My vw axles have been clicking for about a year now, and the boot just split and is flinging grease everywhere. Im about to order some axles, and i was going to go through 1aauto, and they told me it wouldnt fit because im a manual transmission.
The usual and likely best answer is to get the axles from Raxles.com. A lot of PW'ers have had issues (vibration, short life) with cheap aftermarket axles. I've replaced one axle so far, at about 150k miles, and used a Raxle one.
FWIW, I replaced an axle on my wife's QX4 (no bad reports for cheap aftermarket on user forums) with one from O'ReillyAuto, and the exposed metal surfaces were totally coated with rust after 3 weeks. The originals (15 years, 200k miles) barely show any rust at all. Makes me wonder about the quality of the steel in the CV part.
After looking at that web site from the link you provided, I'm real suspect if that place is legit or not. If it is a real place, STAY AWAY anyways.
For starters they list the W8 4 motion as being the same as the FWD models with the 1.8L and 2.8L, which most of know that 4 motion and FWD are different.
And the fact that they say fits both left and right, WRONG. oke: There is a length difference between the right and left axles, meaning there is a 'left axle' and a 'right axle'.
2 separate part numbers should be listed.
I have ordered stuff from them before, they are also a preferred vendor on my other forum, Ram Forum. I just need to keep the thing moving, how much are the raxles, i heard they're very good axles, but i know cheaper man pays twice, i dont need the best, just wanna keep her rollin.
All right, I stand corrected.
After dealing with FCP Euro, ECS Tuning, and a few others I honestly have become numb and stubborn to change. I stick with what works, period. I may not have saved the maximum amount of $$ because of my stance on where to buy product, but when I get my sore tired ass underneath a car I can feel confident that what I have in hand will work. Nothing sucks more than going to the parts store multiple times for a single project.
And yeah, if you just want it to roll down the road, then I would agree with going cheaper.
Some vendors are selling FEQ axles for 125.00 without a core charge. https://www.europaparts.com/volkswagen/passat/b5/1-8t/parts/drivetrain/axles.html This is for informational purposes only, not a recommendation. I exchanged my originals for Raxles. With Raxles be aware that while they are guaranteed, you have to remove the bad axel and send it to them for replacement.
I would just replace the CV joints. You are pulling the axles anyway and it's not a lot more work to just replace the CV joints and keep your OE axles. However, it is just a little messy, so wear clothing you care nothing about.
For whatever reason Autohausaz has the best pricing on CV joints. I usually stay with FCP, ECS or 1stvw, but.....
The car needs new Shocks struts axles and tires, i was going to do the rear shocks my self, but since i dont have the press, and the car is going to be needed to allign after i get new tires, i might aswell pay 125-250, to have them install the axles and shocks and have it done right... and have it alligned while its their. The brakes also need to be resurfaced ext. Its my little commuter with 220k miles on it, i just need some quick axles that will last me to the end of the car length haha which could be year or 2. Ill check those places out.
Like all of the Cheap Chinese Axles, they are hit-or-miss. If you don't mind having to redo the job if they die early, you can give them a try.
Personally, if I was trying to save coin, I'd go for an Auto-Store re-grind (or new) over a Internet Cheap Chinese Axle. Neither has a great reputation on our cars, but at least the swap for a new pair will be easier with the local units.
Just want to update my experience. When the Indy replaced my car's axles with axles from NAPA. This was some where around 2008 or before when i didn't used to work on my car. Anyway the axles were the genuine vw ones(i think it is rebuilt). Then after that i had to replace the outer boots once. Still going strong.
Just a heads up, in your first post the link is for axles that fit an auto trans car. Then in post 18 for cardone axles they are for manual trans cars. The axles are different for manual and auto trans cars, so make certain when you go to purchase your axles that you match all the specs of your Passat.
I have a manual thats why i posted that link in post 18, but thanks for looking out for me.
I watched a video and the axles look pretty easy to replace. But i figured while im having a shop do the tires and front shocks, might at aswell have them do it...
Yes, the axles are pretty easy to replace. In fact, it was the first job I did on my car, even before doing my first DIY oil change.
When I did the front shocks, I just took the whole assembly out of the car, threw them in the wife's car's trunk, and drove them to a shop with a press. It ended up being a lot cheaper than having them do the full install. (But if the car has spent any time in the frozen north, it's probably worth it to let the shop deal with extracting the UCA pinch bolt for the first time! Make sure you ask them to completely cover the UCA pinch bolt in anti-seize before re-inserting.)
You can probably go to the Jim Ellis VW site and find your part then see what vehicles it fits. I think this site uses some version of the ETKA parts program that VW dealers use to identify parts. It often shows what models, trim levels, etc certain parts fit and you can use it for cross-reference.
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