yobhgareb Posted August 31, 2013 Share Posted August 31, 2013 Hi . I had a clicking front axle on my 1986 l series wagon, so today I pulled it out and gave it good clean an new grease. there's still a slight cluck when turning but nowhere near as bad. The axles only have 50k miles on them, and dont want to change them to inferior aftermarket items. (previous owner ran with bust boot for a while) what im contemplating doing is swapping the axles over to their opposite sides , this being the first time either axle has ran in the new direction. has anyone ever tried this with good effect? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoxerRebellion Posted August 31, 2013 Share Posted August 31, 2013 (edited) As nice of a thought it is to swap them. . . Honestly, that's a ridiculous work-load, to in the end have the same bad axle. If you catch a tear in a boot sooner than later, regreasing and replacing the boot is an option. However, once that axle starts making noise, the damage is done. It is in your best interest to replace the axle. If you wish not to have an "inferior" axle, which I fully understand.. Pick up an OEM from a dealer. It will cost an arm and a leg. -Though, once the axle-eating power of your Subaru is realized - picking up an inferior Chinese/Argentinan axle starts to make sense. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." If you decide to swap the axle, you'll have the same problem... Only you'll have spent a few hours of your life to put the problem on the other side. Edited August 31, 2013 by BoxerRebellion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uberoo Posted August 31, 2013 Share Posted August 31, 2013 Go for it.If you want to do the work its fine.You can extend the life of the bad axle for a bit by swapping them side to side.Although OEM subaru axles can click for 100K miles before dieing on the street. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yobhgareb Posted September 2, 2013 Author Share Posted September 2, 2013 If you wish not to have an "inferior" axle, which I fully understand.. Pick up an OEM from a dealer. It will cost an arm and a leg. -Though, once the axle-eating power of your Subaru is realized - picking up an inferior Chinese/Argentinan axle starts to make sense. So will i buy an oem or inferior chinese/ argentinan axle? Im confused now lol. Swapped them over and it seems to have done the trick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthWet Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 Before going through any extensive work, I would ensure that the axles are still properly torqued. By this I mean to check that the (slightly) dished washer under the axle nut is installed in the correct direction (convex-side outwards), and then retorque the axle nut. It is common for the axle to not seat completely in the hub on reinstallation, allowing the axle-nut's preload to vanish when the axle finishes seating. I have had some really dry and filthy CVs do just fine after thorough cleaning and greasing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BratRod Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 If you're not afraid of the work; buy a re-man. Free lifetime warranty, no questions asked. That's what I did for my Brat. First axle clicked 400 miles later. Replaced for FREE with another re-man. No problems here, thousands of miles later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKghandi Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 If you're not afraid of the work; buy a re-man. Free lifetime warranty, no questions asked. That's what I did for my Brat. First axle clicked 400 miles later. Replaced for FREE with another re-man. No problems here, thousands of miles later. Just what i was going to say.. i bought a set of axles from my work, lifetime warranty. after you switch a couple axles you figure out a quick way to do it. I can do both front axles on a non lifted rig in about an hour, hour and a half if its lifted... my car has been apart and back together several times so I dont have to fight with rusty bolts. I would rather get them exchanged than reboot them anyday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yobhgareb Posted September 2, 2013 Author Share Posted September 2, 2013 I dismantled and cleaned the clicking axle, and gave it new grease and boots. then,swapped them over sides, and its working a real treat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uberoo Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 just clicks in reverse now! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted September 3, 2013 Share Posted September 3, 2013 i've heard of other people swapping sides or even parts from one axle to the other....it does work. like uberoo said, clicking axles aren't that big of a deal and i've put 50,000 miles on clicking/busted boot axles before. clicks in reverse, lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yobhgareb Posted September 3, 2013 Author Share Posted September 3, 2013 will try anything to keep the old rig going lol!!! I have a 1.6 ea71 l series parts car { don't think you guys got the l series with that engine} with only 34k miles. must pull an axle from it to see if its the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maozebong Posted September 4, 2013 Share Posted September 4, 2013 it wont be the same axle... however, swapping sides ensures you get the absolute maximum life from an axle. since the races wear slightly off to one side, not directly in the middle like a ball bearing, swapping from left to right causes them to wear on the barely worn side that previously only saw action when driven in reverse. putting it on the opposite side (and while its out changing the boots) will give you a seemingly fresh axle that will last almost as long as putting a brand new one on. the popping noise is almost always from pitting on the races (where the balls ride), usually from contamination of the grease. once they are cleaned you can see usually the offending spot. if the pitting it isnt too deep, you can polish them down a bit with a small cross buff and it will quiet the noise down. if you have a donor axle with clean races, swapping joints over to a different axle shaft can make a perfect axle from two bad ones. quite a few people including myself do it. aftermarkets are bad because of poor machine work. they dont chamfer the edges of the races, and after a few hundred miles that edge rubs down and becomes a metal contaminant in the grease. the bearing cages are also usually too tight on the cv joint side of the axle, they are usually near zero clearance, which wears metal into the grease as well. one of these days, i plan on buying a new aftermarket axle, take the boots off before installing, and inspect the tolerances... i imagine if i clean it up some with a dremel and repack it with my secret grease, it will last forever... we all have dreams Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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