Hey guys,

On my 97 TE altera wagon i have a rattle in the front wheels when i turn which i have nailed down to the CV joints being worn and needing replacing. I got a quote from a mechanic who is a mate of a mate for $600.. I was wondering (me and my dad being good with mechanics although not experience with front wheel drives) how hard it is to buy them and put them in yourself (we have alot of tools and as i said my dads good with car mechanics just hasnt done CV joints.)

If anyone knows i am getting ripped off, or where i can get them done cheap. Im in the northern beaches of sydney (can drive to Brookvale if anyone knows a shop down there.).

Anyway thanks for any advice in advance.

Well i took my car to a place and paid $270 fro both front CV's & boots etc to be replaced, so yea i recon your getting ripped.

My DH is a mechanic and he wont do em, recons there a biatch to do.

Wow.. $270 for both, thanks for that, i think i will have to do some more searching to find a better price.

Hrm.. sounds like i dont want to be wrestling around the garage on a little jack if there going to be that hard.. and if i can get them done for couple of hundred dollars i dont think its worth doing myself.

Local Auto repairs - $600
Col Crawford - $680

If i may ask where did you get your's done for $280 and what car was it in?

1998 TF Sedan.

For those in WA

Outer Control
Unit 1/ 78 McCoy St
Myaree
WA, 6154
Australia
Ph: (08) 9330 2760

Bugger.. looks like im going to be hit with about $600.. Have done some ringing around and 600 looks like the benchmark, and it just goes up.

Well i took my car to a place and paid $270 fro both front CV's & boots etc to be replaced, so yea i recon your getting ripped.

My DH is a mechanic and he wont do em, recons there a biatch to do.

I will bet my left testicle that you had only the BOOTS replaced and not the joint.

The CV joints themselves would be approx $200, let alone labour.

The CV joints themselves would be approx $200, let alone labour.

Thats what i was thinking.. beacuase apparently the joints are about $300+ alone.

I will bet my left testicle that you had only the BOOTS replaced and not the joint.

The CV joints themselves would be approx $200, let alone labour.


Nope both front brand new CV's, mentioned the name of the company DH works for got discount, also there mobile, however i went to them.

$143 per CV normal cost and $35 per boot.

So still only $356? $250 cheaper than his quote!

I am happy to PM you DH's company name, you tell them they referred you and get a quote lol

I got my TE done somewhere near Parramatta, they are reconditioned ones and cost $150 fitted per side.

If you want to do it yourself find somewhere that sell reconditioned ones (no messing around with putting the seals back on), the only b*tch to doing yourself is popping the side that goes into gearbox out you need a long lever to pop it out (I know this cause I watched them do it on the Magna and also from doing it when I had a Laser).

If you have the time and the tools to do it yourself then go for it. If you want to save some cash you can just buy the boot that needs replacing should cost $60 or so (rough guess here)

Would go there but im in sydney :(
Ill have a little more of a look around but there pretty bad so im going to have to send them in sooner than later.

I am happy to PM you DH's company name, you tell them they referred you and get a quote lol

I'm in adelaide so won't be much help.

They are either reconditioned or stolen. Simple as that.

Got an invoice?

Well i only had outer done, are you getting inner & outer?

If you have the time and the tools to do it yourself then go for it. If you want to save some cash you can just buy the boot that needs replacing should cost $60 or so (rough guess here)

How safe is that? How damaged will the whole joint be?
I mean i would like to save.. but i would rather do it properly and save myself more troubles down the track tbh.

Isnt it....... if they only knock when your going round corners you have done outer, if they knock constantly then you have done both inner & outer.

I had both outer done (rang DH to confirm) and got both boots done.

Yeah they only knock when im almost full locked but its loud. More on the left than the right.

So you think i only need the outer ones done?

Well mine only knocked when going round corner and i only had to have outer done so i would assume so.....

i only had to have outer done

That'd be it then.

i just did the outer left hand boot and joint end knuckle. I got the joint end, which included the outer case, internal knuckle and cage, circlip, boot and clips and the grease off of ebay for $55 including postage.
It will take you about 1 - 2 hrs to do. If u like, i can write up how i did it for you and your dad to determine if you would be able to do it yourselves. Keep in mind, im not a mechanic either, and until i had done it, i had no idea how to, and i think it was a piece of cake. Much much better than a timing belt! LOL

i just did the outer left hand boot and joint end knuckle. I got the joint end, which included the outer case, internal knuckle and cage, circlip, boot and clips and the grease off of ebay for $55 including postage.
It will take you about 1 - 2 hrs to do. If u like, i can write up how i did it for you and your dad to determine if you would be able to do it yourselves. Keep in mind, im not a mechanic either, and until i had done it, i had no idea how to, and i think it was a piece of cake. Much much better than a timing belt! LOL


A little write up of 'How To' would be great, i think there are a lot of magna owners who pay too much to get the cvs replaced. I need to replace mine (both sides), wouldnt have a clue where to start. If you could write something up that would be very helpful

the whole CV is $135.00 each NEW but aftermarket not genuine, labour i have no idea how much

Brand new units on ebay right now for ~$150 a pop.

Ive never paid more than $100 for a reconditioned unit, only 1/2 hours work each side to put em in, and Im by no means a mechanic.

Buy the shafts and bring it here, Ill do it for a 6-pack and some smokes.

i relpaced mine myself, and got a whole reconditioned drive shaft for $50, and trade in on the old drive shaft. so i think u are being ripped off, its not hard to replace just paitience getting it out.

Is it true you need a wheel alignment afterwards?

only if u change the tie rod ends or muck around with steering.

Hmmm, it's not one of the harder things to do, depends if both sides need doing, might as well do both at the same time, cause you have to drain the tranmission of its fluid and refill it, other than messing around with the trans, it's pretty easy.

http://www.aussiemagna.com/forums/showpost.php?p=698736&postcount=65

Did mine not long ago, now I have to do the left hand side to get it road worthy.

Ok Here is how i did mine. Probably doesn't follow the manuals too closely but it gets the job done!
Some items you will need that you may not think of!
A wash tub and some petrol.
A cheap paint brush
Some wooden blocks to chock up the wheels.

Removal:
1) Crack off the wheel nuts if you haven't got an air compressor, if u do, go to step 2.

2) Park the car, apply the handbrake, and chock up the back wheels with some wheel chocks or large pieces of timber.

3) Jack up the car and support it with axle stands(if you do not do this, you want your ass feeling) Drain the oil from the gearbox.

4) Remove the wheel nuts and remove the wheel, set aside for re-fit later. Repeat for the other side.

5)Remove the split pin in the axle nut(in the centre of the hub), get someone to apply the brake and use a knuckle bar, and a 32mm socket(from memory) and a big piece of pipe(slide the handle of the knuckle bar down the pipe so u have more leverage), undo the axle nut. Repeat for the other side.

6) Get helper to get you a drink cos that bit was hard work, maybe a biscuit too!

7) Remove the brake caliper and bracket(the part that the caliper bolts to, and then bolts to the hub/knuckle assembly) Put a block of wood under the caliper to take the tension off of the hose.

8)Remove the brake hose from the clip in the strut.

9)Remove the split pin in the tie rod end and loosen the nut, but don't remove it. Get a hammer and hit the tie rod end stud until it pops out of the steering knuckle. You can now remove the nut, don't worry if you damaged the threads on the stud as the nut will clean them up when you take it off. Push the tie rod out of the way (Note: you may want to put the nut and split pin in the tie rod after ou have removed it for safe keeping)

10) Undo the bolts that hold the steering knuckle to the suspension strut.

11) Using a soft face hammer, hit the end of the axle stud to loosen it inside the hub assy.

12) Swing the steering knuckle/ hub assy down and towards the back of the car, while pushing the cv joint out of the hub towards the front of the car. It should just pop out.

13) You should now be left with the cv joint hanging free and the other end in the gearbox.

14) Push the cv shaft hard up against the gearbox the give it a sharp, hard yank towards the outside of the car, ie grab it hard, and pull it out. It may take a couple of goes but it should just pop out.

Replacing the Boots
If you a are replacing the whole shaft all you have to do from here is the reverse of these last 14 steps. You may wish to replace the seals at the gearbox as a preventative measure, it is up to you. If you are changing boots or replacing the outer cv joint end read on.

To Replace the boots only:
1) On the inner boot(if you aren't replacing it), use a small bladed screwdriver to remove the old clips and set aside for re-fit.

2) The inner unit case, or spider should come off. What you will be left with at the inner end is a greasy lump of steel with a rubber boot on it. Be careful, as on the internal part there are 3 rings that aren't secured by anything. The are on the outside of the three posts that sit inside the grooves in the green housing.Remove these rings and set aside. you can soak these in petrol as it will break down the grease.

3) There is a flat circlip that it holding the spider unit on the end of the shaft. The easiest way to remove this is with a pair of external circlip pliers with a flat end. Imagine JarJar Binks lips and you are on the right sort of track. you need to get this off. A couple of screwdrivers can work too, but be careful not to let it fling off.

4) The spider should just slide off now, followed by the boot.

5) Cut the clips holding the outer boot on. Remove the old boot and throw both the clips and the boot away.

6)Clean the outer knuckle as best you can. Also clean the inner parts too. Use petrol and a paintbrush to do this.

7) Re-pack the outer knuckle with grease. When you do this make sure you rotate the cv joint so that the grease gets distributed around the joint, push it in with your fingers if you have to.

8) Slide the new boot down the shaft. If you have any leftover grease (dont forget to leave some for the inner joint if you can) put it in the boot.

9) Fit the boot to the cv joint, and fit the new clips. Move the cv joint through its range of rotation to distribute the grease a bit more and to also make sure you have fitted the clips and boot properly, there should be no leaks.

10) Slide the old inner boot (if you are not replacing it) onto the cv shaft.

11) Slide the spider onto the shaft and refit the circlip. Grease up the parts and fit the rings i mentioned in step 2 of this section.
12) Pack the green case with some more grease and re-fit it to the shaft.

13) Refit the boot and clips. Installation is the reverse of removal.

To replace the outer cv joint knuckle.
This is handy because you dont have to take the inner joint apart to change the boot here either.
1) Once you have removed the shaft from the vehicle, cut the clips that hold the boot on, and if you wish, cut the boot off.

2) In one hand, hold the cv shaft up so the outer joint is pointing to the ground.

3) Using a large hammer, sometimes called a lump hammer, hit the cv joint knuckle hard. It should fall off. If it doesn't, hit it again, this time harder you sissy, you aren't going to need it again!

4) Remove the old clip from the end of the shaft and clean the shaft with some petrol to get rid of old grease and dirt.

5) Fit the new boot to the shaft. Don't forget to do this like I did.

6) Fit the new clip to the shaft and grease up the shaft a little.

7) This part is a little tricky so some patience is needed.

8) Put the outer cv joint knuckle in a vice splined end down. If you only have a metal jawed vice, use something to protect the splines.

9) You now need to get the shaft into the knuckle. Place the splined shaft into the back of the knuckle, if you are lucky the circlip you fitted before will just compress and the shaft will drop in. If not, use a small screwdriver to push the circlip into its groove, it should then just drop in.

10) Fill the new boot with the rest of you grease.

11) Fit the new boot to the knuckle and fit the new clips.

12) Installation is the reverse of removal.

Hope this helps Ladies and Gents:D

Thanks for all the replies, ill have a word to the old man and we might have a crack at doing it. Pretty much depends on time. Nice write up mate, i think that might need to be stickied in a section for future preference. (depending on how correct it is haha)

whaow...that's alotta stuffing around there screamin TE. If the 3rd gens are anything like the 2nd gens, then all you have to do is;

remove hub bolt split pin and bolt as described.

if working on right wheel, turn completely left so that rear of hub is outward.

knock CV joint out of hub with hammer on a piece of wood or mallet. once it is out of the hub, you'll need a bit of force to push hub down and forward a bit.

with a bitt of mucking around CV joint should come out.

If changing whole shaft, you need to get under the car and use a big screwdriver and a hammer to knock inncer CV joint from gearbox.

Once this is done, whole shaft should come out.- TRANS FLUID WILL LEAK...so get a rag and plug it proper whilst you're changing the joints.

change boots and joints as decribed.]

to replace, align the inner CV joint (green) to the gearbox and check to see if it feels like its clamping on or not freely rotating. once this is done, make the whole shaft straight, push up against the inner CV boot, and give it a whack with mallet or block of wood and hammer. it should clip straight in.

to put it back in the hub, turn steering completely left and do as per when removing. fiddle with it so that it fits back into the hub.

Doing this means you won't have to get your wheels aligned and take air out of the brake lines. It's just less hassle afterwards.

but by all means, if you think his way's easier, do that. Like I said, i've donethis twice, but on a 2ND gen. may be different, may not be.

-ian

i had done cv's on my lancer as yann mentioned. Tried to do them on the magna but the stuff just gets in the way. Its only a few extra bolts too. Nearly took longer to write it up than it did to do the job.

maybe you're right screamin, but it just seems like heaps to do. then again, mine's a 2nd gen. so might not be as many things. *shrugs*

Cheapest quote i got in perth was about 600 as well

If you get it done by cheapo CV joint shop, CHECK the torque of the hub nut afterwards.

I bought a TS, both drive shafts had been replaced by different CV 'specialists' - (evidence was their shop stickers on shafts)

Both had been set up like taper roller wheel bearings - low torque and some play.

This is incorrect for Magna's (certainly 2nd Gen anyway). They use opposed ball races and hub nut should be tight, 200Nm from memory but check this.

Now, shops which specialise in CV joints must do a lot of Magnas.

THEY SHOULD KNOW THIS.

Conclusion - shoddy workmanship. Maybe you get what you pay for............:confused:

Thanks for all the replies, ill have a word to the old man and we might have a crack at doing it. Pretty much depends on time. Nice write up mate, i think that might need to be stickied in a section for future preference. (depending on how correct it is haha)


Pm me i have a mate that will do one for $200 cash

at my local suspension shop i got quoted yesterday $140 per shaft and about $60 labour. repco wanted $180 per shaft and autobarn $135 per shaft.

I bought two outer cv joints for $100 brand new, but i have just heard that there is different ones for ABS & NON ABS models. Anyone know anything about this?

i was looking in the book at autobarn with the guy and they only had the 1 listed.

i was looking in the book at autobarn with the guy and they only had the 1 listed.

ah k, guess i will find out when i rip the old one off.

well mine has abs and it matched the number in the book. i looked at them on the weekend and the numbers were the same as what was in the book.