DVDBob

My wife's '05 TT Coupe 1.8 had a faulty fuel pump at around 80K miles. The shop we took it to also said the driver side inner and outer CV boots were torn as well as the passenger side outer boot. They wanted to replace the both axles and all 4 boots, at the cost of $1500. I said no.

Now it's nearly 13K miles later and I'd like to get this done as I'd hate to leave the wife stranded somewhere. I don't hear any noises while turning, but the steering wheel does shake above 50 mph.

Obviously the boots need to be replaced, and from everything I've read, the axles should be fine, but perhaps the joints need to be replaced as well?

What would you recommend?

03_AR_CO

If the CV boots have been torn for 13k miles, the CV joints are likely no good from all the abrasives that have been allowed collect on them. New after market axles are under $100 per side. There are also rebuild choices, here in the Denver area there is a reputable re-builder, there is also Raxles in FLA.

Vegas-roadster

It was foolish to not replace the boots immediately. Lots of folks with 150K+ miles on their original CV joints and axels. But now your joints are likely contaminated and/or dry and ruined. The axels themselves should be OK but I don't know the incremental cost to replace them if you are replacing the joints.

One caveat on axels. We had a TT West participant a few years ago get new axels just before the event and they failed the first day of the run. They were of Chinese manufacture. Make sure you get a warranty, in writing. The shaking above 50 mph may not be solved by this repair.

Wolfeie

Raxles is the way to go. Hands down.
I think it was about $250, after core return. Tools supplied. 100% quality product. Took about an hour to replace. Walk in the park. Just did it last month on left front.

Lexx

replaced an axle on our 225 roadster a while back. got an new one from autozone - fit perfectly and inexpensive with lifetime warranty. just ensure you have the triple square sockets.

rebuilt one side. its a lot easier to replace the entire axle than put new boots on..and not a lot more expensive

Wolfeie

Note that "triple square sockets" means a 12 point. Like a Torx but with 12 points.

robnao

I wouldn't bother with replacing the boots, as previously mentioned, too much contamination at this point. I would just change the entire axles.


If you plan to keep the car, go with Raxles, more expensive, but high quality all the way, only audi original axle shafts, so they are balanced, they even send specialty tools most folks don't have, you return the tools with the old axle. Remember, most of the time you get what you pay for.


If you plan to get rid of the car soon, go with the cheap axles from your local parts store. Be aware there are a solid number of complaints about these various brands failing in a few months to a couple years, vibrations because they don't use balanced axle shafts, etc., even the supposed lifetime warranty ones. Sometimes they last for much longer, but you take a much greater risk with these.


I have replaced one axle on a 1997 A4 Quattro and both fronts on a 2000 TT Quattro 180 hp. On the TT I was also changing the lower ball joint, so made getting the axles in/out easier, but it is not a real difficult job.
I would recommend doing a good inspection underneath of all the parts with rubber, such as ball joints, etc. Found on my TT, with 135k, most of these rubber bellows were "blown", meaning the rubber had torn, this means contaminants had been allowed in and it is just a matter of time before there are problems or failure. Might as well replace these parts as well to maintain the ride/handling of your car.


As for your steering wheel "shake" over 50, most likely an out of balance wheel. Find a local shop that has Hunter alignment and road force balancing equipment, best in the industry, they have a shop search on their web site. The road force balance actually puts force on the tire while spinning it, it can find balance issues no other machine can find, even bad tires from the mfr, and yes even good brands have an occasional bad tire. After you get the axles done, take the car for an alignment/balance, specifically ask the shop if they will "match" the tire to rim, meaning they will check the balance, deflate the tire and spin it on the rim to minimize the need for weights. It will cost more due to the time the tech spends, but will give you the best possible results.