My driver side cv boot tore open last week flinging grease all over the interior of my wheel. At first I thought, no biggie, I'll fix it on pay day. Well, now my passenger side cv boot has done the same thing. What would cause this to happen? Is it my driving, or is it just normal wear and tear? I'm pretty sure they're the stock boots and have never been changed before. I currently have 93,000 miles. Thanks in advance.

Anthony B

 

on the boots to see if there is an obvious malicious cut by someone who doesn't like you, or did they just happen to fail at almost the same instant. Unlikely, but I suppose they ought to since they have both had the same wear and tear. Or, did you drive through a stoney or branchy dirt road that may had torn both boots. 93K miles isn't mad. I'd get them repaired at the earliest possible timing to avoid a more costly expense.

 

Your driving is not to blame. Agressive driving may accelerate wear on some mechanical components, but not CV boots. Boots develop tears or splits due to age, exposure to high temperatures, exposure to ozone, and road hazard damage.

If the CV joints are still good you need only new boots. However, if you prefer to pay a professional to do your repairs the cost for new boots will be more than half the cost for remanufactured axles (which come with new boots). At 93K, replacing the axles may be the right thing to do.

 

Thanks for the info Daniel. Just in case though, how difficult is the install on CV boots?

 

Replacing the CV boots may be done by the intermediate home mechanic. Replacing the boot alone is more work than replacing the axle shaft with a remanufactured unit. You will need a repair manual to guide you. Please read about this procedure in Chilton (page 7-3) or Haynes (page 8-7) to decide if this repair is something you can handle.