on the splines , it might be wise to put a bit of tape round the outside of the bearings just in case , but as yet the exploding spider syndrome hasn't happened to me yet

[stuartturbo]

K when I did mine i did the outer joint
held the inner and shaft in place?( to prevent fluid lose) this was done by the creative use of the mole grips :thinking:
and providing enough force to release the outer from the drive shaft(read hit with mallet)
I had made the assumption from memory that it would be possible to do a simiular thing with the inner by two ways.
Pull back /lol the outer boot. Split the outer and slide the Inner boot along the drive shaft ( may be best)
Split the inner leaving it in "tripod"joint in box and do boot that way

Hope that makes sense/Hmmm

[tig202]

All i can say is K, be carefull of the outside lip of the cv joint... I have known it to cut cleanly through rubber gloves and skin!

Oh yy,

Your going to get your mitts dirty with this one!

[BraindG]

K, i have some boots you can have, got a few shafts in the garage...

Its a piece of piss to do, if you want, give me a quick call.

[pezza]

My outer boot as also gone, /Grrr

I've been checking it tho and its not dried out...

Its taken a while to get a replacement tho from mitsu and not sure why its been a couple of weeks now :thinking:

The job did not seem too bad when I saw it been done last time on mine...
but they watching someone else do most of the work compared to me doing it myself on my own? :speechles

[stuartturbo]

Outer boot should be an std part
It is and easyish job.

[Kieran]

Right! Well, seeing how the engine mounts went so well, I've started this job now. And yes, it's very easy to split the shaft in situ, so you can leave the cup behind - very easy in fact...

Now to clean everything up and repack the joint!:afro:

Oh - and I can confirm that us UK peeps need no longer pay £50 for a $tealership kit... More on that later.:scholar:

[Kieran]

...And that was that. :afro:

[Post Edited - Information found to be inaccurate.]

[stuartturbo]

I did use the EVO one for the outer and used cable ties.
But do remember to cut the excess of as when i did my first one 10 years ago i got a lovely tick tick sound took a while to realise DOH

[Kieran]

I did use the EVO one for the outer and used cable ties.
But do remember to cut the excess of as when i did my first one 10 years ago i got a lovely tick tick sound took a while to realise DOH

Yeah, I might go to cable ties (they've already been used by someone else on the steering rack gaitors!) on this boot too.... I'm at that 'paranoid' stage at the moment, seeing as I've not had to do one before, so I'm gonna leave it a while and just keep an eye on it.... But I am worried I haven't got the band clamps tight enough.

Seemed okay after this evening's shakedown, so we'll see I guess.:inquisiti

[Axeboy]

Nice one K

Great investigating :)

[psbarham]

But do remember to cut the excess of as when i did my first one 10 years ago i got a lovely tick tick sound took a while to realise DOH
i think thats some sort of initition with this method , i don't know anyone yet who hasn't had the dreaded tapping after their first atempt , and K trust me zip ties will be fine

[Kieran]

Nice one K

Great investigating :)

Cheers! :scholar:

[The Vee]

Yep, get half decent ones and you'll be fine, mines been on a couple of ring trips with 'em!!

[Kieran]

/Grrr /Grrr /Grrr

/Hissy /Hissy /Hissy

Cable ties will shortly be purchased and those evil steel bands relegated to the bin! BUT NOT BEFORE I'VE HIT THE B@ST@RDS SEVERAL TIMES WITH MY LUMP HAMMER! :smash: I WAS SO LOOKING FORWARD TO TAKING ARIADNE TO WORK THIS MORNING AND SEEING THAT ONE OF THEM HAD WORKED LOOSE AND WAS LETTING GREASE PAST REALLY PEED ME RIGHT OFF!

:soapbox:

AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGH


Stupid steel band clips, mutter mutter mutter/pan /pan /pan

[psbarham]

told ya so , told ya so , nah na nah naaaaaaa

[Kieran]

told ya so , told ya so , nah na nah naaaaaaa

Be thankful you're in Lincolnshire! The wind won't carry my rabid rantings and Basil Faulty impressions that far! :veryangry:

/Cue sound of Ariadne being flogged (because it's HER fault, abviously!!) /pan

[psbarham]

Be thankful you're in Lincolnshire! The wind won't carry my rabid rantings and Basil Faulty impressions that far! :veryangry:

/Cue sound of Ariadne being flogged (because it's HER fault, abviously!!) /pan
i was about to say i'm safe coz i'll hear you coming in skarwhotsit , but i realised it'd blend in with the sound of the rest of the tractors /pan

[The Vee]

K, if the ties are tight and the boot not damaged there is often a little grease flung out the edge after first fitting. Are you sure it's not just that or maybe overfilled slightly and forcing it out

[Axeboy]

Chill K

We all get like that sometimes with the car, some weeks it never goes right when you put in the most effort.

Other weeks are better :)

[Kieran]

K, if the ties are tight and the boot not damaged there is often a little grease flung out the edge after first fitting. Are you sure it's not just that or maybe overfilled slightly and forcing it out

OH! I didn't realise they did that!:thinking:

Right, in that case I'll do some more driving around and see what happens!:scholar:

Cheers!

[Kieran]

Chill K

We all get like that sometimes with the car, some weeks it never goes right when you put in the most effort.

Other weeks are better :)

Thanks Scott! Yes, highly frustrating it can be!

[Dan_G]

Thanks Scott! Yes, highly frustrating it can be!

here here

My small rant:

Since using the Leggy as my everyday runner it has now started vibrating on light pickup... or when I coast on part trottle @ 50mph and last week it developed a speed dependant recipricating drone from the left front wheel area.... the noise is now getting gradually worse, i would swear the noise is a bearing, but with the vibration, it could be a CV joint... I just dont know?:thinking: and thats after buying the thing a heap of new new toys! so I decided it does'nt deserve to have said toys fitted just yet...

so yeah, i know where yer coming from Kieren... cars! who'd have em.../pan

(me/rally )

[Kieran]

With the aid of a genuine Mitsubishi repair Kit, and popping the entire shaft off the car, my inner CV woes are no more. /GJ

However, the cause of the problem was my choice of replacement boot after the original split. I got this wrong. :oops: EVO boots don't fit correctly.

Differences are as follows:

1. The geniune boot is longer. An EVO 4/5/6 boot is about 2cm shorter. This means you can't get the boot collars over the CV joint case and driveshaft without over-stretching the boot - which makes the joint constantly pull in on itself when you tension the boot clamps.

2. The genuine boot is a tighter fit on both the driveshaft and the green CV joint casing. In fact it's so tight on the casing in particular that you'll need a prybar or similar too to stretch the boot over the casing before securing it.

The grease used in the inner joints is weird too. I've never seen a grease like it infact...It's not your usual lithium-moly grey grease. Imagine cold custard. It's that colour and consistency... literally! Anyone know what it is?:inquisiti

[Exbury]

Hey, great thread, I think the inner tripod bearing bearing on my inboard driveshaft (transmission side) has gone :( however the write up makes it look relatively painless to change it. Hopefully it will just be a case of ordering the tripod bearing and new snap ring from mitsi. after I take the joint out of the cup to take a look.......I expect loads of little pins!!

BTW symptoms are clicking on moving straight from a halt (mostly seems to disappear once moving but reappears after each halt), anyone got an idea of how to check which side it is as I have rotated both shafts by hand in and out of gear but probably do not have the same power and force the engine puts out!

[peter thomson]

/Grrr My legnum was supposed to go into tomorrow to have the recall work done but I have just found my inner driveshaft boot is split . Do I have to order a replacement from the dealer or do camskill have them.
If any body has one lying around spare could you let me know:happy:

[Kieran]

Well, Camskill don't list the ones for the Legnum and the EVO ones do NOT fit - See my post above. You could always call them with your chassis number ready and get them to look it up on CAPS.

MitsuTwitty will sell you a repair kit, there are two flavours - one is just to repair the boot and as such comes with a new boot, clips, split ring for the drive shaft and the weird 'custard' grease that's used in the joint. The other kit includes a new spider joint and scalloped casing - so if the joint's dried up this is a good bet.

The boot kit cost me about £56 as I remember, the full kit is nearer £200! /help

[peter thomson]

The joint appears to be OK so I'll just go with the boot kit first. I can check the part number at work tomorrow as I have caps loaded there. Just have dialup at home so would take days to download it at home

[Kieran]

Yeah, you'll probably be fine with the boot kit - even though my boot spat it's grease out a couple of times (admittedly it never actually ran dry), it's been fine ever since.:scholar:

[stuartturbo]

MMR336600 is the inner CV Joint boot kit only. It has the bellows, circlips, grease and boot bands only - It doesn't have the spider joint or anything like that. about £60

MR336596 is the complete inner CV kit. This contains all the above, plus the spider joint and the green scalloped casing.
From K and mitshi

[peter thomson]

MMR336600 is the inner CV Joint boot kit only. It has the bellows, circlips, grease and boot bands only - It doesn't have the spider joint or anything like that. about £60

MR336596 is the complete inner CV kit. This contains all the above, plus the spider joint and the green scalloped casing.
From K and mitshi

Thanks for the info:happy:

[Wouter]

Well, Camskill don't list the ones for the Legnum and the EVO ones do NOT fit - See my post above. You could always call them with your chassis number ready and get them to look it up on CAPS.

MitsuTwitty will sell you a repair kit, there are two flavours - one is just to repair the boot and as such comes with a new boot, clips, split ring for the drive shaft and the weird 'custard' grease that's used in the joint. The other kit includes a new spider joint and scalloped casing - so if the joint's dried up this is a good bet.

The boot kit cost me about £56 as I remember, the full kit is nearer £200! /help

:speechles

I called Camskill and they sent me a EVO boot kit and it fitted fine! Cost me about £20.

[bernmc]

...a speed dependant recipricating drone

:inquisiti

er... I like fluffy kittens...

[Kieran]

:speechles

I called Camskill and they sent me a EVO boot kit and it fitted fine! Cost me about £20.

It'll fit, but as I said above, it's not right and you may end up with it splitting/coming adrift earlier than it should.

[peter thomson]

Ordered one from the dealer today and I'll pick it up tomorrow. I'll have to wait about a month now as the dealer is too busy to book it in for the recall work to be done

[peter thomson]

Fitted the new one today without any problems

I had emailed camskill to find out if they could supply the one for the Legnum and they replied with this one now listed on the site
http://www.camskill.co.uk/products.php?plid=m22b406s1401p11492
I assume this is the evo one and it appears to only have 2 ribs compared to the dealer one which has 3 but it is a bit difficult to tell from the pic.
Still waiting for a quote from RHD as well .They said they would let me know 2 days ago but I needed it sorted asap.

[Kieran]

That is the one, it doesn't fit correctly - the genuine legnum one is different.:scholar:

[peter thomson]

Yes thought so. It must be a struggle to fit as the Legnum one seems longer and the large clip must be a pain to tighten if the driveshaft was still on the car unlike the genuine one which was not too bad

[peter thomson]

RHD sent me there quote today, $45 delivered which is just over £22 compared to £49 from the stealer

[Wouter]

Kieran... How does it not fit right??

It looked a perfect fit to me?

[Kieran]

Kieran... How does it not fit right??

It looked a perfect fit to me?

Page 2 of this thread, post #36. :scholar:

[Davezj]

i know this is an old thread but a useful one.

I am greasing up my shaft (pardon the expression) and i need to know if the standard high melt point grease you buy from halford will do the job. i am not sure what this yellow custard like grease is that Kieran mentions in has service pack he bought from mitsi.

i have a second hand drive shaft which looks and feel ok (no slackness in the joints), but the grease in the joints looks like thick gravy (brown woth a white creamy look) you put on sunday roast. not the normal really think gloopy grease you expect to find in a cv joint, and not the same as the stuff that came out of the old one which was black really think and gloopy.

any ideas?

[Davezj]

still need help

[peter thomson]

The mitsi grease is a lot more fluid than the stuff I usually use as well Dave so you may be as well to try and get hold of some.

[Kieran]

I never identified that weird grease Dave. The Kits camskill supply (with the boot that's a little too short) have standard Lith-Moly CV grease. The Stuff that was in the Genuine Mitsubishi kit was much more runny than that, probably NLGI #0 or runnier than that in terms of consistency.

That the grease has turned brown in the used one and black in your dead joint suggests that it does overheat and degrade after some time.

From searching that I did, it appears that Honda also use a 'yellow' grease in the inner CV joints. Again, no specification or 'brand' other than it's a High Temperature, Extreme Pressue grease. It's mentioned in this PDF:

http://www.acuraworld.com/tsb/1999/B99-015.pdf

I would suggest that in the absence of the proper grease, you get a high quality (Synthetic?) EP grease that can cope with high temperatures. I remember at the time looking at the amsoil greases before I got a geniune kit.

[psbarham]

i know this is an old thread but a useful one.

I am greasing up my shaft (pardon the expression) and i need to know if the standard high melt point grease you buy from halford will do the job. i am not sure what this yellow custard like grease is that Kieran mentions in has service pack he bought from mitsi.

i have a second hand drive shaft which looks and feel ok (no slackness in the joints), but the grease in the joints looks like thick gravy (brown woth a white creamy look) you put on sunday roast. not the normal really think gloopy grease you expect to find in a cv joint, and not the same as the stuff that came out of the old one which was black really think and gloopy.

any ideas?

halfrauds sell a high melting point grease that works fine in drive shafts on vr4's (well stuey hasn't shouted at me down the phone yet) the grease in that one you have is definatly mullered, if i had had more time i would have cleaned it out and repacked it for you, but i hadn't so i didn't :inquisiti

[amsoil]

Best CV grease in the world IMHO is made by GKN who make most of the drive shaft CVs and tripoids. Just do a search and you will find it availavle at Tweeks, Raceparts, Merlin etc etc
Which really is a thought.......... perhaps soon to be available at Performance Oils ?

[Davezj]

halfrauds sell a high melting point grease that works fine in drive shafts on vr4's (well stuey hasn't shouted at me down the phone yet) the grease in that one you have is definatly mullered, if i had had more time i would have cleaned it out and repacked it for you, but i hadn't so i didn't :inquisiti

Yes i cleaned and re-packed both ends with high melt point grease.

i think it was a bit think but i can always take it back out later and replace it with some stuff that has been recomended by DON at AMSoil.

i am going to clean the knacked drive shaft tonight and post some pics up in my other thread to show the failure point which by all account is a bit of an odd one.

cheers for all the help.

dave