[fail_boat]

I'm sure this is covered somewhere in the forums but I haven't been able to locate it. I was wondering what the best brands of some replacement parts would be on my fiance's 03 Passat V6 4Motion. I think a previous owner installed aftermarket CV axles since the car starts vibrating when it hits about 60-65mph. I found out that most of the "replacement" and rebuilt ones have a solid shaft instead of the OEM hollow one, does anyone have advice on finding the best replacement ones so I don't end up doing this again in a year? So far I'm thinking Raxles is the way to go....

Second is I have to replace the valve cover gasket. It has a very small leak, but that falling onto the hot exhaust makes an awesome smell in the car when it's not moving. I found Beck/Arnley gaskets fairly cheap, but cheap that can also bite me in the a$$ later so hopefully someone knows of the best OEM ones I should use.

I've been scared of replacement parts for VW since my issue with my 2000 Jetta. I got a replacement timing belt that was just barely too small and finally figuring that out made me never order from that site again....Thanks in advance.

 

[Steve in Chicago]

Raxles provides a high quality rebuild. You'll need to send in authentic axles as a core.
Junk yard VW axles rebuilt with VW joints and boots is another way to go.
Some parts stores sell new Chinese axles and also rebuilt VW axles. The rebuild parts may be of sketchy quality.

When battling valve cover oil leaks, first make sure the PCV system is operational and not clogged up. If the crank case isn't breathing properly then it could blow oil past brand new gaskets.

 

[Jay-Bee]

Coming from someone who had to throw a 100$ Canadian Tire axle on his wagon, yes ALL cheap CV axles are crap!!!

800kms on it and it's making a ton of noise already, not clicking but that corner has a lot of groan happening under part throttle load and goes away if i let off throttle and coast, has a 1/4" of shaft slop and I can't take the car over 110km/h, if anything it's a temp part while I get the OEM one i pulled out rebuilt.

This was a Cardone Select axle, it actually looked well built, had hollow shaft, but the outer CV is bad already i'm sure of it.

If I was able to get Raxles I would.

I have a question to ad, how come on ECS site they list axles grouped together for AMW Only and then AEB, ATW, and AUG engine codes only what is the change there?

 

[fail_boat]

Coming from someone who had to throw a 100$ Canadian Tire axle on his wagon, yes ALL cheap CV axles are crap!!!

800kms on it and it's making a ton of noise already, not clicking but that corner has a lot of groan happening under part throttle load and goes away if i let off throttle and coast, has a 1/4" of shaft slop and I can't take the car over 110km/h, if anything it's a temp part while I get the OEM one i pulled out rebuilt.

This was a Cardone Select axle, it actually looked well built, had hollow shaft, but the outer CV is bad already i'm sure of it.

If I was able to get Raxles I would.

I have a question to ad, how come on ECS site they list axles grouped together for AMW Only and then AEB, ATW, and AUG engine codes only what is the change there?

I'm definitely not getting those axles then, damn. Two from Raxles would be a little over $400 which is pretty steep. I'm thinking I'll see how bad they are once I get em off and possibly just rebuild them. I wish the junkyard here actually had a Passat or two more than twice a year, but I can barely find MKIV Jettas there so I doubt it'll be any help.

 

[fail_boat]

Sorry for the ridiculously delayed response. I haven't even looked at replacing the CV axles at the moment since it only shimmys when I hit 70+mph and there's no reason around here to hit that unless I'm looking for a ticket or a wreck. I did find some more information regarding that valve cover gasket situation though. I am going to service the PCV system first, but also I'm going to replace that oil filler cap. I found in multiple places that on start-up the pressure likes to blow through those gaskets and the aftermarket caps are vented/have a breather valve to let that blast escape better. Then I'll finally get to the gaskets and cam seals, but is there a specific brand that works better than the others? My local VW mechanic told me to only use Continental belts when replacing them since they come stock with them. I had a crazy issue with the timing belt from another company being an 1/8th of an inch too short from Auto Parts Warehouse.