If you find a boot is damaged before the joint itself has been compromised, then you can often simply replace the boot and repack the joint with grease, avoiding a full replacement.
Often, the whole axle doesn't have to be replaced. Replacing the boots is often sufficient to keep your axle going for many more miles. Enter your vehicle info at Advance Auto Parts to find a boot kit that fit your vehicle. These split boot kits are a real time saver because the axle can stay on the vehicle.
time-wise, replacing an entire axle is way quicker. and if you do the work yourself, it's a lot less messy than replacing the boot. replacing the outer boot requires not only the removal from the hub assembly, but then the outer joint must then be taken off. there is no way to stretch a boot over the joint*.
What is the difference between a CV boot and a CV joint?
CV joints are packed with grease for lubrication. To keep the grease in the joint and moisture, dirt and roadway grime out, the joint is covered with a rubber boot called a CV boot. CV boots are made of a durable rubber that can withstand extreme weather and travel conditions.
How to replace a CV boot with the over-the-joint method
How long will a CV joint last with a torn boot?
Once the boot goes bad, the lubricant leaks out and dirt and water can get in. The CV joint will fail soon. You might get another thousand miles out of it with good luck…… or it might fail within an hour or so, depending on the circumstances. It will start making noise as soon as it's heating up.
CV axle boots last for quite some time (80,000 miles) and are not items needing periodic replacement. But you absolutely should inspect them at least once a year, or even more often on cars with high mileage. They are most affected by prolonged off-road driving or heavy use in transportation-industry conditions.
The Constant Velocity is sealed by a boot. This boot may get damaged, and when this happens, the joint will wear out and eventually fail. If you drive a car with a damaged CV, the joint will disintegrate further, making driving impossible. You'll not be able to control the vehicle and may get involved in an accident.
The answer will be relative from one CV axle to another. It could take weeks, months, or years. But the average lifespan of a bad CV axle is around five to six months. Knowing this does not merely mean to stretch the deadline a little bit.
What happens if torn CV boots aren't replaced? Well, it won't take long for enough of the CV grease to be replaced with harmful grit and debris that damage to the joint is unavoidable.
These boots break down with age and exposure unfortunately, and will need to be looked at often to make sure they're still intact. Say the dirt does get in and starts wreaking havoc on your joint and axle.
I had a brand new CV boot rip on the way to a trail where I was camping for a couple days, I tried duct tape, rubber cement and even JBWeld, nothing held up. Eventually just said screw it and ran it like that the whole weekend, other than the mess it made it was fine. Replaced it eventually when I got home.
If your CV joint is damaged, it can affect the transmission and cause problems with how your car operates. CV joints can certainly have an impact on the transmission, but they are not the only cause of these issues.
Grease leak: When a CV boot cracks or tears it will usually leak grease onto the inside of the wheel. This leak can eventually be sent into other parts of the chassis or even the underside of the vehicle as the CV axle turns.
The CV joints play a critical role in connecting the transaxle to the drive wheels via inner and outer joints, transferring power while allowing for up and down motion of the suspension. But it's not always a worn boot that causes CV joints to fail.
What Happens When CV Joints Fail. Unfortunately, broken CV joints are not repairable—only the CV joint boot is. If your CV joints ever fail completely, the car will suddenly not be able to accelerate, since it won't have the means to transfer torque to the drive shaft or the wheels.
Give Them a Massage - Rubber CV boots should be pliable. If they are dry and inflexible, they don't have many miles left on them. To be sure what state they're in, pull them, twist them, push the folds apart and look into the crevices. Look for any signs of cracking or cracked rubber, and check for splits and cracks.
It really is just that the cost to get to the boot is high in terms of labor. It can easily be 140$ of labor to disassemble the wheel down to the knuckle and access the outer boot.
What is the difference between a CV boot and a steering boot?
Steering rack boots or steering gear boots essentially perform the same function of CV boots - except that they perform it for the steering rack instead of the CV joint. There are two steering rack boots on a steering rack, one on either end.
CV boots should be replaced as soon as any cracks, splits, leaks or tears are noticed by you or your mechanic. CV Boots are inspected with every regular service of your vehicle.
Do you have to replace both CV axles at the same time?
On a high-mileage vehicle with a bad CV joint or boot, it's often a good idea to replace both shafts at the same time. Often, the right (passenger side) shaft fails first because right turns are at a sharper angle than left turns, and right turns are more common than left turns.
