Axles
That clicking noise that your front-wheel-drive car makes as you accelerate around low-speed righthand corners has been getting a little louder for weeks. One afternoon, just as you pull out of the parking lot, there's a loud banging noise and a series of crunches. Your CV joint has failed.
The wheels of your front-drive vehicle are connected to the transaxle via axles that have constant-velocity-type universal joints at each end. There is an inner and outer joint on the left and right axles. All else being equal, the outer joints fail first because they run with the highest angularity--when the wheel is turned, the joint has to redirect the torque from the engine around a corner. The more angle, the more strain. And it's usually the right side that goes first because in the United States, we turn sharper around right hand corners than left hand ones. Sometimes the rubber boots covering the joints fail from age or are torn by road debris, letting the grease out and dirt and water in.
As recently as 10 years ago, the repair meant removing the pertinent axle and taking out the failed CV. You'd then replace it and the boot, lubricate the new and old joint with fresh grease, reinstall and go. Nowadays it's difficult to find a CV joint for sale at a parts store. The industry has made it standard procedure to swap in a complete new or remanufactured axle, with the boots installed and pre-lubricated. You can save some money by buying a new or remanufactured axle.
The wheels of your front-drive vehicle are connected to the transaxle via axles that have constant-velocity-type universal joints at each end. There is an inner and outer joint on the left and right axles. All else being equal, the outer joints fail first because they run with the highest angularity--when the wheel is turned, the joint has to redirect the torque from the engine around a corner. The more angle, the more strain. And it's usually the right side that goes first because in the United States, we turn sharper around right hand corners than left hand ones. Sometimes the rubber boots covering the joints fail from age or are torn by road debris, letting the grease out and dirt and water in.
As recently as 10 years ago, the repair meant removing the pertinent axle and taking out the failed CV. You'd then replace it and the boot, lubricate the new and old joint with fresh grease, reinstall and go. Nowadays it's difficult to find a CV joint for sale at a parts store. The industry has made it standard procedure to swap in a complete new or remanufactured axle, with the boots installed and pre-lubricated. You can save some money by buying a new or remanufactured axle.
