Why do my cv axles looks messed up again. Just had them fixed.

I'm going nuts. Can anyone tell me what they think my problem is? Why would my axles look the way they do. Are they installed wrong or something?

For the past few months, I had this wooping feeling like a flat tire and a shaking or loose feeling in the in the floor and gas pedal. I took the truck in to the dealer we discovered my axles had a really bad wobble to them which I had replaced. At the same time I had an alignment done as well.

I figured this would solve my problem but I was wrong as I still had this strange feeling in the floor and gas pedal. I ended up taking the truck to a differential shop where they told me my front diff was bad and my carrier bearing shot. They fixed the diff and replaced the carrier bearing which got rid of the wooping feeling but I still have this strange feeling in the floor.

Well it's about two weeks later and I think this feeling is geting worse. I get under the truck tonight and started looking around. I noticed my cv axles looked messed up. The fins on the boots are touching now and the axles look weird. It looked fine after the axles were replaced. I also notice that there is some play when I try to rotate the part of the axle that goes into the diff. I don't know if a little is normal or not but there's no play when I move it up and down and side to side.

I don't know what wrong. I'm sick of throwing money away. Could part of my problem be from a bad alignment, axles axles being installed wrong or from the diff drop? My tires seem to be rubbing a little on the upper control arms. I need to get new ones to correct my angles since my ball joints look horrible and one has a small tear in it now.

I have a carrier bearing drop, 881 springs, darkars in the rear, and a diff drop.

 

With 881's, you're getting more of a lift than a 1" drop is compensating for. Try a 2 inch drop or a poor man's spacer drop on top of your 1". It flatten out that cv angle quite a bit.

 

More of a drop? How much is too much? It was fine for the first 5 months or so and then everything started to happen including the head gasket. The fins on the previous axles weren't even this close. I don't even think they were that close after the got the truck back from the diff shop.

I don't think I've read about anyone with more then a 1" drop? If I drop it any more, I don't think I'm going to be able to put my skid plate back on which I haven't modified yet for the 1" drop.

 

This.


Also, just another thought: how much does this truck actually get used in 4WD? The earlier first gens came with manual locking hubs. You could swap yours over to the early parts and prevent any wear from happening when in 2WD with hubs unlocked.

Downey Off Road used to sell "no diff drop" lifts for the older Yotas. One of the things they made very clear was not to run in 2WD with the hubs locked. They knew the CV angle was too much to put a lot of miles on them that way.

 

Those as possible answers but there are 100s, if not 1000s, of people on TW alone running 881s that dont have axle problems. There has to be another reason

 

Those do look steep. I have the same set-up in the front of my truck w/out a diff drop and my fins do not touch.

 

I don't remember them looking like that before. There's something screwed up with my front end. I've had the diff worked on, new axles, new carrier bearing with a drop, ujoints checked seem tight, & new tires didn't nothing.

Only things I can think of is a bad alignment since I have some rubbing, need new uca's, axles or diff screwed up still, bad ball joints, or a bad ujoint somewhere.

 

I was thinking ball joints might be an issue. If they have failed, but seized up, they might be stiff enough to hold in place but will move when you hit a big enough pothole. When my lower on the right side went the wheel moved a good 2-3" in at the bottom. The ball joint was still tight when I checked it though due to some serious rust/seizing.

 

the axles dont look funny to me... a little steep but not bad

have you tried jacking it up and looking for slop on the wheels. wheel bearing, balljoints would have been my first step. CV axles dont usually cause to many issues. you can hear them long before feeling them...

 

Nothing looks wrong except for the useless diff drop.

 

the more i think about the more i realize you have likely wasted a bunch of money. You say they "fixed the diff? what was wrong with it? in 2wd you wouldnt feel anything since the front diff is stationary.

also if the tires are rubbing the UCAs and werent before, if bet its wheel bearing or ball joint

 

I probalbly have wasted a bunch of money. I'm not a mechanic and don't know what's wrong. Just trying to elimanate somethings. After I had the wobbly front axles replaced, I still had that strange feeling under the floorboard and a little in the gas pedal. The dealer couldn't find anything else wrong so I took it to a diff shop for an opinion and they showed me how loose the axle was in the diff (it was moving all over the place up and down and side to side). Got that fixed and just ended up just paying for parts.

As for the tires rubbing the uca's, I had new tires 265 / 75's put on before the axle's got replaced and the alignment done. Since then, I've noticed rubbing marks on the uca's which leads me to subspect a bad alignment job.

The ball joints could be bad. They've never been replaced except for the recall that was done before I bought it. Right now the upper's look horrible since I really need to get new uca's and the drivers side upper has a tear. I really don't know how to check.

I've also been wondering if I could have a bad wheel bearing but I don't what to check for or how since I thought it needs to be under a load to act up.

One other things I've forgetton to mention is sometimes when I back up turning to the let or going around a corner, I'll get this lout clunk or bang noise which I thought might have been a bad shock or ujoint but they've checked out ok.

 

hope i didnt come across as an ass. the thing is, i am surprised the shop didnt start with the basics. if you have a skipping engine you dont replace the engine first then look at spark plugs.

when having a wobble on the front, wheel bearings and ball joints are the first thing to check. especially if you say the boot is torn.

The easiest way to check is to jack the suspension up by placing a floor jack under the LCA. Once the tire is off the ground there is no load on the wheel or bearing or ball joints. then just try wiggling the tire. there should be absolutely no play in any direction. if the there is play, try to isolate where it is coming from. if the spindle moves with the wheel then figure out which ball joint it is. If the wheel moves but the spindle is stationary and the lugs are tight its a safe bet its the wheel bearing.

Good Luck

 

If you still are not sure. When the truck is on the ground you can pry down on the UCA and the ball joint should not move. a bad ball joint can have up and down play as well if it is really bad.

You can also separate the uca from the spindle and move the ball joint by hand. it should not move easy by hand.

 

I wonder if the cv boots are a generic will fit brand. Assembled in Mexico.