CV Axle reboot kit or replace axles?

[Silver Supra]

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!

 

[habanero]

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.

 

[Silver Supra]

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.

 

[96RedRunner]

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

 

[nc-grayson]

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.

 

[APhelps]

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.

 

[johnbyebye]

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.

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

 

[firemanj92]

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.

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

 

[JWaldz]

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.

 

[nobb]

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.

 

[Mgyver1]

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

 

[APhelps]

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

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.

 

[mtbtim]

I vote Reboot.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vcCT4UgFUTw" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[Silver Supra]

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.

 

[mtbtim]

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.

 

[Silver Supra]

Smart choice.

Your vid was a big help as always! :rockon:

 

[pdsutton]

First off, huge thanks to Tim and Sean for all your work on the forum and in youtube videos. I have saved myself a lot of time and money following you! And a general shout out to this forum being amazing!

I recently had the inner boot tear on my passenger side CV Axle. I got a cheap axle from O'Reilly to keep it going (it’s my daily driver) and installed it while I waited for the OEM reboot kits to arrive.

I searched and found that the reboot kit, 04438-35060, has been superseded by 04438-35062. When 04438-35062 arrived the size of the grease tubes looked smaller than on the how-to video. I pulled up the Factory Service Manual to check:

In the box (04438-35062):
90999-94115 - Black (Outboard) - Raremax UBZ - 130g
90999-94319 - Tan (Inboard) - Raremax LF-G (KAI) - 275g

On the video (04438-35060):
90999-94189 - Black (Outboard)
90999-94037 - Tan (Inboard)

Factory Service Manual:
5. ASSEMBLE BOOT TO OUTBOARD JOINT
Grease capacity: 176 - 186 g (6.20 - 6.56 oz.)
6. ASSEMBLE BOOT AND INBOARD JOINT TULIP
Grease capacity: 255 - 265 g (8.99 - 9.34 oz.)

There appears to be insufficient grease for the Outboard joint. I reached out to the online merchant I purchased the parts from (my original sales order was for 04438-35060) and asked for their support. I got zero. They are middle-men with zero skin in the game and would take no responsibility for this or offer any kind of assistance: Toyotapartsdeal.com.
They said I could purchase additional grease, 90999-94115, but the cost of shipping is $44!

I have been unable to find 04438-35060 for sale anywhere else. Would really appreciate a working link if anyone has one! The parts are currently unavailable on amazon.
Also, always open to advice or feedback of any kind!

 

[nobb]

...

The quantities are close enough and it's not that big of a deal to be off by a bit. You don't want to underfill, but you also don't want to overfill. After the grease has been in there for a while, it is pretty fluid and fills the bearings nicely.

Most aftermarket reboot kits only give you 90g of grease which is definitely not enough.

 

[Ben336]

Thanks for all of the information, I'm going to attempt this today! My new cv boots already look a bit worn after 2,000 miles

 

[cl4Rk]

There appears to be insufficient grease for the Outboard joint.

Any updates on this? Did you end up adding more grease or did you just go with the amount provided in the re-boot kit?

Also, how are the boots holding up after some miles?

Thanks!