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  1. #1
    GSXRliterbikz's Avatar
    GSXRliterbikz is offline Addict Number 45573... Moderator
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
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    Danbury NH
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    7,454
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    01 740iL, 04 X5 3.0i

    DIY Front CV shaft Replacement

    Seems to be a fairly common problem on the E46 and E53 AWD BMW's that the front CV shaft boots rip. There are companies that sell new boots, but that only works if you notice the rip right away. If you drive it with a torn boot, the joint loses all its grease and gets contaminated with dirt. Even if you fix the boot, the damage is already done to the joint and it will fail.
    So here is a procedure I did for replacing it. This was on the drivers side shaft on my 2004 X5 3.0 with 110k miles.

    Obviously you need to jack it up and use a set of stands so you can safely work under it.
    And remove the wheel.

    I started out by removing the caliper and suspending it with zip ties off the spring. Pop the caps on the hex bolts and remove them. Caps are off in this pic. and I'm removing the lower bolt. Upper one can be seen still installed.




    After removing the caliper and bracket. Remove the 2 22mm bolts that pinch the shock. This will give you the ability to swing the hub back and allow removal of the shaft from the hub. In this pic. they are removed and you can see how it gives you plenty of room to maneuver the shaft.




    Next you can undo the axle nut and use a punch to pound the shaft out of the splines. You can also remove the rotor if you like. Mine was stuck, so I left it.




    I used a prybar to pop the inner joint out of the trans. I separated the joint to give a better view for pics. Its not necessary to do.




    Here is the new shaft.




    A view of the trans w/ shaft removed.




    A close up



    When buying aftermarket shafts you MUST BE CAREFUL. I have heard of horror stories of people having trouble with the c-clip that pops into the trans being too big. I used an aftermarket one on my e46 (same part) and didnt have any trouble.
    However, I had trouble with this one.




    I tried pushing it in and it wouldnt pop in. I worked it for a min and decided to pull it out and try again. No dice. It WOULD NOT come out. I had to remove the metal skid plate to get a better angle on the bottom of the shaft so I could WAIL on it with a hammer to get it out. What you see above is the result. As seen below the aftermarket c-clip is TOO BIG. It wont clip in as it should.
    Broken aftermarket on LT, OEM on RT



    My solution was to take the OEM clip off the old shaft and use it on the new one. Worked like a charm.

    Installation is just the reverse of removal. Only thing different is the axle nut. You "can" reuse the old one, but its not recommended due to the fact that you usually cant reuse the crush portion.
    Torque it to "One Million pounds". JK, its supposed to be something like 230 ft/lbs. Thats ALOT. So just tighten it till you cant tighten it anymore. Then use a chisel or punch to push the crush rings in. Like in the pic.



    Then put you wheel on and go.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Location
    Simpsonville, S.C.
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    432
    My Cars
    2x E38 740iL/04 4.8 E53
    I have a 2004 4.8iS and have a torn boot as of about 20 minutes ago. Noticed it in between 2 stops. My question is for me when replacing the entire axle can i just undo the 2 strut bolts as shown above and be ok with the air strut? I am afraid it will push everything down with air still in the bag. Should i just pop the line and take the pressure off of strut by decompressing? Also, is there no clips retaining the axle to the trans? It literally just pops out with a pry bar after getting the other side unbolted and clipped?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    penticton
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    1
    My Cars
    X5 4.8is

    Its a very good question.

    Quote Originally Posted by 01740iL1985 View Post
    I have a 2004 4.8iS and have a torn boot as of about 20 minutes ago. Noticed it in between 2 stops. My question is for me when replacing the entire axle can i just undo the 2 strut bolts as shown above and be ok with the air strut? I am afraid it will push everything down with air still in the bag. Should i just pop the line and take the pressure off of strut by decompressing? Also, is there no clips retaining the axle to the trans? It literally just pops out with a pry bar after getting the other side unbolted and clipped?
    I will have to do the same thing. I dont believe you have to take the bolts off from the strut. OP just did it to swing it out of the way to allow for more room to work.

    Anyone with more info? Would be nice to have here to help others with the same.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Location
    Simpsonville, S.C.
    Posts
    432
    My Cars
    2x E38 740iL/04 4.8 E53
    You have to undo the strut bolts to give the axle room to come out. If you replace the entire axle like I did. I did the job and you just have to pull the air fuse in the back fuse box to make sure you don't get the suspension out of whack.
    2001 E38 (Stroker Motor) / 2004 X5 4.8iS / 2006 760Li V12

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Lakewood, CA
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    1,858
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    05 2.5 Z5
    Great write up. I've done this on a honda. Pretty much same procedure.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    NY
    Posts
    49
    My Cars
    545i X5 4.4

    E53 cv axle time and hassle saving installation solution

    Great overview on process and I had same problem with installing passenger side axle, just couldn't get it in. I always look for short cuts, and having seen the many videos and descriptions, I felt it would help to describe my solution for all you backyard mechanics. First, the obvious, remove wheel, caliper, strap it up out of way, toward front as I removed axle to the rear of front wheel. I removed strut bolts, tight as hell, so get that leverage with pipe over breaker bar and even my impact gun wouldn't break them loose. Almost lifted the car off of jacks pulling up on breaker bar with pipe, wow, were they tight and I even wire wheeled the end threads and let it soak with rust buster for a day knowing how tough the other side was. I did not disconnect tie rods or front stabilizer bar, or even strut stabilizers, just used a little leverage to pull down hub enough to get axle out of spindle. I had trouble with other side, so I soaked axle previously with rust buster knowing the boot was split and finally got around to it a few months later as clicking started to get worse. So this axle came out more easily using hub puller and I left rotor on but used strut bolt nuts as a spacer to avoid snapping the rotor bolt which is a weal point, so put two lug bolts through the nuts as spacer, worked perfectly, then cranked down the hug puller, let go much easier than the other side. So for those looking at this job, soak all nuts and bolts with rust buster way in advance as rust is a killer in NE region.

    OK, axle dame out without too much effort, used the crow bar and mallet, whacked it, and it popped loose. Removed easily with again, a little leverage put on rotor with wheels turned all the way to left. Axle was able to be removed without disconnecting anything but strut bolts and shifted strut to front along with caliper to clear space to allow axle to come out of spindle, then release it with pry bar and mallet. OK, now the hard part, putting new axle put in.

    OK, I used an OEM quality axle who I had used before, no problem except the C clips are very tough to get seated. Use a little grease on end to help, but even this didn't help, was whacking with mallet every which way, no luck, just couldn't get it to seat back in trans. Looked at all the forums, and one guy has solution to go from engine bay with pry bar and whack it against frame, but mine has AC pipes and there was no way I was taking risk of damaging these with a slip. So put on my thinking cap and easily solved problem of difficult C clip engagement. I put hub puller back on and ran center bolt back into new axle with strut reconnected, straightened wheels, jacked up under rotor to normal wheel level as if on ground to insure axle was straight as could be and screwed down hub puller bolt slowly and watching axle go into trans and listen for click, C clip engaged, all done, perfect for the stubborn new axle installations. I whacked it from every angle before coming to this solution, so save yourself the hassle, most new C clips will always be difficult to get to engage, did a Volvo which has an axle from hell issue, could not get out axle even with 60 ton press, had to replace everything, so rust is an issue with all these vehicles. Broke my hub puller on that replacement.

    Now, be prepared to get a pry bar and put pipe over it to leverage down the wheel hub assembly to enable you to clear enough gap to get axle inside spindle, it is a lot easier than taking off tie rod ends or front stabilizer bar, never mind strut links, if not for stubborn axle C clip, I would have been complete in less than an hour, so saving time and hassle is well worth it to me by finding short cuts. The short driver side axle was easier to install or maybe C clip was just easier to engage, don't know, but it too came out without disconnecting everything else that most describe to do. Hope this helps you save time and hassle as well.

    Good luck and Happy Healthy New Year to all,

  7. #7
    Join Date
    May 2019
    Location
    Columbia, Missouri
    Posts
    1
    My Cars
    2004 BMW X3 3.0i
    Read this article and would like to thank all who submitted info on this task. I had the problem of the C clip not wanting to snap in and thought the idea of replacing the new clip with the old one was just what I needed to complete the job, Then the luck of the Irish set in, I cannot get the axle back out of the transmission to replace the clip, it will slide out about 3/4 of the way and stops. Any ideas on this "sticky" problem. It is not my vehicle I am doing this as a favor for the neighbor lady who just bought it. I only have the front right corner up in the air as I am attempting this repair in her driveway. Is there a possibility I need to suspend the left side also?

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