Car Talk

April 1992

Dear Tom and Ray:
I have been informed that the rubber boots on my C.V. joints are getting worn and should be replaced. The job is quite expensive, however, since the front end has to be partially disassembled to reﾬplace these rubber sleeves. I was also told that there is a new type of boot allegedly on the market that is "state of the art," and comes with a "space age" adhesive. Is there such a boot on the market and do you recommend it?
Cy

RAY: Well, Cy, there is something on the market called a "split boot," which simply wraps around the CV joint and is held in place with glue. But I wouldn't exactly call it "space age." It's more like "stone age."

Beat up old car

TOM: We've used them on occasion, when an axle is seized to the bearing, or for one reason or another, the boot can't be installed any other way. But our experience has been that the split boots rarely hold up well over time.

RAY: Here's why. The rubber CV boot wrap around the metal CV joint to protect it from damage, and to keep it encased in grease. Now, in order to get one of these "split boots" on, you've got to wrap it around the joint while the joint is dripping with grease--all while keeping the split boot perfectly clean so the glue will adhere. It's like trying to glue two ends of a sheet of toilet paper around the top of a melting ice cream cone that's being held sideways.

TOM: And besides, on most cars, it's really not that big a job to reﾬplace the boots the right way. It's about $100 per axle, and in our opinion, it's worth the money.

Back to the April 1992 index

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