CV axles

I get it...Toyota OEM axels are the best....looking to save some money of course. question is....of the aftermarket axels out there, who has had problems with their CV shafts going bad?

Going into my daily driver that I am rebuilding my front end on. Looking at the cost of a reman Toyota unit as well but trying to make sure I explore all the options...I am thinking of the box stores NAPA likely has the best ones?

respectful opinions welcomed.

 

CVJreman.

Google it, and search it on TW forums. No further discussion needed.

 

Definitely looking at that page for certain. Right now, its my #1 pick...however if people have used the NAPA ones and there are no problems with them then it could be an option to bring my wrecked truck back to life.

 

People have definitely used NAPA & many other brands of 3rd party CVs for Tacomas. Never done it myself but reading many pages of TW forum threads my impression is that only Toyota CVs or quality remans made with Toyota cores last for a long time.

YMMV and definitely search TW forums for many extensive discussions on CV replacement parts.

 

Here the vid that sealed the deal for me.....Good Luck!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pby128CdrLI&t=167s

 

Bought my 08 with 206k miles in 2019. Boots tore around 220k miles. Drove it till 261k miles and decided to replace them. There were no issues or noise other than I knew I should fix them and figured it was time. After doing research it turns out they were not OEM and were most likely Napa. I looked at CVJ but decided to save some bucks so I bought Napa ones. This was early 2021. About a year and 15k miles later, the boots tore again. I decided to do nothing and I’m still driving with ripped boots and I have 315k miles on it now. I will not replace them unless I am bored or I hear a noise. At that point I will get a new set under their warranty.

I only tell you this for two reasons, first if you want boots that last stick with OEM or CVJ. Second, if you want to save money then go with aftermarket like Napa but don’t stress out when your boots tear.

Just my opinion of course.

 

Been using these fuckers since I converted my truck to 4x4 with plenty of stressful situations on em and no issues so far. Soon to go under even way more stress due to FR locker and 35”s. We’ll see how that goes.

 

There have been a few guys have good luck with the NAPA Premium HD axles.
I have one sitting here in the closet floor. I bought it just incase, when I did the ECGS Bushing.
My OEM axle looked good, tossed it back in.

 

Just get the versions with thermoplastic boots. Seem to last longer.

Most are made by the same group of manufacturers.

 

I no exaggeration just did this job yesterday. 1 year ago my OEM axle finally gave up the ghost after 170k. i had the same thought you did, and went with the NAPA axle. Here i am this week replacing it and putting an OEM one back on.. NAPA didn’t honor a warranty and if i would have just went with OEM in the first place i wouldn’t be out that money or time. If able i HIGHLY recommend OEM.

 

I got one of these installed on driver side. I only have about 20K miles on them. I have gone off-roading several times and have no issues to report.

 

My cvj axles have held up fine. Locked front with a lot of trips on 35's. One trip on 37's so far. Napa axles are fine for a daily.

 

I put these on both sides after my original boot tore on drivers side around 50K miles. I was doing a overhaul to my front end and figured I'd just replace them both at the same time even though passenger side was in good shape. I had to replace drivers side after 2 years when the boot tore. At the time I blamed it on spilling oil from changing the oil filter. Rock Auto warranties them and I got a replacement. The passenger side just tore at 3.5 years of service. I still had the OEM one I took off that was in decent condition and put that back in. When you look at the axles side by side, OEM is a thicker diameter.

Any how, long story short is I'm sticking with OEM stuff from here on out. Rock auto used to offer a rebuild service for OEM but I don't see it anymore. CV axles aren't a horrible job but they are always a pain in the butt to get out of the diff. It also gets real expensive if you are paying for labor. I just sent the most recent one back for a refund.

 

do not go with aftermarket stick with your oem axles and re boot them

https://youtu.be/YH5Cf7uJV5Y?si=kIe45cpWuniNhHeI&t=29

 

I always recommend to reboot/service your OEM than replacing with aftermarket. When I did my conversion I was trying to save some bucks and that why I got those.

 

+1 for NAPA. I bought the premium one with the warranty since the OEM boot was torn. I re-booted OEM thinking I'd put it back. 2 years later the napa is still working fine and the OEM is ready to go sitting in the truck in case I need to swap it.

 

I will say rockauto does a good job with the warranty on these. No issues with them. The thermoplastic heavy boots on these cardone axles don't seem to be as good. I wish I hadn't gotten rid of my old one that needed a rebuild.

I've got no experience with the NAPA version, but it sounds like others have had success.

 

I do not recommend the NAPA axles. In November 2021 I purchased Part #: NCV 954271. It lasted less than 2 years (likely closer to 1.5) before the boot tore. Meanwhile the Toyota axle on the other side (factory original from what I can tell) tore this month, close to 200k miles on it.

NAPA did swap the axle out under warranty. The replacement axle was a bit different and didn't have the axle seal guard like the Toyota axles. The warranty is also crappy as it says "the warranty is void if the boot is damaged in any way." The store didn't enforce this, but who knows if they would in the future.

I saved money by buying a used Toyota axle. Tacoma from 2005 to 2023 use the same cv axles. On eBay junkyards sell Toyota axles (identifiable by the green and white sticker) from wrecked vehicles. I got one from a 2019 tacoma.

 

OEM CV’s do not go bad. The boot and grease does by lack of maintenance.

 

Was under the truck today and noticed this difference between the the two CV axles. There were no torn or ripped boot. Is this any concern?