Changing out front AXLES (should I?)

[Husker Du]

The outer boots on my front axles are split wide open and one of the inner boots has a small split in it too. I asked the local mechanic how much to replace the boots and he said they always replace the whole axle and quoted me $850 for the job. I got about the same story from the dealer.
Then while looking on eBay I found a new set of axles with boots and grease for $139.99. I

 

[fourwd1]

There's no special tools I can think of other than a pickle fork.
If you do any offroading, just keep in mind those aftermarket axles aren't as strong as OEM.

 

[Husker Du]

Thanks for the feedback.
1) I don't do any off-roading
2) The AXLES I found on eBay clame to be NEW OEM

Now I've found in the Owenrs manual that there's what's called a "Boot Kit" I should be able to buy. I'll have to see what the price is for that.

 

[ovrrdrive]

If you have an Autozone near you they sell CV's for $69 with a lifetime - no questions asked - warranty. I've been beating the hell out of mine and they seem to be every bit as strong, if not stronger, than the OEM's I had on there before. And if they ever break I can take them back and get new ones for free.

When I was installing them the spindle slipped out of my hands and over extended the CV and tore the boot. I took it back off and back to the store and told the guy what happened and he handed me another one off the shelf and off I went.

As far as the job, it isn't that bad but it can be pretty involved. You'll probably find it easiest to unbolt either the upper or lower ball joint to get extra room to slide the axle in. If you do the upper just make sure you don't slip like I did and let the spindle come out too far.

A 3' extension and an impact wrench are priceless for this job...