apparently, my driverside front axle boot has been torn for almost a year now, and it's been making a grinding sound for a little while. if its starting to get really bad, will it start clicking when i make a turn and give it gas? or could that be something different... also, how hard is it to replace? i just got a job recently, and have to catch up on some bills, so money is definitely tight right now, so i can't afford to bring it to the shop, not that i would want to regardless.

 

ya its very easy. on a scale of 1-10 to being hardest, its a 2 but only if you get the split boot type. it could be a 4-5 if you wan to replace teh boot aass a whole

 

That grinding sound means you are way past getting away with just putting on a new boot.
You need to buy a new axle (half-shaft) now. You'll need a8mm triple-square to get the axle out.
Check out www.audidiy.com for the DIY step-by-step directions. It's not too hard.

 

sorry i posted that at 3:40 in the morning and was half drunk but Bogie is correct, youll have to replace the outer CV joint and i actually just did mine last week with no problems. i should have used the formal band tightening too though but oh well.

just replace the outer joint, not the whole thing.

if you live in the bay area, i may be able to help you out

 

its quick and easy, but as stated before you definitely need to replace that outer joint.

 

I have same problem now. Clicking means replace the axle.

 

question, ok i just had 1500 dollars worth of repairs done in feb. of this year. new tie rods, axles, hoses, joints, boots, etc. the whole 9 yards. But I hear this clicking all the time too AFTER i just had this done in feb. I also, have a bad grinding/rubbing when i turn left. But its only when i turn left. And my steering is pretty stiff now too. Any suggestions?

 

I felt grinding too when turning all the way to the left. I think its related to bad axle

 

stupid question... what happens if i don't change the axle for a while... will it snap off eventually? or just get loud. because i'm basically willing to deal with it if its just going to get noisy, i just don't want to ruin anything that isn't already broken.

 

but, I JUST had BOTH axle's replaced in FEB. its may.. 3 months for an axle to go bad??? No, thats obsurd. And yes, eventually the axle's will snap. Thats what happened to mine before I replaced everything up there.