CV Joint Failure, or vehicle DEATH??

[ocduff]

Hey all - this is my first post up here, just thought maybe some of you could help me do a little troubleshooting - as I haven't done much work with front wheel drives.

My girlfriend's 1994 Corolla has 180K on the clock, still going strong - except for this brand new knocking from the front axle/CV joint area whenever the car is under power (read: in Drive, accelerating or maintaining speed). It is not an engine knock. It doesn't sound like a wheel bearing - the noise is when you are accelerating in gear, straight forward or during turns. If it was a rear wheel drive car I'd say it was the driveshaft.

When you are going 40 MPH, for example, and you drop in in neutral - no noise. When you drop it into drive, no noise - when you step on the accelerator - whump, knock, whump, whump, clunk, knock (shudder, shudder) - all from the low front end. It sounds more prevalent on the right side, but it's on both sides.

The suspension in the car is pretty shot - and now I'm assuming the CV joints have gone bad.

So, I'm pretty mechanically inclined and I have replaced some CV joints before - but it's been a LONG time. Anyone have any proceedures for removing/changing them? I recall it was very easy. I'm prepared to roll up my sleeves and attck this job head on - just need a refresher course.

Thanks in advance

[fredk]

Not hard at all, pop the hubcap, and get the big nut off the end of the axle while the wheel is on the ground still, get the wheel and caliper off, slide the rotor off, take out the bolts that hold the bottom balljoint to the control arm, pop the tierod off the knuckle and at the same time pull the steering knuckle/strut assy off the ent of the axle while tapping the axle end to loosten it and swing the knuckle out of the way, get 2 large screwdrivers and carefully pop the axle out of the trans. clean up where the axle goes into the trans with brakeclean. DO NOT beat the hell out of the axle trying to get it seated back into the trans, hold the inner housing and get it splined by hand where it drops down to the clip in the trans, then using the sliding action of the inner joint grab the shaft part and hold the inner joint and use the axles inertia going inward to push the axle the rest of the way in, you might have to use a medium sized hammer and TAP the end to seat it, dont loose your cool when putting it back in or you might loose alot more

[phlash]

be warned, the big nut on the end of the axle is very tight.

I mangled a socket wrench and bent a breaker bar trying to knock mine loose, ended up borrowing someone's air wrench to get them off.

[fredk]

I gotta idea, get your hubcaps off, drive to a closeby shop and get the guy to LOOSTEN A LITTLE, the big nut with an impact gun, then go home and get dirty

[dexter_5000]

first look to see if the boot is even torn open usally its will be if its the cv axle.