• Welcome to the Contour Enthusiasts Group, the best resource for the Ford Contour and Mercury Mystique.

    You can register to join the community.

95 5 speed. drivers inner CV boot. How to?

P

pjw73nh

New CEG'er
Joined
May 4, 2008
Messages
21
Location
NH
Greetings,

I need to replace the inner CV boot on the drivers side half shaft. I have the gigantic Ford OEM manual, but like most manuals they give you the "Ford" Method that needs special tools, clips, holders etc. I have done the outer one before (though I don't remember which side or how I did it).

Does anyone have a good write up on doing the drivers side inner one? Is this something that is pretty straightforward or do I need the special tools, clips etc that the manual calls for. Are there any surprises, gotcha's or bejeezus (sp?) springs I have to be aware of? Once I get it out, I presume it is just like the outer one. Split the joint, slide the boot on fill with grease, clamp etc.

I would prefer to NOT go the "speedy boot" way but I gave to get the car back on the road quickly as my son needs it to get back to school in a few days.

Thanks.

P.
 
why not just put in a new axle? they're only like $60 and would make for a quick swap.

If your set on putting on a new boot, you will have to take the CV joint apart. IIRC there should be a stop ring and a circlip. move the stop ring down the shaft, slide the tripod down, remove the circlip, remove the tripod, remove the stop ring. install new boot, and reinstall everything in reverse.

its pretty simple to replace the boot but i would still just replace the axle
 
Striker, Tnx for the reply. Where can I get a .5 shaft for that kind of $$. At that price it's worth it to me.

Also, I was hoping for a little more detail in removing the shaft from the vehicle. Any further details? Do I need to undo just the ball joint and tie rod end to remove the outer shaft from the spindle, or is there more (strut, stabilizer, ctl arm etc)? Perhaps less? Will it just pop out of the transaxle? Or do I have to release/pry something to get it out ? Same question putting it back in. Will it just click into place? Tnx

P..
 
most auto parts stores have them for about that price. just make sure you get one for a manual trans and with ABS if you have it.

to pull the axle from the car, just remove the ball joint, tie-rod, and if need be the strut from the knuckle. make sure you loosen the axle nut before you remove anything though, otherwise its a pain to do. the easiest way to remove the axle is to use a slide hammer with the CV shaft tool. it can be rented from autozone. just hook it behind the inner CV joint and give it a good whack or two and it should come out.

to install, just slide it into the trans. once you think its all the way in, give it a couple tugs to make sure the circlip seated. if it pulls out then it didnt seat properly.
 
http://www.contour.org/ceg-vb/showthread.php?t=34523

Read through this thread. It has a good picture of the slide hammer with attachment needed. Also where to buy info and page 3 has a couple of links to how-to's that I used.

I started both sides Saturday, got the passenger side done tonight and hope to finish tomorrow. You will need the slide hammer. For the driver's side, you may need to drain the transaxle fluid first, I did because it needed changed anyway. But I've read both "you will lose a little fluid" AND "you must drain fluid first". Popping the driver's side ball joint was a problem for me. I bought a pickle fork to do it and it still wasn't easy. The fork will ruin the joint, but I planned on replacing it anyway. If it's never been replaced, this involves grinding off rivets and punching them out. New joints are bolt on. Or you can replace the entire control arm with a ball joint already on it. I also found a bad wheel bearing while doing this. Also FWIW removing the entire strut with the knuckle still attached is not that hard to do and gives you more working room.

None of this may be an issue, but my simple job of a passenger side CV joint turned into pass side axle, driver's side axle, 2 new ball joints, 1 wheel bearing plus labor to have it pressed in and a fluid change. I did get a few new tools out of this deal though!
 
No need to use a pickle fork on balljoint, if the bolt through knuckle is removed, nothing holding balljoint in, it's not press/stress fit. You may need to tap a slot screwdriver into the slot that tightens up on balljoint top to open and loosen it up a little. Slot on back of knuckle. When slot opened, balljoint will fall right out, only LCA tension against it holding it in. Pry down through middle of LCA with a crowbar and it comes right out. No need to remove knuckle/strut either, loosen top of strut nut, under hood, 5 turns and strut assembly will move where you can get parts in/out. Or remove all the way to remove the whole thing. I tapped out the axle from hub with a piece of aluminum bar and hammer, pulled inner axle from trans with crowbar, no slide hammer needed. Make SURE you tighten that hub nut to 200 ft.lbs. That's a bunch. Use a cheater bar if you have to, that nut to be TIGHT. You may have to buy axle anyway, I used to reboot, but now no one sells just the boot anymore, only entire axle. Tried to buy wiper refills lately? Now can only buy entire blade assembly. Pretty soon they'll be selling you entire motor to fix a bad valve cover gasket.
 
No slide hammer or pickle fork? Go for it dude. He has a '95 and may have never been done before. I have a '96 with 193K and there is no way this job could have been done without either of these tools. Driver's side took me 8 or 10 good pops with a large slide hammer to get the axle loose. Maybe if you have just the right shaped crowbar it would work...maybe...but I don't see how since there is no room and nothing to pry on but the transaxle housing. Also a crowbar load would be off center, a slide hammer distributes the force more evenly around the center of the shaft.

Ball joint may or most likely will not fall right out. Definitely try it without a pickle fork first. I drove a screw driver in the pinch joint and then a solid metal wedge, did not matter. Also had a pry bar through the middle of the LCA till it bottomed out, no go. It took the pickle fork as far as it would wedge in with a cheater bar to break it loose.

This job may be a piece of cake for the OP, but I don't want to give the false impression that it's a 1 or 2 hour job. For what it's worth, I've done this once on a '96, 5spd MTX, 2.5L with 4 bolt LCA's. From pictures I've seen, 2 bolt LCA's are a different story. I don't know for sure, but I would guess the '95 we are discussing is very similar to my '96.

my .02
 
SVTC1136,

Thanks for the offer. I think I would rather see if I can get a boot for it. as I KNOW the condition of the outer joint. (Almost new). Sorry for the delay in replying as I have been out of town for a while. I appreciate your offer though. Thanks.

P
 
Hello again,

I've read through this thread, and a couple of others that were referenced I have found a great deal of information, much of it contradictory. I guess I need a little more specific info on this repair. Perhaps if I give a little more info it would help.

The car is a 95 4 dr. 6 cyl, 5 speed manual, no ABS. I replaced the ball joints 2 years ago, (then had it aligned), and 2 weeks ago. Then had it aligned again yesterday because the tires were squealing. They are no longer squealing. I am asking so many questions because it seems that every time I "TOUCH" anything with this front end, I'm in to it for another $70 alignment. I am gun-shy about taking things apart any further than I have to if it is not necessary.

Anyway, While I was doing the ball joints I noticed the drivers side inner CV boot leaking. Not as much as an outer one would, but still had evidence of grease on the chassis. I suspect this is because the inner joint doesn't flex as much as the outer one.

In any case, when I did the ball joints, I only had to remove the pinch bolt from the ball joint, and separate it from the LCA. This was no problem in either case. It was not rusted or stuck, and basically fell off the spindle. I did remove/loosen the spindle nut, but did not have to remove the shaft from the knuckle. It slid out far enough for me to R&R the ball joint. I did not try and get the shaft out of the knuckle completely at this time (it wasn't necessary for the BJ replacement). I did not remove or loosen the tie rod end, stabilizer bar or strut. Does any one know for certain if I had pushed further, would the shaft have slid out of the knuckle?

OK. So now my questions remain. Given that it is a 95, 6 cyl, no ABS, 5 sp manual:

1. Does anyone know for sure if I will lose trans oil?

2. Can I get the shaft out of the knuckle with just the ball joint separated, or will I need to do the tire rod end too (no big deal)? OR do I have to disconnect the stabilizer bar and/or do anything with the strut? (pain in the *$$.)

3. Is the slidehammer truly necessary for the job the way my car is equipped?

Thanks again for any and all of your help.

Paul.../NH
 
1: you will more than likely lose some trans fluid, if you dont then you were probably low to begin with.

2: you should be able to get the CV shaft out of the knuckle just by removing the ball joint and tie-rod but you may have to loosen the upper nut on the strut to allow it to swing a little bit

3: you may be able to remove the axle with nothing but a pry bar (i was able to the first time i pulled mine) but the slide hammer makes it so much easier (i was not able to remove the CV shafts without it the second time)
 
pjw73nh said:
1. Does anyone know for sure if I will lose trans oil?

2. Can I get the shaft out of the knuckle with just the ball joint separated, or will I need to do the tire rod end too (no big deal)? OR do I have to disconnect the stabilizer bar and/or do anything with the strut? (pain in the *$$.)

3. Is the slidehammer truly necessary for the job the way my car is equipped?
Click to expand...


1. I agree with Striker. If you don't want/need to change fluid, just put a pan under when you pull the axle. If you do lose fluid, just top it off when done. I changed mine, it's not that hard. In fact I put new Mercon in because I had it. After I drive it awhile to clean it out I plan on draining it again and replacing with Royal Purple Synchromax. There are other fluid choices, Ford Honey, Torco, etc....this is a whole other topic of discussion.

2. If I had to do it again, I would still remove the strut, disconnect the tie rod end and stabilizer bar to have room to work. For the tie rod end, just pry a little and pop the side of the tie rod joint with a hammer and it will just fall right out. None of this will affect alignment.

3. I've read it's possible without the slide hammer, but personally I couldn't do the job without it. If you have an Autozone close I've read they have the slide hammer kit with C-shaped axle puller attachment for rent/borrow. I borrowed the slide hammer from work and made my own attachment.

Something else to consider "when you pull the axle always replace the circlip with a new Ford circlip". Read this thread http://www.contour.org/ceg-vb/showthread.php?t=35345.
Potential for huge problems if you don't and a little clip is cheap insurance. Wish I would have read it before I did mine. On my passenger side I reused the old Ford circlip left on the intermediate shaft. For the driver side I used the "generic" clip that came with my aftermarket axle. So far so good.
 
Hey folks, Thanks for all the help. I'm getting the job narrwod down and preparing to do it this weekend. I know it probably doesn't seem like a big deal to you guys, but this is the first time I've had the shaft out of the tranny or done an inner boot. I appreciate your patience.

Here is what I've got. The inner boot for my car is not readily available. I've tried several parts shops. Even FORD said, it is not available. Something about the 6 cyl, manual trans and no abs that makes the car a mongrel. Anyway, I've found a "universal boot" (Not speedi-boot) that I will have to cut to make fit right. It has those nasty oddball tpye of clamps. I've got a "supposed" correct OEM fit boot that I am not sure is correct, but the parts guy insists it is. I was also thinking on having a complete shaft available just in case. AutoZone wants $115 for it. I thiught I found it for less elswhere. I am goign to look around. I figure if I have all 3 of these options available to me ONE of them is going to work. The guys at Autozone did not have the tool mentioned above. One of them said he was a retired Ford tech,m and he said just to give it either a quick tug to pull it out of the Trans, or carefully insert a pry bar and pry gently but quickly to jerk it out. So unfortunately, no slide-hammer for me this weekend.

The more I looked at the shaft in the car I became puzzled (yet again). When I did the outer boot, I did it with the shaft still in the trans. I was able to remove (knock) the outer CV joint off the shaft while holding the shaft in to the trans and put the narrow end of the boot on the shaft, then slide the CV joint back on.

Does the inner one work the same way? Or do I have to break the outer boot, slide the outer CV joint off, then cut the old inner boot off, and slide a new one back on, then slide the outer boot and outer CV joint back on?

Does the inner joint come off the shaft like the outer one?

Thanks again for all your help.
 
the inner CV joint does come off the shaft but there is very little room around it to get it apart
 
Thanks to all for the great info. Shaft is out, new boot is on but not clamped, tripod is back on and new rings in place. I am currently ready to fill with grease and clamp. I am off to the hardware store to get a pair of pliers that will easily crimp the special boot clamps. (tile nippers or fence pliers). Diag cutters just don't seem like they would work, and I don't want to ruin the only clamps I have.

I have a couple of questions. I lost some trans oil in the process (out of the diff side opening for the shaft). What should I refill it with? I think I lost about a cup or so. I saw a few threads with the fill location, just wondering what to use. Some mention a cocktail of ATF, friction modifier and gear oil. I don't have access to friction modifier (today). Do I really need it for such a small amount of fluid loss. Remember, this a MANUAL 5 speed.

Any help much appreciated.

Thanks again.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top