Broken axle shaft??

[High Five H2]

So, I was out looking for some hills to drive around in, and I found some really deep snow. I got stuck in it, which sucked, and I think I broke my driver's side CV axle shaft. It's loose right where it connects to the wheel. Is that the U joint or the axle itself? Is there a way to get a new one by the time I have to go to work tomorrow?

Thanks for the help.

 

[alrock]

Got a pic? Usually if it is broken, it's obvious from a visual perspective. Were you able to drive home? If so, the CV probably isn't broken. Normally, when broken you'll see an unnatural angle as it goes from the wheel to the diff.

There are two CVs in the half shafts, one under each boot. If those fail, the boot will soon tear as the wheel keeps turning as the axle doesn't, or vice versa. You can break the axle shafts as well and one would think that's fairly obvious.

Kinda hard to see in this pic, but here's a broken CV that didn't get a chance to tear the boot.

Here's another example, though it's from a car and not an H3, again caught before the boot tore but the vehicle was not driveable.

You can try calling auto parts stores - they don't necessarily always have them in the store, but they might have them in a central warehouse in town. Same with the dealer.

 

[High Five H2]

there's the axle shaft. my hand is mostly off camera to the right, i'm pushing the shaft up. you can see that it's not aligned correctly. u joint, right? man i had no idea these things broke that easily.

 

[06 H3]

Nope it's a Cv joint. That thing is toast! Time for a new onr

 

[High Five H2]

might as well upgrade then, right??? time for a SAS!

i figure if i can get $50K or so, that will get a nice used DD (I'm thinking 04-07 CTS-V), enough money for a SAS, and I can pay down my credit cards. I'll just rob a bank. Who's with me???????


:'(

 

[SolidusJ]

I second that

 

[High Five H2]

awesome, i'm thinking some cruddy casino in the middle of idaho?

 

[alrock]

That grease is the clear sign that the CV blew.

If you're going to hit a casino, go big. I think we hit Bellagio, The Mirage and the MGM Grand all at the same time. I think I'll need about ten partners to pull it off.

 

[High Five H2]

awesome, lets do it.

 

[High Five H2]

oh yeah, that cv shaft cost me $450. blerg. i could have got exhaust. i need a DD.... that would save me some money.

 

[06 H3]

You could of gotten a cv for much cheaper then that

 

[High Five H2]

yeah, they charged me $230 for a reman plus $220 for labor. i planned on taking the train to work while they fixed it, but then I got lazy and looked at forums all day.

I hate working on the car in the winter...

 

[telemike]

I can get a reman CV axle for $80 from O'rielly Auto.

 

[Zach]

If you're going to hit a casino, go big. I think we hit Bellagio, The Mirage and the MGM Grand all at the same time. I think I'll need about ten partners to pull it off.

I'm in! Vegas! Might have to move this thread though. A little too public lol

 

[Best4x4]

I just bought a pair of CV's for 80.00 online with free shipping and handling!! Brand new not reman's either

 

[alrock]

It's tough to get a good price when time isn't on your side. You should buy another CV for down the road, and get it at the sub $<100 prices mentioned above. Hey, your $450 was well spent. You're going to go a lot further with a working axle than an aftermarket exhaust

 

[digglesworth]

I just bought a pair of CV's for 80.00 online with free shipping and handling!! Brand new not reman's either

Where'd you find those. The cheapest I've seen is $70/each for empi shafts....

 

[High Five H2]

ugh, don't remind me. i found cheap ones at autozone and oreilly's but like alrock said, i needed my 3, i couldnt' wait for them to come in. Maybe i'll use my tax return for a super cheap DD, some old honda or something.

 

[Best4x4]

I found them at http://www.partsgeek.com. They list for $44.35 for the A1 Cardone New CV's I had a coupon from a previous purchase which gave me free shipping and a small discount. I took them out of the box last night and they look really good. I've used A1 Cardone stuff before and I've never had an issue. My OEM CV's are still in good shape except for one boot that is starting to crack, but I'll fix that and use them as trail spares.

People I know with Jeeps are like OMG you're going to blow a CV on that H3.... Darn POS.... Funny thing is all the Jeep's I know have destroyed their half shafts at one time or another due to wimpy OEM shafts on a D30/D44 and 33+ tires. It's a hell of a lot more $$$ to replace a Jeep axle shaft than 80.00 for a pair of CV's!

 

[digglesworth]

Sweet. Thanks. I bookmarked it. I'm at 82k miles and gonna replace all the front end stuff at 100k... Nice to start stock piling now though.

 

[alrock]

I've had good luck (so far) with the A1 Cardone CVs. Here's some recent bad luck with the EMPIs. Note that the breakage was due to torque and not wheelspin, in other words it wasn't driver error.

Also, on my DD, I had two EMPI CVs in a row where the inner boot was not properly banded. Didn't discover it on the first one until several hundred miles of driving. Figured it out on the second one right as we finished the install. (First was replaced under warranty. Second one we re-banded).
[video=youtube_share;4LAeSdUGgjw]http://youtu.be/4LAeSdUGgjw[/video]

 

[Best4x4]

Yeah that wasn't even a really bad off road section for the CV to let go like that!

 

[4speedfunk]

Love the Homer Simpson "DOH!" at the end of that video!

 

[06 H3]

I was never a huge fan of EMPI, and that just confirmed it for me. I threw in A1 cardones for the first time last night. I still have OEM ones but my major concern is strength on anything against OEM. I guess time will tell. I have 2 blown diffs and one blown shaft, so I may start breaking shafts instead.

Anyone running A1's keep a log on here if you break them. I am curious to see how these last as a cheaper alternative to OEM but I will avoid EMPI at all costs even if they are given to me for free.

 

[digglesworth]

This helps me out a TON. I was gonna use the empi ones when I do the front end rebuild and pick one up for a trail spare. Now I'll use the A1s. Might get one to keep in with the trail kit. If I don't have to use it by the 100k mile mark, I'll buy another and use those to freshen up the front end and use the 2 I pull out as trail spares...