That's more likely to be the inner cv boot leaking than the tie rod boot, the rotation will fling it everywhere like that. My strut on the front driver wheel looks like that (sorta) because my outer boot has a small hole in it. That looks way to thick for motor oil (the fumoto), that's straight up grease. Double check the CV boot and chances are you'll be replacing the axle. They aren't too bad at places like autozone, you'll get a lifetime warranty. I wouldn't spring for the OEM one. Aftermarket is about 1/3 to 1/7th the price, depending on which axle and your drivetrain.

 

I agree. In those pics it looks like the inner CV boot might be slinging grease.

Looks too thick to be oil. Check it for splits or damage. If it's running dry it sure could cause a vibration and it won't last long.

 

Thanks for the quick response. Based on what you guys said and the location of the grease and how it is in a straight line from the inner CV joint, it looks like the inner CV joint is the problem. However, upon further inspection after taking my wheel off, I could not locate any tears in the boot. Is it possible that the clamp holding the boot is defective?

I have attached 2 images of the grease that I rubbed off and an additional shot. Additionally, here's a 18 second video of a rotation of the CV joint:

If this turns out to be the problem, I'll probably try to make a repair video for all the help this forum has provided.

Thanks so much!

 

my guess is bad tire or balance.

Sent from my LG-H631 using Tapatalk

 

Even after the shudder goes away on coasting or no acceleration?

Here's another video of my Inner CV Axle play - it's making a clunking noise, is that normal?

 

Well someone has been busy. :lol:

I'm telling you, that kind of grease is really only seen when your packing bearings or CV's, unless your in a habit of driving through grease pits, there are very few areas it can come from. Clean the CV and the spray area, drive it a little and check again. Check frequently enough so it doesn't get covered, so you can see where it's coming from. I can tell you on mine, its not a tear, but a pinhole leak. Its really hard to see just quickly glancing for it, you really have to look to see. The forces on it during rotation force grease out that tiny hole. So you aren't always looking for this boot tearing failure.

As for that play, that could be normal if the play was in-line with the axle. Most independent suspension designs have a spec called plunge. That's the change in axle length while the suspension cycles. So say your wheel is fully extended (off the ground) vs fully compressed (on bump stop), the axle length from the wheel to the transmission changes. You have to account for that. If you design the axle too short, it'll fall out when the wheel hangs (seen that on off road vehicles), or if its also too long, when the suspension compresses, its going to slam into the transmission/knuckle and something WILL break (also seen that on offroad vehicles). So what they do is build play into CV axles. The inner cv joint is shaped like a barrell, the CV itself slides in and out of that barrel as the suspension cycles. It's called a plunger (by some). So your moving it forward and back like that could simply be slop in the design of the plunger. Now if you have that kind of play on the outer CV, well, you have issues. Typically if the joint itself starts going bad, it'll let you know, they get stupid hot without grease and will make noise.

 

Sweeneyp,

What would I do without you?!? :grin:

Thanks for your help, I'm gonna take the plunge and tackle this job within the next 2 weeks and hopefully make a quick tutorial to help others.

 

I had the same issue on an old car of mine, I just replaced the boot and kept the oem axle. Good aftermarket axles are pretty pricey, and my axle was still good. If you choose to replace the whole axle, it's worth it to spend the money. The Autozone ones can last for 2,000 or 200,000 miles. Not a repair you're going to want to do again soon!

 

Thanks for your response. Unfortunately, I probably have waited too long so I cannot simply replace the boot . Also, as far as going OEM, I don't think I'll mind replacing it a couple times if I can buy a reman. part for 1/5 the price w/ lifetime warranty from Autozone. I'll give that a shot since the car isn't going to be driven that much anymore.

The joint probably has excessive RADIAL play, where the races and balls are worn, which causes the joint to "chatter" on rotation. Most noticeable and feel-able under acceleration, going up hills. If the boot has been slinging grease and the races are running dry, and/or water has gotten inside, the condition will get worse. Quickly.

Give Scotty Kilmer a call! :grin:

Makes sense! Does Scotty give out his number to the general public since I know he's pretty popular online!

 

The joint probably has excessive RADIAL play, where the races and balls are worn, which causes the joint to "chatter" on rotation. Most noticeable and feel-able under acceleration, going up hills. If the boot has been slinging grease and the races are running dry, and/or water has gotten inside, the condition will get worse. Quickly.

Give Scotty Kilmer a call! :grin:

 

Well, I assume Scotty still needs cars to work on to pay bills and make videos. Would guess he hangs his shingle out in some way, in the Houston metro..

 

Hey guys, just finished the repair and recorded a not that great video that I'll post up shortly.

So all of you were right that it was the inner CV axle joint. However, I am having another problem now and I can't figure out what it is!!! So the vibration is now gone, but when I go over small bumps slowly, I get a clunking sound. There is no play in the wheel at 3/9 or 6/12 positions, and all my connections are tight. Could be new CV axle be bad and cause this clunking sound?

 

Check:

suspension bushings (in a-arms, ball joint, etc)
tie rod
spring isolators
sway bar bushings (make sure they are secure)
sway bar links


Any of those can clunk when going over a bump. Mine was a bad sway bar bushing on the rear of mine when I had that happen.

 

Thanks Sweeneyp,

I believe I checked all the bushings and they look good. I imagine it's something I worked on because it is now just happening after I put everything back together. It sounds like something is loose. If this helps, when I was installing the lowerball joint, I accidentally pulled the inner CV joint out of its socket and placed it back into place. Could that be the cause of this problem?

Here's a Youtube video on the sound going a speed bump:

 

Glad I'm not the only one. How many times did you pull the CV joint out of socket before getting it in there? I was trying to be super careful of that the whole time, and it happened three times. Placing it back into place takes practice, and an act of God. I couldn't stand it anymore, so I took the spindle off, and it was so much easier to install.

 

NEVERMIND! After jacking my car up and down and driving around 5 times, I finally found the problem! I didn't tighten up the sway bar end link nut enough.............................. I'll post my repair video within the next week. It's not the best since i had to do it one handed, but it should at least a little bit!

Again, thank you to everyone for all your help!

 

Last post here w/ video done unless anyone has questions:

 

I thought if I did this today, St Patty's day, I would have better luck. Just kidding, sort of.
I'm really trying to remove the passenger axle without marring it. I rented a slide hammer from Autozone. It has tons of attachments, none which are helpful. They have an adapter that might work for $20. But first, as satek has stated, you need a slide hammer EXTENSION and some "...luck!!!" Autozone, Oreilly, NAPA, Harbor Freight and Home Depot do not have it. However, I special ordered it today from O'reilly. It's $60 - yes, just for the extension!! - and it will arrive tomorrow. I could probably get it on eBay for less, but it will take too long to get here. Meanwhile, my car is spending the night on stands -- not my favorite thing to do. I think I have the removal under control now -- but I'm still open to suggestion on that. Also, I'm a little concerned about getting the carrier bearing back in on installation. The shop manual says to hit it in with a 1/2" brass bar to reinstall. I couldn't find a brass bar either, except on eBay. But, found an aluminum one at HD. Anyone with some good pointers on removal and installation will be much appreciated!
Happy St. Pattys Day!

 

Very useful vid. Mods how about a sticky?

 

Hi Guys -- I'm going to replace the front passenger axle tomorrow. Just wondering, do I need to empty the ATF before removing the axle? From what I've researched, it seems like I just need to measure the amount of ATF that exits with the axle, then re-place it at the end.

 

One huge caveat, my 2009 does not have the bolt or big circlip on the passenger side (I assume the driver side is the same). I was told by Cardone that only the FWD models have that setup. In any event, I used a long 1/2” extension and hit the backside of the joint from the driver side and it popped right out so I can confirm 100% it‘s just the circlip at the end of the joint holding it in place.

 

I have two original axles that came off the FRONT of my HL. The driver's side had some inner boot leakage, and I'm pretty sure that joint needs to be replaced. The passenger side just needs a new inner boot replacement. I just listed these on Craigslist, but not sure if they will sell. Anyone know where else I might be able to get cash for these, other than the scrap yard?

 

Are you still active original poster guy?...

 

First post is from 2016. Recent post from 2020. I doubt this will be replied to. Please start a new thread on your issue. Thanks.