sockr1

iTrader: (5)

i've always heard stories about axles going on the TL and always kept a close eye on mine (even though i only have 113k miles and my car has never seen snow). i started to notice more and more shaking through my car when i was accelerating, but knowing how i'm hyper sensitive to my car, i thought maybe i was imagining it. my wife and i were doing some errands and i floored it on an on-ramp (like i love to do) and it was shaking really badly and my wife says "that doesn't seem very safe or feel good." that confirmed to me that something really was wrong and my first thought was the axles.

i then researched symptoms and determined that it was most likely the inner joint of the axle. i've always heard great things about raxles, so i gave marty a call at raxles and told him what's going on and he agreed it sounded like an axle problem. he said this happens more often on lowered cars, which places more load on the inner joint.

i asked him about the benefits compared to oem and he said they rebuild oem axles, but put in their own designed joints and use a much higher quality grease than oem. he says the upgraded grease and joint are much more robust than a standard oem axle.

he was hoping i didn't have a manual car, but i do, and it took longer for him to source a manual axle (different than axles in the automatics). It took about a week to find and rebuild axles for a manual, and then 5 business days to ship from FL to CA. i was in no hurry though and just babied my car while waiting for the axles. i believe the turn-around time for an automatic set of axles is a day or two.

Signs for replacement:

- clicking when turning (will click on left side if right is bad and vice versa)

- very heavy shaking/wobbling on acceleration, especially around 50 mph

- axle snaps (lol)



Install:

- can be done by a DIY person

- i had a shop install it because i don't currently have the time...a local acura shop installed this for $130 out the door (they are known for good work and lower prices). to me $130 was a no-brainer haha

Note: on installation the shop said the right axle was squeaking on the test drive at low speeds. i had marty talk to the shop directly because the shop had never had this happen and marty had never heard of this happening (just my luck!)...but after their discussion they said for me to "break it in" and sure enough after some highway driving the squeaking is all gone. just wanted to give a heads up in case someone else encounters this during their install.



Benefits:

- better, longer lasting joints

- higher quality grease

- upgraded OEM

- they rebuild OEM axles and do a complete inspection before rebuilding and never send you a less than perfect axle

- easy process to return cores (included return label and location of nearest UPS store)

- great customer service and 20 years of experience



Downsides:

- higher cost...cost was $530 out the door for two axles when oem would have been about $400 (+ tax). to me the increased cost is well worth it!!

- there are much lower options from other stores and i hear mostly good reviews, but to me i try to stay with oem or upgraded brands rather than save a few bucks

- turn-around time: if your axle needs replacement asap and the car is your only car, you won't have time to wait for this to come (shipping from florida to california took 5 business days, plus the week or so to find and rebuild axles for a manual)

- they do not accept (or maybe they take it on a case by case basis) axle cores from the northeast where i've heard of axles snapping due to the environment



Conclusion:

These axles are high quality and my car seriously drives like new again. I knew it was bad during acceleration but I didn't know how much shaking during normal driving I was having from the bad axles. Now the car is butter smooth and even my wife said my car feels like it's "skating" along the road now. I wouldn't hesitate to buy these again! (but hope I don't have to for a while)



Pictures:





Left axle replacement

















Right axle replacement





marty even tells you the nearest UPS place to go and includes a return label for shipping the cores back

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

wow! awesome!
you've been doing a lot in the last couple of months! good job!

this is likely the route, i'll go..

thoiboi

Wow Marty seems pretty damn supportive in his customer service with the UPS drop off, highlighting, and all that jazz! I like him already!!! I don't have any issues with my axles yet but this may have me sold as well!


Thanks for the review sockr!

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

thanks guys, i highly recommend going this route...yea it costs a little more but it should last that much longer and feel even smoother than oem. it's been a busy few months but hopefully i'm mod free for a while....but we all know how that goes haha

6spd-GERCO

Good review, I will need to do this in the near future for my TL, the 6mt seems to be harder on axles.

ggesq

iTrader: (1)

I concur re Raxles and Marty's excellent customer service. I changed my passenger side with Raxles and when my drivers side starts going out, I'll be calling Marty again. If I remember correctly, the OEM a/t axles are much more expensive than Raxles so it was a no brainier to go with Raxles.

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

I read somewhere, can't find it anymore, that he doesn't accept cores from the rust belt states as those can't be re manufactured. Is this true? I get a shutter when I am turning left and accelerating. I think once I put my coilovers on I will put new axles in. Debating on OEM or Raxles but if I don't get a core charge, being from Wisconsin, I will go OEM to avoid the added $160 core costs.

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

you probably heard it in my write up above lol, i wrote something similar haha (it's also in someone's recent compliance bushing thread). your best shot is to just call him and ask, it will take 5 minutes, but i don't think he will accept it. that would make it a tough decision, but for me knowing how long i'm going to keep my car and knowing that i'm always going to be lowered, i might lean towards raxles still over oem even with that extra core cost.

the key is that lowered cars put more stress on the axle inner joints...so if your car hasn't been lowered yet and they are failing, there will only be more stress once you lower your car. but if you're gonna get rid of your car in a few years it won't make a difference oem vs raxles (hopefully)

i know it sucks but there are certain times i am ok paying a bit more for quality

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

We will see what he says, I will give him call one of these days.

My car was quanaman's, which was lowered for a few months. This could have caused the axles to wear prematurely, I will be on Tein SA's with a decent drop, this summer, but not slammed by any means. If I can sell a few more parts from my part out I will shell out the extra cash to cover the core charge. I plan to keep the car for awhile, just hate getting thru hunting season with it!

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

ah got it, good old quanaman! yea that will be a tough decision for you but knowing you have a 6mt type s, that would make me lean more towards raxles as well (more power being transmitted, especially through our FWD). you can also email him he actually gets back pretty quick same day.

haha not sure about the hunting comment, does that mean your car isn't large enough? being from california i don't know anything about hunting or the culture lol

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

The car is plenty large enough, just limited parking due to ground clearance and no 4x4! The trunk of my old TL has had a few deer shoved in it! I could borrow my girl's Jeep with a hitch rack, but then I would have to let her drive my TL-S in the winter and I don't like that idea at all!

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

haha that's crazy!

my wife hasn't driven my car once because she can't drive stickshift...or is that the real reason haha

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

Before more thread derailing - Back to Raxles.

I received an email back stating they do NOT accept axles as cores from states that run salt in the winters and the rust on the axles are deemed unsafe to use. Keep this in mind when you are wanting to buy axles.

NoTLoud

So I just lowered my car this weekend and had the LCA compliance bushings put in yesterday. I figured I would avoid paying for an alignment twice, get two birds stoned at once.

Today I noticed I was getting shudder/shaking at around 20MPH. I have created another thread asking for thoughts, but my initial though is that my axles are not liking the drop.

When you lowered your car sockr, did you notice any shuddering? Or did you replace the axles because they went bad shortly after lowering? I'm hoping I can hold off replacing for a little bit and that they won't get much worse. It's not something I am noticing at speeds.

I guess I should have done some more research before I lowered the car, but I was hoping I would go without issues for awhile. Not my luck with cars though, something always goes wrong.

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

sounds like axles to me, especially on acceleration only right now. it's probably not just from the drop, but from the drop AND time, mileage, etc. i think it was a combination of things but lowering definitely does not help. i've been lowered for a little over 4 years now and just recently my axles made my car shake a lot, timing is a combination of a lot of factors.

it sucks that you have to replace the axles, but your car will drive butter smooth after new axles and the new compliance bushings you put in! think of it more of an investment than a problem! (but the cost does suck)

NoTLoud

As much as I don't want to hear it's the axles, it's much better to hear than transmission. I confirmed myself this morning it wasn't the tranny, as it still shifts very smooth into second, the shuddering just begins in the middle-end of second gear.

Do you know if there is a price difference between the auto and manual CV axles? I hope I am looking at the wrong part, but it looks like the full assembly for the auto TL is $500 per side for the OEM. I see the half shaft is like $60 on RockAuto for the Cardone one. I'd gladly just replace the damn thing 4 times due to early failure than pay 5x the cost. Pretty sure I am not looking at just the half shaft. I just want to compare prices. I will go with Raxles if the net difference is only around $100, like you said sockr, makes sense to shell some extra cash out for some items.

Anyone have the OEM part number for the left and right side for a 5AT? I would greatly appreciate it!

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

go to acuraoemparts and type in your car info and then look up "driveshaft." then look at the cost for "driveshaft assembly" (one left, one right). it's pretty easy to look up. somebody did tell me that AT axles are much more than MT, but just check it out and see what price Raxles offers them for.

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

Just went thru AcuraOEMParts and put a list together for OEM axles per year and model. See Below (Prices as of 2/16/17 - 9:30AM CST.)


04-06 Acura TL Base – 5AT
Drive Shaft Assembly – Right – 44305-SDD-A00 - $508.13
Drive Shaft Assembly – Left – 44306-SDD-A00 - $553.15
Shaft Assembly, Half – 44500-SDB-A00 - $217.30

04-06 Acura TL Sport – 6MT
Drive Shaft Assembly – Right – 44305-SEP-A02 - $193.66
Drive Shaft Assembly – Left – 44306-SEP-A02 - $193.67
Shaft Assembly, Half – 44500-SEP-A00 - $228.31

07-08 Acura TL Base – 5AT
Drive Shaft Assembly – Right – 44305-SEP-A10 - $193.66
Drive Shaft Assembly – Left – 44306-SEP-A10 - $241.08
Shaft Assembly, Half – 44500-SJA-000 - $225.48

07-08 Acura TL-S – 5AT
Drive Shaft Assembly – Right – 44305-SEP-A10 - $193.66
Drive Shaft Assembly – Left – 44306-SEP-A10 - $241.08
Shaft Assembly, Half – 44500-SJA-000 - $225.48

07-08 Acura TL-S – 6MT
Drive Shaft Assembly – Right – 44305-SEP-A02 - $193.66
Drive Shaft Assembly – Left – 44306-SEP-A02 - $193.67
Shaft Assembly, Half – 44500-SEP-A00 - $228.31

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

^^ now please call Raxles and get the same pricing for all those trims and years...LOL! jk man

NoTLoud

Awesome, thanks so much!

So I would only need the half-shaft, correct? That would come assembled and just require removing the old and swapping in?

At $217, I am wondering if it's really worth the cost of the OEM part. I can get the Cardone half-shaft from RockAuto for $53. I can replace that thing 4 times if it goes bad prematurely and still have money to spare.

So my question is, does the OEM or Raxle CV half-shaft really make that much of a difference in driveability to drive the $170 price difference? I don't necessarily care about durability if I can replace it many times before the cost makes sense.

What I may do is use the Cardone replacements and if they fail, reassess what condition and mileage my car is at and see what makes sense going forward. If I plan to sell, go with Cardone's again and sell with those. If I think the car has another 100k miles, get the Raxles or OEM.

Is there something I am missing here? I have read aftermarkets don't come with the harmonic dampener (probably the wrong part/name). What impact would that have on driving?

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

You will need, at most, both drive shaft assemblies. That is what I would do since I like to repair in pairs for even wear and tear. The half shafts I don't see going bad because they are mounted by a housing bracket to keep them centered. I may be wrong, so don't quote me.

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

NoTLoud you need an axle not the half shaft haha. like i mentioned in my other post you need "drive shaft assembly"....each one is one side....so you need left and right. the other half shaft is exactly that, a half shaft that goes inbetween the axles!

the jury is out on the harmonic component...some say you need some say you don't. for me personally, i'm going to stay with what came as OEM (with the harmonic component).

NoTLoud

Well holy shit, I'm not dropping $1k on new front axles, that's absurd. Still doing some research around the forums on people having issues with aftermarket axles. Seems that they are hit or miss.

If I buy from Raxles, this will be the part I need correct? They are now half the cost of OEM for me, I am hoping.

If I order from RockAuto, I am looking at the half shaft assembly: 2006 ACURA TL 3.2L V6 Drivetrain Parts | RockAuto. This is why I was asking if I only needed the half shaft.

I am a little confused on this. Hard to tell from the OEM Parts catalog what exactly the part looks like.

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

Seems like they word it differently than the OEM.

Half shaft assy is also known as the "intermediate" shaft.



What I am pointing to is the "Half shaft assy" or "Intermediate shaft". The other 2 are the "Drive Shaft assys".

NoTLoud

Just spoke to Marty on the phone, super nice guy!

I should add, the lifetime warranty on your Raxle is voided if you car is lowered. He said the TL axles he sells are not designed for lowered cars and he can tell if they have been run on a lowered car due to the wear on them. So I thought I should add this to the discussion. He said he was worried that he was selling a bunch to people who had lowered cars because he had not designed them.

I was quoted $220 per side for the 06 Auto TL. This makes the Raxle $280 cheaper than OEM, which makes them a no brainer.

I want to confirm for sure this is my issue before purchasing, but I will definitely be going with Raxle after the positive reviews on the forums and seeing that people had been running them on their lowered cars without issues for awhile.

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

^^ thanks for bringing up that point again...this is not a "fix" for lowered cars or for that group. BUT it will last longer than traditional oem axles if you are lowered. so in other words it won't hurt, thanks for the reminder for people reading!

marty is a very helpful, nice guy and their products are top notch. that's crazy that it's cheaper than oem, no brainer haha

NoTLoud

He said he had been selling a lot of the axles for the TL's recently. I said I had read about them on the forums and he said "Put a good word out there for me!" Told him it looked like people had already been doing that and that's why I had called.

I am going to look into whether or not my issue is actually the axles or the rear engine mount.

His reason for not carrying the manual transmission axles was that you could source the OEM ones for cheaper than his, so there wasn't any reason for him to carry them because he thought people wouldn't buy them.

thisaznboi88

iTrader: (7)

hmm this or insane shaft. hmm

Ryan L21

iTrader: (1)

Hey all. I just recently lowered my tl-s on tein sa about a month ago. I get a slight vibration/i guess shudder, but the weird thing is, the slight vibration only happens sometimes and only making a right turn. Doesnt make any noises when i turn and what not. Seems like it's axles, but thought id ask.

Thanks!

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

I get a shimy/shudder myself on left turn accelerating. Car isn't lowered at the moment but it was before I bought it. Gonna wait til I put in my SA's to throw on new axles. I am going OEM since I can't send in my cores for Raxles.

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

just wait on the axles until it's very noticeable. when you lower a car, you're taking the car out of spec so it's not going to feel "perfect." give it some time and don't jump the gun on buying new parts unless you know for sure. just keep an eye on them (especially when accelerating or if you hear clicking while turning)

03max6spd

Ive been contemplating the exact same thing, to go with raxles or Insane, Anyone in here ever ran the Insane Shafts axles?

JBP

I also went with Raxles for mine and was very happy with the whole experience.

Ryan L21

iTrader: (1)

Alright. Figured that's what i should do since i do not hear clicking while turning. hopefully i am good for awhile, but time will tell. Thanks for the reply and help!

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

Great review sockr1. I already email them as I am having almost the same issues as you did.

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

Hi Jaime, Thank you for you inquiry! The axles for your 05 Acura TL MT are $219.95 (W/OEM trade-ins) $299.95 (No/OEM trade-ins)per side. Please keep in mind when comparing prices that at Raxles we use NEW outer joints on all of our axles. (An industry exclusive)(See our website http://www.raxles.com/no_regrind.aspx for further elaboration on this important fact). We build these out of HD NEW components using Amsoil synthetic grease, new nuts, Harmonic Dampeners!, and the BEST CV boots. We charge no core charge "up front" and we include a UPS ARS pre-paid return label with your order. Let me know if I can be of help!

FUCK I forgot I don't have my oemaxles.

Boogsephine

It looks like it is finally time for me to replace my axles on my TL-S! After hours of reading reviews and different threads on here I am going to go with Raxles. I e-mailed Marty about two weeks ago and with how quick he got back to me with everything I needed to know I am with no doubt going with him.

My CV joint started clicking a few months back and has progressively gotten worse. Here is my primary concern.. generally how long can one go with the severe clicking from the joint? I ask this because I live in Charlotte, NC and have a friend in Atlanta, GA that does most of the work on my car for pennies on the dollar. If I can make it from here to there for him to install the axles, that would save me a ton of time, money and I know it'll be done right.

I will be sure to leave a review once they are installed!

guitarplayer16

iTrader: (8)

My axle has been clicking when I turn left at a stop sign for two years now.

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

My old car only clicked when it was cold out. Ran it 3 years just fine.

Tebaz06TL

My CV has been clunking for a year almost.