Need new axles
 

As I had expected, my friendly neighborhood Pcar mechanic told me yesterday that both of my inner CV boots were ripped and the CVs themselves were dry of grease. That being the case, I think it would be in my best interest to replace the axles instead of just greasing the joints and replacing the boots since they are probably worn by now after driving with no grease.

So, here's my question: After looking at Pelican Parts and a few other places, it appears that OEM Porsche axles are somewhere around $750 each. Searching on Google, I've found Boxster S axles for around $58 each! That's quite a difference. Dos anyone have any experience with these aftermarket axles or know where to get OEM or quality replacement axles for a better price?

Well, I'm no mechanic (though I'm workin' on that!), but since no one else seems to responding to your question, I thought I'd give you my 2 cents. My boots went a few thousand miles ago, and (not wanting to pay the outrageous amounts charged by the stealerships) I took the car to an indie that was recommended by someone who used to frequent this forum quite a bit but only shows up occasionally these days. (He's clearly handy: threw a supercharger on his Boxster---did all the work by himself---you can read the thread if you're interested. So, I figured if he recommended this shop, it was probably a good choice.)

The mechanic there said he'd replace both axles (w/ boots, etc.) for $400. That's parts and labor. If I wanted the OEM ones rebuilt (grease, boots, etc.), it was going to be $525. At first, I was totally inclined to just replace them: new axles at a lesser price---no-brainer, right? Later, I found out that the axles he was proposing to replace the originals with were "FEQ"s, apparently made in China. He said he'd used them lots of times on P-cars and had always had good luck with them. I PM'd a number of forum members here about what I should do. The general consensus was that, while the after market ones may be just fine, they generally would not be inclined to use them.

Again, I don't know a lot about this, but are you sure yours are shot? My impression is that it takes quite awhile after the boot is torn before significant damage would occur (assuming you're not spending a lot of time on dusty, dirt roads I suppose). You might want to see if an assessment of the condition of the OEM ones can be done.

It's too easy to carefully pry of the inner cover of the cv joint and remove it. I would just go ahead replace the inner cv joints themselves, all 4 boots and use lots of some sort of a molly graphite or fully synthetic grease. You CAN do this yourself, it really isn't hard (I'm in the army for a living so if I can do it, it must be fool proof. Although when most people say that they do not take into account the ingenuity of fools.).

I've heard good things about these guys. Worth giving them a call. Great warranty on rebuilds...

http://www.raxles.com/

you guys really should put your year and model (if it's an S) in your sig so others can help you source stuff. there's like 8 different part number axles in the Porsche 986 PET pdf...

Porsche Boxster S axles are hollow for lighter weight so maybe the Chinese axles are solid for cost savings. I would clean & inspect the CV joints for wear to see if they need replacement & replace the joints IF they are worn. I use Redline synthetic grease