Corsa CV Gaiter Inner Hell

[Isaac Hunt]

CV Gaiturds are a job I hate.  Loads of dismantling of surrounding stuff for a shite little Johnny.  Messy grease and shit everywhere.

Lado’s Corsa D showed up a split inner gaiter.  I’ve never had to replace an inner, but this one was borked.  It looks as though the small end may have been pushed up the shaft a bit at some time, cos the clip had cut into it.  

With MOT imminent, there was no choice but to wade in.

I ordered up one of the special little crimp tools of the bay of e a few weeks ago, from a far away land.  That arrived OK and looked the just the job to deal with those fekkin steel crimp clamps.  

So with an alleged stretch gaiter, out with my trusty cone and we set to work.  Dropped the hub carrier from the strut, popped the inner joint, dropped the lower ball joint off a proceeded to stretch the gaiter up the cone.  No Wuckin Fay was that fekker going to stretch.  

Nobody had an air operated stretcher in stock, but a local garage said they would drop their stretcher on it.  So I dropped the TRE off, undid the ABS lead and took hub and shaft to them.  

Their stretch tool wouldn’t expand the gaiter enough “ you sure it’s a stretchy”.... “well the fucker who sold it me labels it as such”.  

So I ended up dismantling the whole inner joint, circlips etc and drifting the inner yolk of the shaft.  Slip the gaiter on and rebuild the inner joint.  

The fekker fought me all the way but I nailed the bastud in the end.   New crimp tool is ace, well worth the few quid it cost.

 

[BlankFrank]

Anything that involves disassembling suspension or removal of the engine + gearbox is never an easy game.

'The family fleet' that i'm required to maintain has 2 cars needing clutch release bearings doing and 2 CV boot replacements, also an MX5 that needs both rear aches and sills totally replacing before its next mot in January. God help me. 

[Wingz123]

Couldn't you get one of those universal jobbies that simply push over and dont require you to remove anything?

Like this....

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F351636094985

[bunglebus]

Possibly the worst car related job of all. I hate that black grease, and the circlips that hold them in always seem to fight to the death.

[vaughant]

Depends what car in my experience. 

Merc ml was a total disaster, ended up replacing the driveshaft which was A LOT easier overall. 

Seat Leon is probably a ten minute job, the driveshaft comes off so easily its not worth even attempting it in place. 

Most Ford 80/90/2000's stuff is fantastic, inner box cups stay in place so no oil loss, the cv usually falls off the end but even removing the clip is pips. 

Vauxhall the same. 

I can recall replacing the CV joints on my Uno Turbo back in 1996/7 and they were a complete pig to do, plus they lasted about a fortnight before "clicking" again. 

It was more likely at the time a lack of tools, knowledge and ability, I seem to recall the hubnut was an odd size. Saying that I never went in one that didn't click the minute you pulled off from a junction with any urgency, proper case of TADTS. 

 

[twosmoke300]

That’s a tri lobe joint / boot . I don’t think you can get a stretchy version of those . They don’t last 5 mins anyway , normal ones are way better 

[Isaac Hunt]

I've never used the 'cut n shut' gaiters to be able to comment on their durability.

I have successfully repaired a small nick in a CV Gaiter with some Black Silicone.  You have to make sure the 'cut' is spotless clean, certainly on the surface.  When I first notice the Corsa Gaiter, it wasn't my intent to give my silicone trick as go.  When I got to the gaiter to clean it up, it had already deteriorated beyond 'bodgeable'.

I might give a split gaiter a go one day, just to see how easy they are, gluing it all up in situ.  Then to see how durable they are.