Inner CV Boot Leaking

Just happen to take a look under my truck, noticed it was leaking a little bit and happen to notice a slight tear. Is this something I need to take care of now or could it wait till it gets a bit warmer? Should I upgrade to high angle CV’s?

 

High angle not necessary, just get new OEM's and do the boot stretch mod.

 

And no hurry to fix it, as long as a few drips on the driveway don't bother you.

 

Eehhhh....

Once a CV starts puking grease (which is going to happen here soon as that's a pretty major tear in the usual spot) they don't last too long.

 

not leaking anything at all on the driveway, it’s just damp. I don’t have much of a commute everyday, we’re talking about less than 4km a day.

 

Doesn't even look like where the boots are rubbing together.

 

That’s what gets me lol! To be honest I don’t know how long it’s been like this.

 

Yeah its happening where the clamp is, another common spot for the boots to tear when the angle is too high. Puts more strain on the boot where it's clamped and it starts to pull apart there, have had it happen to mine a couple times.

 

Can I get away with it for about 2-3 months, till
it gets warmer? Really debating if I should get CVJ axles with high angle boots or should I just replace the inner boots with high angle ones?

 

People drive around with blown CV boots forever without realizing it or not wanting to address it. It does put the axle at greater risk for failure though, once water/dirt/debris start getting inside the boot its just a matter of time

 

I wouldn't bother with the CJV's heard to many mixed things with them.

OEM CV's with the boot stretch is plenty good enough.

It might be fine for you for 2-3 months with your commute so short but I would avoid any dirt dusty or muddy driving, if you don't replace now it might be get foreign grit into it or loose too much grease and be too worn to rebuild in that time but if you're just planning to replace and return those as cores then doesn't really matter to you.

When you're replacing your axles it's a good time to do the ECGS bushing replacement if you haven't.

 

Is there a temporary patch I could do in the meantime?

 

You can try but typically it won't hold, pressure will either blow out any vulcanizing or sealant patch and anything like electrical tape will cause it to tear somewhere else.

I think dorman makes a clamshell that goes over a torn boot but I think that's more trouble than it's worth.

 

haha I don't think so. I laugh because I've tried that before, I tried using duct tape, gaff tape, flex seal, even tried using jbweld once on a camping trip where I blew one on the way up and wanted to avoid replacing the axle in the dirt. Nothing held.

I ended up just finishing the trip with the leaky boot and it was fine. It's not a dire matter, a leaky cv boot. But it will shorten the axle's lifespan

 

Clean it really well. See if you can find the leak.

My passenger outer had the tiniest crack in it. I put a dab of silicone on it and it’s been fine for the past 20k miles.

If you’re replacing the boot, go OEM and slide the boot.

 

I would do the work myself but with the weather and temperatures, no freaking way lol!

Anyone have the correct part number for the OEM cv axle assembly?

 

Another option:

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/dealership-oem-reman-cv-axles.748031/

 

Toyota of Canada doesn’t carry it. FML

 

Decided to go with an OEM whole CV axle, about $450cdn/$355usd shipped, didn’t think it was that bad in price.

Was considering the CVJ axles, expensive and expensive with shipping/taxes/duties, paying shipping for the core return, no warranty and reading a lot of mixed reviews on them.

I’ll replace the boot for when the next one goes and I’m sure it will soon. I’ll have an OEM spare to use to replace the driver side. There’s no clicking or noises coming from damaged CV, just needs a new boot.

Once the weather permits, I’ll do the CV boot slide mod on the OEM boots.