Axle won't go in all the way
 

I've got about 1/2 inch gap between the back of the CV joint at the top of the driver's side axle and the transmission on the driver's side. Greased the splines with synthetic moly grease and checked that the old snap ring was out. It's a 5 speed open diff.

Been beating on the end of the axle (with the old axle nut on the threads) using a 4 pound sledge but I don't want to do any damage to it.

Any tips / tricks on getting this in? The strut is still installed, hypothetically I could take it off and that would allow me to straighten the axle and hammer on it without a bend... Worth the effort?

By the time I'm done my threads will be a step-by-step guide for the tie rods and axles sheesh. Thanks for all the help so far, you guys are life savers.

Strut is very easy to remove, and will not require a wheel alignment, so I would try that. That way all of your pushing force is going in the right direction.

GLuck

The driver's axle should pop in place without needing a hammer. Put some extra grease on the end to hold the lock ring in place and center it on the axle as best you can, then firmly shove the axle into the transmission. If it doesn't go in, rotate it a little and try again or try rotating as you push it into the transmission to line up the threads.

Here is a picture of the gap.

I think that strut is going to have to go! I'll try rotating it too. Greased the end a bit, tried to really cover the snap ring.

I haven't done a manual trans, but that's the way an auto trans would look, the joint doesn't touch the transmission case.

Rotating slightly can make all the difference.

Perhaps the splines in the trans and in the shaft were lined up, rather than next to each other.

So one could pound all day and get no where. yes by rotating slighty, the splines could slip by each other.

In general, if something should fit, but wont, consider moving something slightly, or change your approach a bit.

Here are some pictures and a question to verify you have the seal properly seated.

1) First picture. I can't tell from the picture if the seal part that shows to be sticking out from the transmission case is the outer ring in the seal or the lip that should stick out.

Do I see a pinch or what looks like the seal may be in a bind or is not fully seated in the transmission case?

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/maxima....6e13d47208.jpg

The red arrow points to a raised area on the seal that I'm questioning

Here's a seal picture from an automatic with VLSD. This is a much larger seal than the seal you are using. You can see how the outer diameter sits flush with the outer area on the transmission casing. The outer diameter of the seal ring should not stick out from the transmission casing.

http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/l...psgprxdfnp.jpg

What seal part number did you use?

Didn't you say you replaced the race, bearings and seal? If so, maybe they aren't seated all the way in. (race and bearings) I don't know what the differences are between Auto, Manual, Auto VLSD or Manual VLSD races, bearings and seals, hopefully the appropriate ones are in. And if not, the driver's side is where the differences are.

Just tossing it out there in case you can't find any other reason. I'll be doing mine in a few days after I decide which I'm going to buy. I think I read Raxles doesn't rebuild OEM anymore. Damn. The rest are different levels of ______, IMO.

I hope this helps.

And Dennis is a wealth of knowledge and experience. Maybe he's saying it like it is.

I look forward to your success!

Edit: I see CS_AR also suggested bearing and seal part numbers!

I only replaced the seal. Not intimately familiar with the transmission but there does not appear to be a bearing for the output shaft, but rather the splines interlock directly with the transmission.

I recall the inner CV joint "can" (not sure what that thing is called) as being flush to the transmission when I started. If someone had a picture of what it looks like correctly seated that would be most useful. Should have done that myself!

Yeah all I could find was Cardone's. Of course I pretty much limited my search to Amazon and Rockauto. If I can get 70k more from this car then I'll be happy. At 10k a year on average I'll have it for a while longer :)

The seals that I bought were the one's recommended by DennisMik... I referenced it in this post - here's the spec:

Had to buy a new left side seal as I had purchased the wrong one.

Got the strut out, tapped on it some more and it's not budging... Any way to tell if it's in or not?

If the snap ring is on the axle like it is supposed to be, then you should not be able to pull the axle out with a light force. When properly seated, it takes a pretty good force to pull it out.

Ok thanks! I'll give it a good tug.

If you can't get it in and it's not in after trying what Dennis said, Take it back out and put it right next to the one that came out and see if there are any minute differences!

The list of possibilities is getting near the end.

Good luck!

Thanks for the suggestion!

I tugged on it with a fair amount of force twice and it didn't move at all. I think it's good. Had it sitting next to the original axle earlier in order to transfer the dust boot - definitely no differences.

Thanks so much for the help! There's no way I could do this without it.

CS_AR thank you! The outer diameter *is* flush with the housing. Took some doing but I got it in flat. The rubber visible there is a raised lip that protrudes out around the inner diameter. It's almost like a cup of sorts. Getting the seal in was painful, but I know that I did it.

I've installed countless drive shafts. Usually they take a bit of persuasion to get locked into place. Sometimes they don't look seated; a good tug will let you know if it is in correctly.

My cousin recently had a similar issue with a re manufactured shaft. The splines were damaged and the re manufacturer tried to repair it by filing it. After many failed attempts to install it we disassembled the outer CV joint and swapped it with the original. Went in perfectly the first time.

Was it right
 

Remember I had the similar issue. I ended rotating slightly and lightly hammered it in.

so the gold ring is supposed to go inside? I'm not supposed to be be able to see it?

spring clip f**kedup!

I hammered mine in. Hard.
The lock ring was disturbing - I know, because when I removed it, it went all the way in.

Nem,

Sorry I didn't see this until now, I don't frequent these boards. My axle *was* seated correctly, I tested it by giving the axle a slight tug. Once it locks in place it's much more difficult to remove; you may have had some difficulty removing it from the transmission. Hopefully this helps someone else in the future!

Is the axle in all the way
 

I replaced my driver side CV axle and have been driving around. If it's not in all the way will it keep busting wheel bearings?