Damaged CV Axle? Replace, Boot?

I will speak from anecdotal experience, but whatever boot material NAPA is using for their CV axles seems far more robust than the OEM rubber, which seems to tear and split easily. I have had the boot fins rubbing on my passenger side CV for a while now and still no tearing, it has been 3 years. The reason that side is rubbing is because I didn't do the boot slide mod since they are axles that should be warrantied anyways. Easier for me to swap the whole thing than to reboot that one..

 

Toyota uses neoprene boots IIRC, it's definitely better than what most part stores sells with their axles but I don't know what Napa uses on theirs. I do know that the boots you get with the cheap axles from O'Reilleys and Pep Boys will tear if you just look at them wrong. I've ripped a couple just during installation by accident. Boot quality is definitely a very important consideration when picking out axles, especially for us lifted guys and if you wheel, since the boots are going to be rubbing when the truck articulates no matter what.

 

What you did is what I planned to do, but because the CV Axle boot was torn without my knowledge, I want to get into every part and clean it out properly (and I might as well do it with the other CV Axle as well, since it's off the truck and I have time to).

 

That was my game plan to reboot the original axles .

Installed New Napa CV axles work good enough for my use

I think now the OEM got tossed and the boot kits sit on the shelf

 

Yeah, I hear you. Don't know if you've gotten it off yet, but I'd just remove the boot, spray a bunch of brake cleaner in there to clean it out as well as you can, then let it dry out, and reboot.

 

I decided to not go any further in the direction I was headed; I cleaned what grease I could (was a dark grey-carbon color), and slid the new boots on.

Thankfully the CV Axles for my truck don't look or feel abused. I will snap a picture of the new boots.

The OEM inner boots felt like hard plastic rather than rubber, when I took them off.

 

I'm thinking about buying these high angle boots. Do you have personal experience with them?

 

I do not unfortunately

 

lol you may get quality

 

three years later (so 6 years?) boot still hasn't torn yet. Granted I only drive 5k miles a year now, but still.

 

they did not last long, for the second time lol