Right front CV boot leaking

Handling, suspension, and brake tuning discussions
Post Reply
izzy
Posts: 13
Joined: Mon May 07, 2018 12:17 pm

Right front CV boot leaking

Post by izzy »

I went to Midas for oil change and seasonal tire changes a few days ago, the technician told me that he found some leaking(oil) at the right front of CV boot, he showed me when the car lifted, there is a little bit leaking then I asked the adviser to give me a quote, he told me getting the parts taking 50 mins and taking another 50 mins to solve the issue and the price is around $530 tax in.

I don't know how serious it was and asked some friends, some said that I don't need to change immediately as there is no any noise when making the turn while driving.

Any suggestion, thanks in advance.
Caretaker

Re: Right front CV boot leaking

Post by Caretaker »

First, there are inner and outer constant velocity joint boots, two on each side. It is common, especially the outer ones closest to the tire, for them to tear or crack especially when driving on gravel roads and in winter conditions where ice can also slice away at the rubber. Second, it is not oil but grease that comes out of the boots. I want to make sure that the technician is not scaring you into a repair simply because you ran over some oil on the road or splashed something up into your wheel well, and he is trying to dupe you into a repair. PLEASE find yourself a trusted local mechanic in your area. http://www.repairpal.com will guide you to one in your area and will give you a basic quote for such a repair. Then you will know if you are being cheated with the quote you mentioned.
The common noise alerting a driver that a CV boot is cracked is when one makes a full hard turn in either direction. If the grease has emptied out of the boot, you will hear a screeching or scratching noise while the car is moving and turning. If there indeed is a tear of one (or more) of the boots, any technician can easily show you the tear while the car is up on a lift unless the tear is on the very top side of the boot. Good luck.
izzy
Posts: 13
Joined: Mon May 07, 2018 12:17 pm

Re: Right front CV boot leaking

Post by izzy »

Caretaker wrote:First, there are inner and outer constant velocity joint boots, two on each side. It is common, especially the outer ones closest to the tire, for them to tear or crack especially when driving on gravel roads and in winter conditions where ice can also slice away at the rubber. Second, it is not oil but grease that comes out of the boots. I want to make sure that the technician is not scaring you into a repair simply because you ran over some oil on the road or splashed something up into your wheel well, and he is trying to dupe you into a repair. PLEASE find yourself a trusted local mechanic in your area. http://www.repairpal.com will guide you to one in your area and will give you a basic quote for such a repair. Then you will know if you are being cheated with the quote you mentioned.
The common noise alerting a driver that a CV boot is cracked is when one makes a full hard turn in either direction. If the grease has emptied out of the boot, you will hear a screeching or scratching noise while the car is moving and turning. If there indeed is a tear of one (or more) of the boots, any technician can easily show you the tear while the car is up on a lift unless the tear is on the very top side of the boot. Good luck.
thanks so much for the detail explanation, I would ask a friend-of-a-friend who is running an auto repair shop to take a look(this weekend) then make the decision, according to the information I gave to him, he said it would cost 1/3 of the amount that Midas gave it to me if the repair is necessary.
jolt
Posts: 945
Joined: Sun Mar 02, 2014 2:07 am
Location: Twin Cities, Minnesota

Re: Right front CV boot leaking

Post by jolt »

Take care of your engine over heating problem before the CV boot. Find out the total cost of repairs to see if the car is even worth spending money on. You may be better off cutting your losses now then spending money that you will never get back on repairs.
izzy
Posts: 13
Joined: Mon May 07, 2018 12:17 pm

Re: Right front CV boot leaking

Post by izzy »

jolt wrote:Take care of your engine over heating problem before the CV boot. Find out the total cost of repairs to see if the car is even worth spending money on. You may be better off cutting your losses now then spending money that you will never get back on repairs.
Yeah, I don't really want to spend another $1000 on this car, but I do wish it could last until the end of the year, I'm really interested in EV but now most of them are pre-order, means even if I pay the MSRP(it is really hard to negotiate the price as people are line up to get it,in my case is Nissan leaf and Chevrolet bolt is pricey for me ) to get the car, I still need to wait for a few months to get it.
Post Reply