I had a loud knocking noise immediately after installing a new cv shaft. I assumed I installed it wrong and that I may have broken it which caused the noise. I just pulled it back out today, and am trying to see if there is any "excess play" in the shaft but don't exactly know what Im feeling for. Can somebody help me figure out exactly what to feel for in the shaft. Thanks for the help in advance.

 

Hummmm. I don't know of a good way to check the shaft off the vehicle beyond taking off the boots and inspecting the balls and socket.

It sounds to me like a part problem. Hopefully you still have the old shaft. Compare them side to side very closely and make sure you got the correct shaft. Break out a tape measure. Wouldn't be the first time a parts store or dealer provided an incorrect part.

 

I'll do that, by the way, is it okay to jack the LCA up to create space by placing the jack under the nut and cotter pin that is under the ball joint right behind the dust cover, or will I be bending anything imporant? I have been doing this to create space for the shaft to drop out, but was wondering if I should stop doing this. Thanks

 

Yeah that's okay as far as not hurting the vehicle to jack up on the LCA. Be very careful to support the vehicle otherwise to prevent injury to yourself however. Torsion bars have a tremendous amount of power and you should have a healthy respect for them.

 

Took a closer look at the new cv shaft. Is the circle cap on the inner end of the joint (the end that contacts the diff flange) supposed to be loose. WHen I compress the shaft a little, there is air in the inner boot that pushes out that cap a little. Is this normal? Thanks

 

Not exactly sure what you mean by "circle cap"? Pictures?

I think you are referring to the sealing cap on the end of the flange side of the shaft, right? If so, I wouldn't be worried about a little flex movement, as long as the movement doesn't displace or pop out the seal, I think you'd be okay. Besides, when it's bolted up I don't think there is enough room for the seal to pop out.

There will be some compression and stretching of the joints, and that is normal. More of what I would look for is the overall length correct (measure all segments)? Is there a retaining ring on the stub shaft end? If so, is the ring in the right place?

But getting back to the original matter at hand, why did you replace the shaft in the first place? Was it because of a noise? Or did your boots split? Something else?

 

The boots were mutilated and the cvs were exposed for awhile so I decided to change the entire shaft. The cap is the sealing cap and it does almost pop out when not connected. Shouldn't it be air tight. I see it pop off when I compress the shaft a little and some oil comes out. I'm going back to the store right now to see if I can maybe exchange it if it is broken. I'll keep you updated.

 

check this out, should help:

http://personal.utulsa.edu/~nathan-b...18frontdri.pdf

lee

 

I returned the shaft and they replaced it for me. It seems that they had given me a broken part. I installed the new one and it seems to be ok now. Thanks