CV Joint/Gaiter relpacement

[caldirun]

Hes talking about his lower suspension arm not his track rod caldi,tho they can be a pig sometimes

No Eddie, he's replacing his CV joint, I'm just saying it's not this hard, I did mine without removing any joints!

[Eddie]

No Eddie, he's replacing his CV joint, I'm just saying it's not this hard, I did mine without removing any joints!

Its impossible to do a cv joint without removing suspension arms the driveshaft has to come of to put the new joint or boot on, if you are only doing the boot it is possible to leave the driveshaft connected g/box end but u need a cone to get the boot on

[caldirun]

Its impossible to do a cv joint without removing suspension arms the driveshaft has to come of to put the new joint or boot on, if you are only doing the boot it is possible to leave the driveshaft connected g/box end but u need a cone to get the boot on

Wrong Eddie, impossible means it can't be done (split no joints, remove driveshaft RH, B5.5, new joint and boot, refit!), I did it without divine intervention, its a topography problem!

[hotrod09]

Wrong Eddie, impossible means it can't be done (split no joints, remove driveshaft RH, B5.5, new joint and boot, refit!), I did it without divine intervention, its a topography problem!

I Agree, I had to mess with next to nothing to get mine out. One side was dead easy, the other took a bit of fiddling. I didn't remove any suspension parts at all.
Get a BIG box of disposable gloves however, you will need them...

[Eddie]

When i did mine (ive done both sides) there is not enough clearance to remove the shaft from the hub the gearbox is in the way,which ever way you manouvre the driveshaft it always hits the gearbox and wouldnt come out of the hub.The manual says"remove hub bolt,remove upper arms,put steering on full right lock,withdraw driveshaft"

[daveo138]

I could not remove the top bolt on the suspension...I don't know how much time I wasted trying.

In the end, I jacked up the outer end of the suspension and the inner end of the driveshaft was low enough to clear the gearbox.

I've done both sides now and the off-side (RH) was much easier than the near-side, as there seems to be a bit more clearance.

[JontraK]

Can somebody educate me pls? Is the position of the ball joint separator correct in the pic? If it is, then I need a much bigger separator as that one doesnt fit

Thanks,

Rob

[GTW]

As Daveo says, if you undo the drive shaft from the gearbox flanges, then jack the suspension up into the wheel arch, you should find that you have enough room to remove the driveshaft without undoing anything else. I didn't know about this until I'd undone lots of stuff for no apparent reason.

Make sure you partly remove your ABS sensor first (it's only a pull fit) so it doesn't get damaged by the driveshaft splines.

Gaz

[JontraK]

OK,

I am on the home straight now guys. As some of you suggested, you dont have to completely remove the lower suspension. I put the steering wheel at dead straight and wriggled the hub carrier to the left and that was just enough to prise the CV joint out of the hub carrier. I did not undo the drive shaft from the gearbox flange as per the Haynes manual. I managed to get the CV joint out by gripping it with gripping pliers and tightening the hub nut. Did it all by myself although a helper would've sped things up.
New CV Joint is now in with new CV Boot and hub carrier is mounted. I ran out of light this evening but tomorrow morning will finish the job. Fingers crossed I shouldnt have any problems with the other side.

Thanks to all who helped in one way or another.

Regards,
Rob

[thecuban]

Hi All

Really useful information , thanks.
This weekend I replaced both the outer CV joint gaiters on my 2002 1.9TDi Sport (UK). Just to pass on how the job went. The axel bolt needed a 17mm allen key not 14mm. Both sides were completed without undoing any susepension or steering linkages. The hardest part was pulling the wheel speed sensors out of there holes.
Both sides start to finish took 3.5 hours.

Cheers

TheCuban