Trailside CV repair
- Thread starter CharlieS
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supercarrera
Club Esprit de Four
They make changing an axle look pretty easy. What do you do if you're on the trail and break a CV and you're without a spare? Just pull the broken axle, shove a rag in the front diff carrier and drive without one?
Taco2Cruiser
Crazy American Off Road
I love watching those guys, probably the best of all things like that. “The story till now,” is a good one also I’m kinda into right now.
Anyway, yeah replacing CVs can be super easy. But there are some little tricks that you need to know that actually makes it like that. If you haven’t done a ton of them, I promise, when you are tired, dirty, and possibly embarrassed in front of a crowd of guys that always think it’s a competition (that’s why I preach so much that it isn’t a competition). Then you won’t have an easy time popping them out, or in.
Some tricks are knowing that the c clip need to be at the top of the inner shaft to get it in or out. It’s even in the FSM. There are ways to do that when removing. It is pretty much a “feel” followed by a 90° rotation, then a try again. In that video where you saw the inner shaft come flying out, those forces weren’t needed at all. It worked for him, but he’s a bigger guy than most of us. Keep grease so you can keep the c clip in place when installing. Understand that CV inners “compress,” so don’t try to apply pressure on the outer, it won’t help.
Also, just like changing tires, find a flat spot people. I can’t describe to you the amount of times people try to change tires, axles, yolks, or prop shafts, in the worse of weird angled spots. You definitely need a 1/2” impact, if not, have fun with a high lift jack handle (if you carry one, which I don’t recommend) and a breaker bar. Sometimes the hub nuts pop loose easy. Sometimes, they just won’t let go.
Ultimately, if someone has replaced their CVs once for a gear change or one failure, and that’s all they have done, and they say it was super easy. Then I recommend doing it again, as they probably got lucky on the clip. That’s way you hear guys talk about how “it was fine, but the right/left on didn’t go in/out. But the other were easy.” Yeah, that’s the clip, they just don’t understand that it needs to fall in the channel it sits in, to be out of the way enough to make the job super easy.
And it’s just not a good time, to have a frustrating moment and then start beating on the truck like so many people do, and have something bad happen.
I've seen someone start trying to push on a pry bar with their foot to pop the inner out, only to knock the hi lift, and the truck fell. His leg just happened to be in the wheel well, and his balls just barely missed getting chopped off by a disk brake. And that was what some people in this forum would call, experienced. Really that person was good at buying things, and having them added to his truck. And that’s where his capability ended. Good guy, but he needed to not tackle that project, at that particular time.
So, and I mean this as the most sincere way I can, don’t try things that you are not well versed in.
A line I used a lot in my last career that I think applies well to trail repairs (or first aid since everyone like to carry a good amount of that stuff these days):
We don’t rise to the occasion, no one does. We fall to the level of our training.
Sorry to make this a post seem like I’m being mean. I just really don’t like people getting hurt, for no good reason. There are a lot of capable people on this forum, more so than most. I think that YouTube can be really helpful, but in someways, I’ve seen, emphasis on seen, people cause real problems, with the best of intentions. It’s one thing to try and learn, mess up, and try again. It’s another thing to try and learn, and not get another change to try again. Trucks falling on people, people getting disfigured from recovery equipment, and people having first aid that cause more problems. It make more me want to mention stuff like this. I actually was going to delete this post, like about 3/4th of the posts I write, but I went ahead and did it obviously. Let me know if I’m off base, and I’ll tone it down.
Anyway, yeah replacing CVs can be super easy. But there are some little tricks that you need to know that actually makes it like that. If you haven’t done a ton of them, I promise, when you are tired, dirty, and possibly embarrassed in front of a crowd of guys that always think it’s a competition (that’s why I preach so much that it isn’t a competition). Then you won’t have an easy time popping them out, or in.
Some tricks are knowing that the c clip need to be at the top of the inner shaft to get it in or out. It’s even in the FSM. There are ways to do that when removing. It is pretty much a “feel” followed by a 90° rotation, then a try again. In that video where you saw the inner shaft come flying out, those forces weren’t needed at all. It worked for him, but he’s a bigger guy than most of us. Keep grease so you can keep the c clip in place when installing. Understand that CV inners “compress,” so don’t try to apply pressure on the outer, it won’t help.
Also, just like changing tires, find a flat spot people. I can’t describe to you the amount of times people try to change tires, axles, yolks, or prop shafts, in the worse of weird angled spots. You definitely need a 1/2” impact, if not, have fun with a high lift jack handle (if you carry one, which I don’t recommend) and a breaker bar. Sometimes the hub nuts pop loose easy. Sometimes, they just won’t let go.
Ultimately, if someone has replaced their CVs once for a gear change or one failure, and that’s all they have done, and they say it was super easy. Then I recommend doing it again, as they probably got lucky on the clip. That’s way you hear guys talk about how “it was fine, but the right/left on didn’t go in/out. But the other were easy.” Yeah, that’s the clip, they just don’t understand that it needs to fall in the channel it sits in, to be out of the way enough to make the job super easy.
And it’s just not a good time, to have a frustrating moment and then start beating on the truck like so many people do, and have something bad happen.
I've seen someone start trying to push on a pry bar with their foot to pop the inner out, only to knock the hi lift, and the truck fell. His leg just happened to be in the wheel well, and his balls just barely missed getting chopped off by a disk brake. And that was what some people in this forum would call, experienced. Really that person was good at buying things, and having them added to his truck. And that’s where his capability ended. Good guy, but he needed to not tackle that project, at that particular time.
So, and I mean this as the most sincere way I can, don’t try things that you are not well versed in.
A line I used a lot in my last career that I think applies well to trail repairs (or first aid since everyone like to carry a good amount of that stuff these days):
We don’t rise to the occasion, no one does. We fall to the level of our training.
Sorry to make this a post seem like I’m being mean. I just really don’t like people getting hurt, for no good reason. There are a lot of capable people on this forum, more so than most. I think that YouTube can be really helpful, but in someways, I’ve seen, emphasis on seen, people cause real problems, with the best of intentions. It’s one thing to try and learn, mess up, and try again. It’s another thing to try and learn, and not get another change to try again. Trucks falling on people, people getting disfigured from recovery equipment, and people having first aid that cause more problems. It make more me want to mention stuff like this. I actually was going to delete this post, like about 3/4th of the posts I write, but I went ahead and did it obviously. Let me know if I’m off base, and I’ll tone it down.
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Taco2Cruiser
Crazy American Off Road
double post
TLC2013
SILVER Star
This happened to me and fortunately I had just read through some posts on here about what to do in this situation before I busted my driver side CV. The inner CV was loose and just flopping around in the front differential. Found the ball bearings and chunks of metal on the trail.
I was able to contort myself and the front drive shaft out (unbolting it was easy but sliding it out was a real PIA), then locked the center diff with Diff lock button on the dash and limped home with just rear wheel drive. Less then ideal but kept the speeds under 55mph and it was an uneventful drive just noisy with the CV flopping around. I was lucky to have cell reception and was able to get some Real Time Help from here. Couldn’t be more grateful for this community. Lesson learned to always pack a tool kit with the essentials.
Taco2Cruiser
Crazy American Off Road
Well done.
Fo the group, I’ve used parachute cord/550, and made a makeshift “sling.” One sling to hold what’s left of the shaft up, tired to the UCA. Then one sling tied down, tied to the LCA. That kinda, I I mean only kinda, kept the shaft from beating around.
That was back in the day, and if I’m out with others, like trail guiding, I have a small torch and can cut off the shaft super quick. Then for full time trucks like cruisers, GX/prados, and some 4runners, take the front prop shaft out and lock the front diff. Drive down the high like that, all the way home.
Oh man, I know this feeling. Doing anything with an audience makes your brain foggy.
@Taco2Cruiser in your copious free time (I’m sure like the rest of us you have none) maybe you should do a really comprehensive video on how to change a CV. I bet a lot of people here would really appreciate it if you threw one up on youtube. I feel like YouTube is such a good platform for stuff like that and with your experience I bet it would be fantastic. Just the way you write I can tell you doing a video would be way more detailed then the FSM or someone trying to type it out. I would much rather watch that then the 1000th winch line or hi lift jack review.
Facts. You can hammer on that inner CV all day, if that clip is in the wrong position, you're in for a world of asspain. It might pop out, but at dangerous forces.
I'd recommend bringing the FSM on a tablet or something. If you're unsure about anything you can reference it.
Good advice - one thing to add to that is a tarp to keep from getting ridiculously dirty. A 100 behind me busted a CV on a muddy trail when we were on a weekend camping trip. These 3 pros will forget more than I will ever know about Cruisers and swapped a fresh axle in about an hour.
The section of trail that claimed the 100's CV:
Those lower ball joint bolts on the carrier are 221 ft lb if i recall, so I would give it a good unf from a 1/2" breaker bar before heading off on the trail after an axle replacement. The axle nut is tightened to 148 ft lb, then loosened, then retightened to 251 ft lb
Also, I remove the 12mm bolt that's holding the brake line to the steering knuckle to give the brake line more play when the lower ball joint is disconnected from it
Also, I remove the 12mm bolt that's holding the brake line to the steering knuckle to give the brake line more play when the lower ball joint is disconnected from it
This part of the reassembly is key. The German-style shade tree mechanic method (gutentight) isn't enough. The first mechanic that swapped my CV after a boot tear didn't follow this procedure. An air impact gun and some muscle is insufficient and will result in the hub wobbling, chewing up the hub and bearings, and causing soft/sloppy braking from bad runout. Ask me how I know.
What are you all using to reseat the axle seal? On my 4Runner, a 2” PVC fitting was perfect to ensure it went in the housing evenly. Had to do in twice so I’m a pro now.
Probably should check my torque as I best-guessed 207ft-lb with my 215# weight on my wrench.
Probably should check my torque as I best-guessed 207ft-lb with my 215# weight on my wrench.
I keep a 250# torque wrench in the truck. Never used it on my axle but I did use it on my trailer hitch.
Having felt the sloppy brakes when this is done wrong, if it's not correct it's not good enough. Literally the first pump would go almost to the floor before the brakes engaged, second pump was normal. If you were only going straight the brakes worked fine every time, but each time you made a turn and the lateral force ever so slightly let the brake disc shift you'd get the same brake runout. I wouldn't want to try and use my brakes on a trail like that, you'd likely NOT be able to stop yourself if you had to pump them every time you used them.
