Rear CV boot leak question

vf2ss · 1 January 2009

<img src="http://www.vf2ss.com/transfer/boot.jpg" border="0"/>

(before shot above) My RR inner CV boot band was pretty loose and leaking grease. It had also sprayed along the oil pan and collected on the inside of the heatshield. The mechanic inspected the boot and said it looked good with no cracks or damage and recommended cleaning it and putting a new band on it which was done.

I drove it for a couple of days and just checked and can see that a little bit of grease had still sprayed and a drop or two is on the heatshield. I checked the band and it seems very snug so I cleaned up the area best I could with plans to check it again.

I had read on prime that the cv boot rubber will shrink over time, is this how it got loose? The car is a 92 w/35K and never replaced/repaired any boots. Larry B had also mentioned in another post that he "changes the right inner boot on almost every NSX he sees as they typically have bad grease due to the high heat from the rear header/exhaust."

If the new cv boot band is on good, does this mean that there has to be a tear somewhere or should something else be checked? Any other advice? Thanks in advance.

Racerxjling · 1 January 2009

vf2ss said:
<img src="http://www.vf2ss.com/transfer/boot.jpg" border="0"/>

(before shot above) My RR inner CV boot band was pretty loose and leaking grease. It had also sprayed along the oil pan and collected on the inside of the heatshield. The mechanic inspected the boot and said it looked good with no cracks or damage and recommended cleaning it and putting a new band on it which was done.

I drove it for a couple of days and just checked and can see that a little bit of grease had still sprayed and a drop or two is on the heatshield. I checked the band and it seems very snug so I cleaned up the area best I could with plans to check it again.

I had read on prime that the cv boot rubber will shrink over time, is this how it got loose? The car is a 92 w/35K and never replaced/repaired any boots. Larry B had also mentioned in another post that he "changes the right inner boot on almost every NSX he sees as they typically have bad grease due to the high heat from the rear header/exhaust."

If the new cv boot band is on good, does this mean that there has to be a tear somewhere or should something else be checked? Any other advice? Thanks in advance.

Because it hasn't been changed before, age, and history of that one going out I would just change it out so you can sleep better at night. Doesn't sound like a lot of grease was lost but some has of course. Also, the grease is very old so just change it all out...inner and outer boot of course. It is a messy DIY job as I did it but would consider paying someone to do it.

Jeff

goldNSX · 1 January 2009

If the band is loose you can try to fix it but personally I'd go with a new one. If LarryB told he changes the inner ones due to bad grease believe him. :wink:

TNT NSX · 1 January 2009

NSX rear axles are about $700 +/- per side from the dealer, when my axles had the same problem torn boot on both my left and right axle I decided to have them rebuild by guys that does our custom axles which we use on the drag cars we have and our EVO 8, and it saved me a hell of a lot of money to have them both done, so if your interested we can have them rebuilt for you, total cost of about $600 to remove both axles rebuild them and install so if your interested pm me or go to www.teamtnt.us to get our shop contact info.

fifthearth · 1 January 2009

Judging from the color of your grease, the grease is old and needs to be changed. Replacing the clamp will not fix your problem.

New grease is more like the color of yellow mustard and more solid. Old grease like yours turns into melted ice-cream like consistency is mainly due to higher heat ( do you have aftermarket headers with no heat shields ?) or just age. When it gets too watery like that, it leaks no matter how tight you clamp down on the clamps....

I did mine a few months ago..... not a very hard job, but messy... you can get a cv boot kit from any dealer for under $30 that comes with one boot, c-clips, axle nut, 2 new clamps, and a tube of new grease. Might as well do all 4 rears when you pull the axle out to save trouble in the future.

Racerxjling · 1 January 2009

TNT NSX said:
NSX rear axles are about $700 +/- per side from the dealer, when my axles had the same problem torn boot on both my left and right axle I decided to have them rebuild by guys that does our custom axles which we use on the drag cars we have and our EVO 8, and it saved me a hell of a lot of money to have them both done, so if your interested we can have them rebuilt for you, total cost of about $600 to remove both axles rebuild them and install so if your interested pm me or go to www.teamtnt.us to get our shop contact info.

If it's $600 for both axles/4 boots complete parts and labor I would let them do it if you are local to their shop. IIRC, the 4 boots w/ grease ran around $85, the special clamp tool w/ shipping around $25, and the 36mm socket head $25. A good impact gun/air compressor helps and a couple of nice pry bars. LOTS of paper towels and a helper.

Jeff

RON98 · 2 January 2009

its the old grease broken down and leaking.

if the boots feel flexible and still good, you can just put on a new metal band.

if you want to do a jimmy rigged job, you can do it on the car.

i recommend pulling the axle and getting new boots, grease and doing it right.

vf2ss · 2 January 2009

Thanks everyone for the responses, it answered my questions and I now assuredly know the correct line of action...new i/o cv boots here I come! (Plus, I'm all for trying to do things right and sleeping better at night!) Sometimes I think it's too bad I'm not in socal as I miss out on all the repair option opportunities and local trades/pickups this forum offers with their in-depth X-community, but then again, I'm happy that I don't have to have a front license plate! :tongue:

Rear CV boot leak question

Similar threads