cv boot trouble.....help asap

ok, i park my car in my driveway, and i had to crank the wheel all the way to straighten out, then i left it like that and hopped out, i look into the wheel well just cuz i can because the wheels are turned so far, and what do i see... my cv boot is torn right open!!!! then i go to the other side, and that one is exactly the same?!!!!!!!

:banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead:

needless to say, im not impressed, and all my money is tied up with my sub and amp right now. what i dont get is that i just had an oil change and that was only about a month ago, maybe a little more than a month. and they do the check on all the parts underneath, they said "cv boots are fine"

well they arent f***ing fine now. anyway, i see that there is oil still there, so im wondering what my options are if they would still be good enough to just replace the boots and maybe get it cleaned out or do i need entirely new axles?? also would that cause shifting to be a little rough too? i've noticed roughness going from 1st to 2nd especially.

how much is this gonna cost me? has anyone else gone through this?

anyway, thats a lot to read. thanks everyone.

what a great way to finish off my day... :swear: :swear:

well it all depends. i mean when i got my civic the cv boots were torn and had spiders going in them so it must have been awhile. but i just changed the cv boot and no clicking no play, its all good. i havent busted those axles yet.

everyone is gonna say get a new axle, i am gonna say if your realy strapped for cash then i would compare the price of 2 cv boots with the price of a new axle and see how much the difference is. it also depends on whether your doing it yourself or not. i think a mechanic would charge less for labor for changing an axles and more for cv boot change because the cv boot is gonna take longer.

so if your gonna have a mechanic do it then find out how much labor is gonna be for cv boot change vs axle then compare that with the price of cv boots vs axle. and see which one comes out more

^^I like this guy, what is he new? :grinno: Are your axles clicking while taking turns at all? if not, and they dont look dirty and grimey, just go ahead and replace the boots, its not that hard and it will cost a lot less. Just make sure that if you plan to do that, you do it soon because if you wait too long, theyll get to the point where your going to need to get new axles. but as he said, check around for prices if your not doing it yourself. on an average, new axles with a core are about $50-70 where i live. A boot cost my friend like 12 bucks or something and i put it on for him. feel free to ask if you have any more questions.

all good answers here.. i can't relay any more then these guys,, besides the fact that here.. most of the time when you have an oil change.. the 20 point insection rarely occurs.. Mechanic bastards. LOL Also here, drivers side axle is 90 bucks with trade in, passenger side 70 with trade in..

Axles are cheap, and you can drive on them a long time usually while they're clicking. I've drove over a whole season on a ripped boot, even going to to track 10 or so times for lots of runs.

Generally CV boots rip when people are accelerating hard on the gas with the steering wheel cranked in either direction. Make sure that when you're accelerating from a stop you go easy on the gas until you wheels are straight, it will make your axles last a lot longer.

I think thats the most common reason for boots ripping.. Hard acceleration while steering. Its just a lot of stress on that area.

^ aka donuts and burnouts :)

i think my driving habits definately contributed to the tearing. those things are wide open, im gonna be getting them fixed at my mechanics place, he's very reasonable with pricing, so i'll see how much it will cost me and get back to you guys on the situation.

btw, there is no clicking, and my boots have definately not been torn longer than a month, i've been thinking about changing them tho, it really kills me that im now forced to do it now that its a problem...

thanks everyone for the help and info, glad to hear its not gonna chew through my bank too much!

Keep driving on them till they click, and go easy on your axles or get used to replacing them a lot.

When I was young, in my first car (golf) I would go through axles every 3 months. I stopped driving foolishly, and started to make a concious effort to go easy on them and I rarley have any problems with them at all anymore. Bouncing them at the track doesn't help either, but the rest of the time I baby my tooth-paxles on my Honda. :p

^^I like this guy, what is he new? :grinno:

who the fuck are you ? if you knew about car. then youd know that your axles arent gonna start clicking only after a month at most, driving them without cv boots. i answered that question without knowing if hes gonna do the work or have a mechanic do it.

he says hes strapped for cash,i tell him find out which one is cheap and go with that. i personally can do it myself so i woudl just change the boots but a mechanic would charge mroe for boots than just changing axles but then the cost of axles might make it more, which ever is cheap. if you dont know what you are talking about or what other people known then you shouldnt answer questions that are beyond your knowledge

91civichatch2571 knows his shit man...

k, i dont want this to turn into a big arguement over who is the most intelligent and knowledgeable when it comes to cv boots and joints, lol.

i appreciate everyone's help, cuz i need it!
i'll be finding out what the deal is today, i'd like to just replace the boots cuz im sure the joints are still good, but we'll see about the pricing.

also, would these torn boots contribute to slight grinding/roughness in gear shifting? im noticing roughness going from 1st to 2nd especially. or would this be my clutch or something else transmission related?

i cant believe im just getting onto this forum, this place is awesome!

check to make sure you tranny fluid is ok

how do i go about that? at my last oil change i was told it was good.. i dont really trust that, so how much would it cost me to change it? i want it to just be fixed and fine again!!

Search. This was just talked about. There's a write up on crxsi.com but you have to be a "preferred member" to access it (and I cancelled). Anyway, here's a link to the page in the manual... http://www.binghamtonlife.com/manual/2gsm/images/91-13-3.jpg

The picture is weird but looking at it, the things that are on the left side of the pic are toward the firewall in reality...
(oh yeah, Honda MTF is supposed to be the best)

gm sycnromesh is the best.

theres 2 bolts on your tranny. theres one at the very bottom, i believe its a 3/8" bolt, you pretty much jsut stick the rachet right into the bolt, it is square like hte rachet. then theres one right behind the axle, thats hte fill hole which i believe is 17mm. fluid should be filled up to the fill bolt, open it up and stick your finger in there, if there fluid good, if not add some and check for leaks

Just change the axle.

Changing the boot is a hassle and can get very messy IMO and its so much easier to replace the whole thing.

I can change out both axles in 20 minutes. Plus if you get a new axle from autozone, pepboys or someplace like that they have lifetime warranties.

yeah changing axles is easier but more expensive.

sometimes you have to set aside things that you WANT for things that you NEED.

If he wants to go cheap because it'll set him back a week on his amp/sub then thats his choice. Make your car run right first look/sound better last.

very very true

i totally agree with making the car actually function properly before neons and all that junk. i just dont have the money for boots or axles right now, and my job doesnt exactly throw money at me... i'd love to do the axles and i definately would if i had the money just to avoid later problems. im no expert on changing out axles tho, so im going to my mechanic, i just got off the phone with him, he said:

$100 per axle (approx) + labor of $45 = $145 for one new axle installed. so thats $290 for both axles replaced...

..or..

$65 for one boot on each side including labor, installed.

i can only see the outer boot on each side i think, so i hope the inner ones arent gone too.

thing is, i just really cant afford to get the axle deal, but the boots i can likely do.. but if the joints are already messed up badly im gonna hafta figure something out and not waste my time and money getting new boots.

...i dont believe in chrome rims before rust repair.

decisions, decisions...make the right one.

If they're not clicking just wait and save money. And in the meantime, try to take turns without locking the steering wheel completely to one side or the other. And don't dump your clutch either.

what if they just tore open like a week ago though. i hate thinking that im driving on them and just wrecking them when they're still good and could just use new boots. i dunno, im kinda in a situation here. would this cause the tansmission to be a bit rough?

who the fuck are you ? if you knew about car. then youd know that your axles arent gonna start clicking only after a month at most, driving them without cv boots. i answered that question without knowing if hes gonna do the work or have a mechanic do it.

he says hes strapped for cash,i tell him find out which one is cheap and go with that. i personally can do it myself so i woudl just change the boots but a mechanic would charge mroe for boots than just changing axles but then the cost of axles might make it more, which ever is cheap. if you dont know what you are talking about or what other people known then you shouldnt answer questions that are beyond your knowledge
Hey man, I was agreeing with you. I remember you were here a long ass time ago and now that your back, your one of the few people who really offers out good info instead of just spitting out some random answer with no reason behind it. So keep your cool my friend, were on the same team :ylsuper: No hard feelings bro.

i thought the same thing, but i wasnt gonna get involved :grinno:

i wonder how many people are driving on torn boots right now, theres gotta be thousands and thousands.

its all canadian winter's fault, -50 and old boots=my problem

well, i talked to my friendly neighborhood mechanic, then i talked to the parents, and since i have no cash to fix it myself, my parents are gonna cover new boots. so thats what im gonna do.

i know, "you are stupid and you should get new axles" and all that, but this is definately my only and therefore best option. if time wasnt an issue (the cv's were bad) i'd save and do the whole axles..

$65 for both boots and labor isnt a bad deal either, so even if i have troubles with them down the road (literally), i wont feel too bad about putting boots on because they're no where near $300 like the axles.

thanks again for the help, i'll let you know how it goes (im doing it tomorrow)

well shit. the guy cant fuckin do it today, and now my dad doesnt want me driving my car so i dont wreck the joints, so now i dont get shit fixed or get to drive my damn car, i get to continue having a problem not dealt with, and i get to walk to school and its snowing like mad and its cold....... and i dont know what im gonna do to get to work tomorrow..

i should have just fuckin ruined the damn things and saved to get new axles. instead i get called irresponsible and all that bullshit. now im just pissed off. :newburn: thought i'd share my pleasant feelings..

have you considered doing the labor yourself? the beauty of the 4th gen suspension is that it's a matter of bolts. and in a matter of minutes i can post up diagrams out of the manual showing exactly what to take apart.

http://www.binghamtonlife.com/manual/2gsm/images/91-18-9.jpg

suspension section: http://www.binghamtonlife.com/manual/2gsm/suspension.htm

changing axle is easy. take off axle nut, take off damper fork, you have 2 option here you can either get a pickle fork and disconnect the lower part of the hub i believe it goes to the lower arm or you can take off hte upper arm which is held in by 2 bolts. i went the way of taking off the upper arm.

thats it, the axle comes off and will leak tranny fluid unless you drain it first

well its only gonna cost me $65 apparently for the outer boots on each side. and i dont feel comfortable messing around with stuff like that cuz i dont wanna screw it up and make something worse. i know im a big loser and im scared to do it. but its not like im gonna save a couple hundred bucks. when it comes to stereo stuff you get killed on installation so i do it all myself, but important functions like engine and transmission, i'll leave that to the experts.

thanks for the help anyway, i'll just hafta deal with getting exercise to get places for a few days. i think i'll be able to get it done monday.

shoot, i'd drive on the cv joints anyway they should last at least a day. I remember the toyota needed new ones and we rolled on em clicking for at least a few months.

And your gonna hafta drive to the mechanic's shop anyway...lol

im sure they'll last a year, but the thing is that i caught them early, so i think they arent damaged, or at least not badly, so if they're good enough to just change the boots, thats what i'll do, and if i get trouble again, i'll at least have em covered till i have the cash to change up the axles.

my brother is running on one completely dried out open cv, and has been for a few months, they do keep working, but mine arent wrecked like his, so im trying to save them and my money if i can.

chances are it's gonna happen again next winter, so i'll likely do the axles then.

what about the roughness in the shifting though, does anyone else get that? especially in the cold? also i hate that fancy safety feature that effectively keeps you out of reverse. :uhoh:

well i got the bill for my cv boot replacements..

$142.50 i think it was

'holy fucking hell' doesnt even describe how much that cost me. i dont know why i was told $65 before. the boots were $30 together, then labor was $45 on each.

i gotta get that spray stuff to make these ones last, cuz that's just ridiculous.

i have major money problems now....

dude 65 per axle timexs 2 is 130. oh so you had to pay an extra 12, its minors

correct me if im wrong, but i stated earlier that the $65 was for both sides.

i wouldnt bitch over 12 bucks man.

another reason to try and DIY. if you did it yourself, it would have only cost you $30 instead of $100+ more than that.. If you reeeeealy dont think you could do something like that yourself, do you have any friends around that might be willing to help?

i have some friends who have done it on their cars, but i thought it was only gonna cost me $65, so i thought it wasnt a big deal cuz thats such a low price that it wouldnt be worth my time.

now of course i regret it cuz its putting me into some major debt. i wasnt counting on having to replace the boots in the first place, but now its fucking up my plans with my sub cuz i already have $50 down and that $50 only holds the sub until thursday, and its the last 12" type R available. so i hafta pay 149.99+tax to get that sub or lose my $50, and i still owe my brother about $75 from getting my amp clear corners and bumpers, and now i owe my dad $150 for these cv boots... that adds up to me being unable to pay back everything with my nexy cheque which should be about $250. i have some real shit to deal with now.

what a pain in the ass.

Try being in debt for the next 18 years or so... go to college and take out loans, then get out of college and try to pay them back making a state employment salary... while being married with a wife who came fully equipped with her own long term bills...

hahaha, yea, that'll be me soon enough
how can you be modding your car with all that debt and whatnot?

it's already modded... i'm just tuning and driving it until I put it up somewhere and learn to do body work..

sounds good