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Mon Aug 18, 2008 10:48 am

Reworking CVs on '84 2WD Westy. Found pitting on both CVs on one axle. Was shocked to find out that the local O'Reilley Auto Parts had two rebuilt axles in stock. Only $75 plus a $75 core charge which I avoided by having the old axle out. My first question is, have any of you had any experience with these axles with rebuilt non-VW CVs? These axles have a "Limited Lifetime Warranty". The guy at O'Reilley said that when the boot ever tears they will replace the whole axle for free. This sounds too good to be true but I'm going to run this one and find out.

Second, as I was bolting up this O'Reilley axle (without a torque wrench) I broke off one of the bolts, on the wheel end of course. It was late in the day and I was tired of wallowing in the driveway so I finished it off with only 5 bolts. I cut one of the steel backing plates in two so that it couldn't swing out away from the CV. Has anyone out there run their van or other VW for any length of time with only 5 bolts in a CV? I know a failure here could get ugly.

Also, for getting this bolt out later, how difficult will it be to remove the whole hub for better access to the bolt? (Okay, that's 3 quesitons, sue me.)

Mon Aug 18, 2008 11:38 am

The rebuilt axles did not come with new bolts? I have never used reman axles. I always buy new joints when needed. I am suspicious of the process of rebuilding and would hate to trade in my known good straight axles for ones of no history. I'd replace the bolt as soon as possible and not drive it much.

Mon Aug 18, 2008 5:48 pm

I’m not sure about running it with 5 bolts but I can say removing the bearing assembly can be a pain and sometimes not I hear. Soaking them with PB blaster (penetrating oil) ahead of time, a couple times, is a good idea. There are four big bolts that hold the assembly in place against the suspension. Most sources I’ve found said they are 22mm but my 22’s were too big and my 21’s were too small. I ended up finding and old crooked neck 7/8’s that I was finally able to get them off with. I had a buddy work the wrench while I braced an old hickory axe handle up against them to keep the wrench from popping off; sounds terrible but wasn’t that bad and it didn’t hurt the heads one bit.
There is a bit of a hassle with the casting of the bearing assembly around those bolts becuase it's a little cramped. I had to grind my wrench a bit so it would fit over the heads.
One more note: there is a little jewel of a tool for removing the giant 46 mm hub nut, you put a 1/2 inch drive breaker bar in one end and the other fits over the nut. There’s plenty of reference to it if you search the topic (I can’t remember where exactly I got it from). That tool made my day.

Good luck,
Jere

Tue Aug 19, 2008 8:45 am

Here's that tool:
(below is quoted from McVanagon)

"46MM

Many of us use this clever, akward device:

http://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=ACC%2DC10%2D7045

"
take care,
jeremy

Tue Aug 19, 2008 9:06 am

montykeel wrote: Also, for getting this bolt out later, how difficult will it be to remove the whole hub for better access to the bolt? (Okay, that's 3 quesitons, sue me.)

There are two methods to remove a broken bolt from the hub flange.

Method One
1) Apply penetrating oil for several days, while you make sure you have assorted vice-grips, drill bits and EZ outs.
2) Drill a crooked hole in the bolt that is too shallow, then break off EZ out in the broken bolt, break a drill bit trying to redrill hole. Repeat exactly two more times.
3) After dark, remove hub from swing arm, and struggle with the mess of a broken bolt you have left yourself - break one more drill bit to get it out, praying that you didn't damage the threads.

Method Two
1) Skip above step #2. Proceed straight to the bench.

***You may have better than average results inside the swingarm on step #2 if you are a dentist***

Mon Aug 25, 2008 10:45 am

The "nice" thing is that I'm talking about a fresh, new bolt that I broke because I (apparently) over torqued it. I wasn't using a torque wrench (I know, I know) and failed to recalibrate my arm before bolting up the axle. If I'm really lucky, I can pull the axle and get the bolt nub out by hand.

Mon Aug 25, 2008 11:33 am

The bolt torque is 32 foot pounds. That is twice what a normal 8mm bolt is torqued to. If you broke it, I would be suspect of the quality of bolts. If it is broken off and not cross threaded, you should be able to get the broken part out with a dental pick. You need to use a torque wrench when tightening cv bolts. You can't trust your "feel". I don't like the shinny bolts that come with new joints. I prefer the original black ones with the special washer.