Inner and outer CV joints bad?
 

I was at the track yesterday for a DE event and on my third session the corner workers report to me that they hear what they say sounds like a CV joint failing. Bummer - end of the day for me. So I drive home carefully and am now trying to diagnose the problem.

Car is a 1997 Boxster with tiptronic. The symptoms are: when going around a corner, you hear tick, tick, tick. The tick is speed dependent. In a straight line there is no ticking. The harder you go around a turn, the louder the tick.

So I get under the car today and look at the CV boots (sound is from passenger side) and neither the inner or outer are cracked. I do notice that when the axle is moved in and out (back and forth from tranny to wheel hub) there is a click in what seem to be the outer joint. I compare to the other side (driver side) and it does not have the click.

Can a bad inner CV joint have these symptoms or do you think I have a bad outer?

My gut says to skip the shortcut of changing the inner joint and re-boot the outer without removing the whole assembly and instead pull the whole thing out and servicing both inners and outers.

Thoughts?

if the joint is bad re greasing is going to do nothing.

Buy a whole shaft, cheaper less work

Not sure if I would say cheap. I too have a 99 Tip Boxster, 3 out of 4 boots are torn, although I haven't heard any noises.

In pricing out repair options, it seems there two ways to go. Buy the entire axle, cheapest I have found is $770 each at ECS tuning. If you think it's the inner CV, nearest the trans, then that one you can replace. Kits are available with new joint, boot, etc, for about $150 per side. For the outer CV (at the wheels) you can repack with grease and reboot, but the joint itself is not replaceable.

On mine, since I wasn't getting any noise, I have ordered all the parts to replace the inner joints, but just repack and reboot the outers.

It seems like axles for the Tip run a little bit higher cost wise than the axles for the manual.

Complete axles are $100 bucks....just swop them


http://www.ebay.com/itm/Porsche-986-Boxster-00-04-Drive-Axle-Drive-Shaft-Transaxle-Tiptronic-Automatic-/161660985721?hash=item25a3bee179&vxp=mtr

Used, though. Not sure if I want to trust a used axle.

Over here we used to have a axle re builder that would do them for less than $100. but as new axles got cheaper they just started selling new ones.

I think there is still one in Anaheim here.

Even brand new shafts are cheap. Change the shafts.

Pair New Rear Left Right CV Drive Axle Shaft Assembly for Porsche Boxster | eBay

These won't work he has a 99, Boxster, Tip