Front CV Axle breakage... How common?

[waketek516]

Hey guys,

I've seen a few threads on broken CVs, but how common is it? I'm going to be installing a 3" Toytec lift with the diff drop on my Runner in the next few weeks. She has 190k on her, and I'll be doing mostly light trails, and street driving. Is this something I should worry about getting stranded with?

Thanks!

 

[Harleydoc]

The biggest thing is the boots will start leaking or bust open and you will not to reboot then every toy I have lift with that kind of miles have always need the boots fixed after a few weeks of the lift. But I just always ran them till they started popping then just replace the whole axle I have broke on Axles in my year of beating my toyotas know some people have broke allot but light wheeling you should be fine

 

[gannonrt]

The biggest thing is the boots will start leaking or bust open and you will not to reboot then every toy I have lift with that kind of miles have always need the boots fixed after a few weeks of the lift. But I just always ran them till they started popping then just replace the whole axle I have broke on Axles in my year of beating my toyotas know some people have broke allot but light wheeling you should be fine

Punctuation and other words added for clarity
The biggest thing is the boots will start leaking or bust open. If you choose not to reboot then you might have issues. Every toy I have lift with that kind of miles have always need the boots fixed after a few weeks of the lift. But I just always ran them till they started popping then just replaced the whole axle. I have broke on many axles in my years of beating my toyotas. I know some people have broke a lot but light wheeling you should be fine.

You could take the opportunity to remove the front axles when installing the lift to install new boots on them. The thought would be that the existing axles won't be able to handle the flex that comes from the more aggressive angle created by your 3" lift. However, you could choose to chance it and just get a new metal boot clamp to reseal the ends after a few weeks. I only had an issue with the outer clamp on the outer boot after my lift. The good news is that you can see that boot go bad and you'll have time to fix it as long as you don't go through deep water or gritty sandy areas. If you are doing mild wheeling then your chance of immediately breaking a CV still depend more on your driving skills then their age. Don't turn the wheel hard left or right while at full droop and you should be fine. Worse case scenario is that you lose 4WD and have to be tugged out of the obstacle that broke your axle.

 

[techno]

...and I'll be doing mostly light trails, and street driving. Is this something I should worry about getting stranded with?

No, you'll be fine. They can sometimes break but almost always during more serious or adventurous offroading.

 

[Gerdo]

You have as much chance breaking CVs with a totally stock rig is you wheel poorly. I wheel hard trails and lines, am lifted 4"+ and haven't broken a CV yet. After a year or two, I did have to re-boot my CVs because the 10 year old boots dried and cracked. Sure, the lift added to their demise (maybe by a year or two).

 

[white_n_slow]

I tore a boot open within weeks of lifting (TRD tundra, bilstien, diff drop), but I think the axle is salvageable if I get to it soon enough. It is making some noise though.

 

[waketek516]

Do you guys buy the boots from Toyota? Or Aftermarket?

 

[Atrox Caeda]

I would personally replace the whole axle and then reboot the other two older ones and use them as spares. Win win.

 

[jmildoc]

I would personally replace the whole axle and then reboot the other two older ones and use them as spares. Win win.

I agree with this guy^^^ and this is likely what I am going to do. Never rebooted one before so it will be a learning experience as well.

 

[JadatheRottweiler]

I would personally replace the whole axle and then reboot the other two older ones and use them as spares. Win win.

I actually have to do this...asap

If it matters, I installed the toytec 3" lift about a year ago, maybe put on 18k miles in 12 months, needing to replace the cv boots as a few shops have recommneded.

 

[JWaldz]

I usually replace the entire axle when the boots start to leak. Then take it back to advanced and get a brand new one through the full warranty

Grant it, it can be annoying to constantly replace them but it's not that hard of a process once you've done it saaaaaayyy.... 10-15 times lol

With a diff drop and light wheeling, you'll be ok. Just don't be alarmed when you see that nasty grease start to puke out. Do your research, too. All the information about cv axles, replacing, repairing, etc etc.. is out there.

 

[waketek516]

Do you guys buy the boots from Toyota? Or Aftermarket?

Anyone have an answer to this?

I usually replace the entire axle when the boots start to leak. Then take it back to advanced and get a brand new one through the full warranty

Grant it, it can be annoying to constantly replace them but it's not that hard of a process once you've done it saaaaaayyy.... 10-15 times lol

With a diff drop and light wheeling, you'll be ok. Just don't be alarmed when you see that nasty grease start to puke out. Do your research, too. All the information about cv axles, replacing, repairing, etc etc.. is out there.

Yeah - I think I'll look into doing the CVs after the lift, and keep my stockers as spares.

 

[Gerdo]

Anyone have an answer to this?



Yeah - I think I'll look into doing the CVs after the lift, and keep my stockers as spares.

I took my stock OE axles to a local CV/driveline shop (CVJ axles) and had them re-boot my stockers. They inspected them too. They use aftermarket boots with less bellows which don't rub when lifted.

Having a spare axle (and the tools and knowledge) with you is always a good thing. I will never (unless it is just to get me home) use a parts store CV. Most, if not all, are made from cheap steel that is poorly heat treated and do fail prematurely. Sometimes this failure is the end of the axle/inside the front diff. I don't care if it has a lifetime warranty. I only run OEM or the new Lotus axles.

 

[JWaldz]

Is this something I should worry about getting stranded with?

Good god you're annoying.. How the hell do you have 40 posts now. Calling all mods, we need the ye ol ban hammer!

 

[waketek516]

Is this something I should worry about getting stranded with?

I believe that was answered in the 13 posts above you...:flamethrwoer2:

 

[JWaldz]

I believe that was answered in the 13 posts above you...:flamethrwoer2:

It's a bot, just ignore him. I don't see how he hasn't been removed by now.