CV Axle reboot kit or replace axles?
 

Is there a kit to do this or do I need to spec each part separately? After my lift my boots have torn and my plan was to just reboot them and send it... thoughts? They are the originals with almost 250k miles on them. Would replacing them be a worthwhile investment or just wasting money?

I'm in the process of changing my front diff so this is the time to do it.

Thanks!

After having tried both new o'reilly axles and a1cardone shafts and having the boots fall apart cracking in a year or less I rebooted with a toyota boot kit 3 years ago and my hubby rebooted 2 years ago. Those are still in great shape.

Kball did an awesome write-up-
Reboot your CV axles - Toyota 4Runner Forum - Largest 4Runner Forum

I went with oe because Toyota rubber seems to hang together better than a lot of the aftermarket stuff available to me- perhaps someone will chime in on the Napa boots' longevity.

Notes on my husband's reboot and part number:

1) Today the hubby rebooted the 99's right cv shaft. It's the regular oe add version. From that experience I wanted to note that the
Toyota #04438-35060 CV reboot kit (that comes with everything to reboot one shaft)
does NOT require the use of this mentioned tool:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...ls_o01_s00_i01
The oetiker clamp tool is still needed for the outer boot but the inner boot clamps can be closed by hand and use a pliers to fold the keepers over.

Thanks so much Habanero! I already have the oetiker tool for the clamps.

The OE kit is the way to go.
Only thing I do different is move small diameter inboard to spread bellows on wheel end.

what I'm going to guess the majority of us have done, myself included, is to replace the OEM shafts with lifetime shafts from NAPA. Get your truck back up on the road. Reboot the OEM's and keep them on hand for when the napa's fail or boots leak. Swap back to OEM rebooted CV's. Replace broken lifetime napa's, and always have some fresh trail spares ready.

This is definitely the way to go if you can't afford to have a downed vehicle.

Installing boots isn't the hardest thing to do but at times it can be a frustrating experience.

I bought a pair from NAPA to do just this lol.

As stated, I'd like to add, it's a messy job more than anything.

x2 to the billionth..

I will always replace over rebuilding.

The reason why the OEM boot kit is better is because the boot is made of thermoplastic, which is what all OEMs use nowadays. Almost all aftermarket boot kits use neoprene or silicone which is inferior and old school technology.

I've used a neoprene kit from EMPI and it failed to last more than a year. Even within a few months you could see the rubber cracking. I then switched to the Napa kit (with lifetime warranty) and it still looks great after a year, but it is also made out of neoprene.

My vote is re-boot. The OEM CV is very good quality and re-booting isn't that hard. I don't think anyone will argue that a auto-parts store CV will not be as high of quality as the factory one, but to what degree (worth it or not) can definitely be discussed for eternity. Again my vote is OEM, but I'm one of those purists that think your truck will break down if you use anything but genuine Toyota ;)

Definitely. Grease just seems to get everything and the snap ring pliers will drive you nuts until you get them just right to hold on it. It is far better to be able to push this to a weekend / beer drinking job than a "I've gotta get this done by Sunday" job.

Any of the "gotta get this done by Sunday" jobs need to be a parts swap job. Trying to push out bushings, rebuild axles or etc. is just far aggravating.

I vote Reboot.

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I ended up putting new boots on and while it was messy, it was not bad at all. The new grease really seemed to help quiet down the front end noise/vibrations.

Smart choice.