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  #1  
Old 03-03-2003, 07:49 AM
alacrity024
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CV Axle Removal (urgent)

hey guys-

My left-frint CV axle has gotten to the point where the steering wheel will shake in my hands when i'm driving straight. last friday I put the car on jackstands in my garage at home and set to the task of pulling the axle so i could mail it off to be rebuilt. One stick nut is standing in my way.

In order to remove the axle, it is necessary to detach the hub from the suspension piece. There are two rather large bolts holding a sort of "A" piece together right below the spring. The bottom of those two bolts is stuck and the nut has begun to round off.

I've tried soaking the nut & bolt in WD-40 and PB Blaster, I've wailed on both of them with a BFH, and I've pulled on a breaker bar with all my strength. Before I left my house, I gave the nut and bolt a good soaking of PB Blaster in hopes that it would sit and penetrate over the weekend so that when I come back today, it'll be good to go. I also haven't tried torching the nut and will likely try today..

does anyone have any input?

-adam
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  #2  
Old 03-03-2003, 08:07 AM
mattski mattski is offline
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Are you using a 6 sided socket? If not, I would get one to prevent the nut from rounding off.

Matt
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  #3  
Old 03-03-2003, 08:35 AM
alacrity024
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hm... six sided socket.. i'm not sure if i'm using one, but judging from the fact that the nut has started to round off, i'd say that i'm not. a six-sided socket grabs at the flats instead of the corners, right? is this something i can grab at autozone, or do i need to go to a hardware store or what?

TIA

-adam
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  #4  
Old 03-03-2003, 08:45 AM
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Beav Beav is offline
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I'm not sure what you're trying to remove but here's what needs to be done:

Wheel (obviously )
Large axle nut in center of rotor
Tie rod end from knuckle (not absolutely req'd but a heckuva lot easier)
Three nuts attaching ball joint to lower control arm.
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  #5  
Old 03-03-2003, 08:52 AM
mattski mattski is offline
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Adam, I do not know about grabbing the flats or the corners, but it does fit the nut like a glove. A bolt will typically break off before the nut rounds off. You should be able to get a single socket of the size that you need at any good auto parts store.

If you plan on doing a lot of car work yourself, I would suggest getting a complete set of larger 6 sided sockets (13-27mm?). A rounded off nut will cost you more in time and aggravation.

As a last resort you could use one of those nut crackers which split the nut. The only downside is you will need to get a new nut.

Matt
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  #6  
Old 03-03-2003, 10:31 AM
H6'er
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As Beav said, there are THREE bolts on the lower arm...last one is up inside the box section of the arm.

If you really can't get that bolt off you could seperate the lower ball joint from the housing and get the same results, but you risk wrecking the joint in the proce$$.....it's up to you

Mark
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  #7  
Old 03-03-2003, 02:49 PM
alacrity024
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alright, here's where I stand:

*EXTREMELY COLD

*axle nut removed (w00t)

*nuts removed from all three bolts on lower arm, however the FRONT TWO bolts will not come out because the tops are hitting what i believe is the "ball joint" (i never took auto shop, so i don't know what to call these things)

*still can't remove the bottom of the two bolts which holds the hub to the suspension thing (again, my mastry of technical automotive terms comes into play). the nut is rounded completely smooth, and yes i was using a six-sided socket. this thing is STUCK.

the guy at the auto parts store said he didn't think that a "nut cracker" could handle a 19mm nut. I don't own a dremel tool, but my father claims to have a saws-all (almost typed "saws-ass") buried somewhere in the house.

I guess my only option now is to cut that #@*$ bolt.

is there any way around removing that bolt? "H6'er" mentioned seperating the lower ball joint.. what exactly is a "ball joint" and how to i seperate it? i'm pretty sure i'll just cut this mother#$*&er, but i like to have options. thanks everyone who's responded

-adam
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  #8  
Old 03-03-2003, 03:48 PM
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svx_commuter svx_commuter is offline
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Adam,

Do not take off the two large bolts that hold the strut to the front hub. These two bolts are above the axle. They do not have to come off. If you have removed the top bolt you will notice that it is not round. It has a cam shape that when turned will adjust the camber of the wheel. If you have removed the the adjusting bolt you will need to get a wheel alignment. The lower bolt is corroded in the hole. I have seen this before.

The three bolts that hold the ball joint to the lower arm should come out pretty easy. The six sided sockets are a must and also a small breaker bar.

Once you get the lower ball joint loose and the axle nut is off, you can pull the whole hub assy toward you to get the axle out. I loosen the three bolt at the top strut mount when I do this.

I do not take off the tie rod. I turn the steering wheel right and lock it. Then I pull the right hub assy toward me to get the axle out. Be careful not hit the lip seal with the shaft end. Another set of hands may help.

(ps No smile faces. >.~.<)
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  #9  
Old 03-03-2003, 03:51 PM
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svx_commuter svx_commuter is offline
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The two bolts that will not come out of the lower arm are most likely crocked. Try to align them so that they can come out of the holes in the top plate of the lower arm. >'_'<
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  #10  
Old 03-03-2003, 03:58 PM
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When working on my old truck, where every bolt is rusted and rounded off, my preferred technique is to take a 12 point socket a size or two too small and pound it on to the nut. It will actually cut grooves in the nut and allow you to get a pretty good bite. This works well for me in most cases, but for something that large, with that much torque on it, I don't know if you will have much luck...

I feel for you, though. I have been down that road myself too many times.
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  #11  
Old 03-03-2003, 04:48 PM
alacrity024
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whoops

svx_commuter-

i HAD noticed the cam shape on the top bolt. i figured it was just to keep the bolt from turning once it was in place. whoops.

i wish you'd written sooner, you could've saved me a LOT of trouble. nonetheless, i appreciate your reply. as for those two bolts on the lower arm, it really didn't look like they were at all crooked. i'm going to go home again tomorrow and give it another shot. are you POSITIVE that they should come right out? they just keep bumping into the bottom of the hub..

also, is it necessary to remove the steering knuckle thingy? it seems like if i'm not going to remove those two cam-bolts, the steering arm will need to be disconnected to allow the hub to move out of the way of the axle.

here's something i just thought of.. i have the car supported on a jackstand. that jackstand is underneath the A-Frame into which those three bolts thread. the stand is toward the back, as to not compress the arm too much, but do you think that might have something to do with my inability to remove those two front bolts?

jesus.. i have more trouble as a result of my inability to communicate in proper terms.. oh well..

let me know what your thoughts are, and thanks SO much for the replies

-adam
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  #12  
Old 03-03-2003, 05:36 PM
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mbtoloczko mbtoloczko is offline
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nut splitter...

You're going to need to replace that stripped nut. I think you can split it with a nut splitter. I had to split two 21 mm nuts about a month ago so I could install new toe-eccentrics on the rear suspension of my SVX. I trashed the nut splitter in the process, but it worked.
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  #13  
Old 03-03-2003, 06:31 PM
alacrity024
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where'd you score the splitter? auto parts store or what?

-adam
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  #14  
Old 03-03-2003, 07:03 PM
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Beav Beav is offline
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Good grief! Look at what you're doing! If you have the car supported by a jackstand under the control arm the car is about to fall on you when the ball joint bolts are removed! No wonder you can't remove them, you have the weight of the car on them. You are dangerously close to seriously hurting yourself. Please put your jack back under the car, not under the control arm and relocate the jackstand before you do anything else.
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  #15  
Old 03-03-2003, 07:15 PM
kuoh kuoh is offline
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Good eye Beav. Looks like everyone else missed that. I always thought that you weren't supposed to jack up or tow the car by the A arms for fear of damaging them?

KuoH
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