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It seems that when these axles snap in the middle, it is related to the damper trapping moisture underneath. Rust forms under the damper, then it snaps. Has anyone inspected under the dampener as preventive maintenance? Looking at the parts diagram, it seems two clips (#13) keep the damper (#17) in place. Could I remove these clips, move the rubber dampener, inspect the rod, then reassemble with two new #13?
ps Why are these axles over $500 each for the 04-06? The price drops to $250 each for the 07-08.
You're probably right. I keep forgetting my car is 13 years old. I think they sold 220 thousand of the 04-06. I wonder how many are still around. Maybe I should start stockpiling critical parts .
BOTH Paul, our star master mechanic in North Jerzy and my best bud who owned an auto parts store for 25 years do not recommend rebuilt axles. There are great low cost options from rockauto which work just fine at around $50 each, for brand new! I've had them over a year now with no problems.
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I put a set of new Duralast axles on my 2006 back in May; all I can say is they were better than the original axles with over 130,000 miles on them. Not exactly a glowing recommendation. I'm thinking I'll leave them on over the winter and then pony up for a set of OEM axles next spring.
So far I'm a little over 250 miles, highway and through another snow storm, and the GSP axle has held up fine. No wobbling, vibration, or clicking that I can tell.
The GSP axle I picked up from Advanced Auto Parts has no damper like the OEM and cost me $49.70 NO CORE after coupon code. ($70.99-$21.29=$49.70 pretax) coupon code SAVINGS = 30% off.
When I removed the OEM axle, no immediate fluid came out but after the 1.5 hours it took to change, a small amount was on the ground. shifting has been fine so it wasn't enough to affect driveability but i am planning to do the syncromesh change when warm weather approaches.
Here were the steps I took in case anyone is wondering. other than freezing rain and cursing the gods, an axle change is not a very difficult diy. if weather was better and i had a proper pitman arm puller to separate ball joint from lower control arm, i could've done the job in 45 mins or so.
1> popped off center cap and used a 36mm axle nut attached to a breaker bar with a floor jack handle attached to that for leverage. i carefully placed my weight on the bar to break the axle nut loose.
2> i jacked it up by the center point in front down the centerline of the car and placed jack stands on each side. made sure that the driver side sat a bit higher than the passenger side on the stands so that fluid would level out towards the right and not gush out.
3> removed the wheel and then took a rubber mallet and hit the axle end.
4> take a 14mm and loosen nut on top of the fork, the bottom fork needs 17mm on each side to remove the bolt/nut and removed the fork.
5> i then took a size 5 hex wrench, if i recall correctly, and 14mm open end wrench and loosened the top nut of the stabilizer bar end link.
6> then i removed cotter pin and castle nut from ball joint and tried to pop the joint from the LCA but the pitman arm puller wouldn't fit so i had to do it the ghetto CIVIC way some friends taught me years ago == link for demonstration https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaqqsvBQbFI
7> after that i was able to swing the knuckle assembly around and suspended it up with the floor jack. be careful not to bend the knuckle too much or risk damaging boot on upper ball joint and tie rod end.
8> i got underneath and there's 4 bitch clips to remove from the plastic shield that blocks access to the bottom driver side of the car, after clips removed you can pull it down a bit and fit arms up there. if u break the clip, make sure you have zip ties on hand...i needed only 1
9> i forgot my pry bar at home so i had to use a long flat head screwdriver. i gently pulled on the axle while simultaneously using the flat head to pry the axle from tranny. it took 3 tries to get axle out, luckily.
10> carefully put replacement axle in and reverse steps. tightened new axle nut as carefully and tightly as i could by hand then installed wheel and lower car and tightened as much as i could. my torque wrench only goes to 150 ft lbs, FSM calls for 181 ft lbs so took the breaker bar and stood on it a few times to tighten a bit further.
11> hit the liquor store and drank a beer in the bath because damn i was an icicle afterwards
through research, if I'm finding correctly, the GM Synchromesh 88900399 is now sold under a new name and part number, ACDELCO 10-4014 FRICTION MODIFIED. someone please confirm that for future reference.
Great post, thanks for the quick write up. A couple follow-up items/corrections (for 2008 Type-S, anyway)...
1. Not exactly sure what the proper end link hex size is... 5mm was too small, 6mm was too big, which would lead me to believe it was 5.5mm, but 7/32 (5.55mm) was a little small. So, it's likely a 6mm that gets gunked up from corrosion...
2. End link nut is 17mm, not 14mm
3. I never actually loosened the end links and was still able to replace the CV shaft
4. Old school Civic way to pop the ball joint from the LCA resulted in the ball joint sleeve getting removed from the LCA. Was able to remove the sleeve and press it back into the LCA. See my notes in this AZ post
5. I spend more time trying to remove a sheared-off bolt from the splash guard than anything else... For the driver's side, I'd suggest just removing the four plastic clips and pulling the slash guard back vs. removing the splash guard completely
6. Torque specs:
-Ball joint castle nut - 54-61 ft lbs plus enough turn afterwards to insert cotter pin
-End link - 58 ft lbs
-Damper fork upper - 32 ft lbs (should be loaded before torquing)
-Damper fork lower - 47 ft lbs (should be loaded before torquing)
-Spindle nut - 181 ft lbs
7. I did not soak in the tub afterwards with a beer, but probably should have
$130 for labor is an awesome price. There is a good amount of labor involved with this. My front drive Axle just went on me as well; no real signs that it was going and it broke in a similar spot as above. The quote I got was for $829. When I searched and Advance Auto parts had one for $54 I towed it back to my house and did it there. I made a video if it helps anyone here. If you look at the coloring of where the axle snapped it looks like I may have had a hairline break in it for a while. Hopefully the passenger side doesn't.
10-01-2018, 10:26 PM
