Frenchieboy Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 I was just doing a final check on my Renault Clio yesterday evening in preperation for its annual MOT. I was going over all of the brake pipe unions to make sure that they weren't corroding with a small wire brush and then a light smear of grease when I noticed (to my horror) that the O/S Drive Shaft (rubber) boot had started to perish and split - A definite MOT failure. This would normally have meant at least 2 hours work to strip the front end and replace it. I started by phoning my local friendly accessory shop to see if they had one in stock. He said that they didn't have the specific one in for my car but they did have a "replacement" that would do the job perfectly. What he had was a "BAILCAST" Universal Stickyboot Split Drive Shaft Boot Kit which cost just over a Tenner! This kit consists of A rubber boot which is split lenghtways with a tongue and groove joint, a tube of glue, a knife for trimming the boot to the size for your car, a pair of latex gloves, a pack of CV joint grease and two adjustable circular clips to hold it in place when fitted, along with some fairly well written instructions. All you do is jack the car up and put an axle stand under it for safety reasons. You then remove the road wheel and cut the old boot off.You then trim the new boot to the correct size for your car using the old boot as a template. Once you have cut the boot to the correct size make sure that you clean the drive shaft up a little so that no dust or dirt can fall on the boot while you are fitting it and applying the glue. Fit the boot loosely over the drive shaft and then put the latex gloves on. You then carefully apply a little of the glue to about 2cm of the narrow end and hold the joint together for a few seconds to allow the glue (Basically a type of super glue) to set. You then apply a little more glue to the next few cm and repeat the operation until the complete boot is glued and stuck together and looks just like a "standard" boot would do when fitted over the drive shaft. Next you pack the new grease pack into your CV joint. All you do then is to slide the new boot into position and fit the two retaining clips which are supplied. You can then (If you want to) turn the drive shaft so that the joint that you have just glued it on the top of the shaft and run an extra bead of the glue down the join to give it a little extra strength and then refit the front raod wheel. It really is that quick and simple, so much so that if i had needed to strip the front drive shaft out (As I would have needed to do with a "standard" replacement boot) the job would have taken me a good hour and a half to two hours minimum. With this kit the entire job was done from start to finish in just 25 minutes and the car is now ready for it's MOT! Well worth remembering this replacement boot kit guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshLamb Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 They aren't a new invention Frencie!! Glad your car is sorted. I've used glue on cv boots for years on all sorts of vehicles they're much easier! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elgreco Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 Only used them once years ago. I don't know of it was my incompetence or poor quality product but it only lasted a few days, maybe they have got better over time Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Geordie Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 I stripped the shaft out of my old astra, cut off the old boot and cleaned all the grease off the joint. Followed the instructions, glued it up and left it overnight BEFORE packing with grease and fitted the shaft back on. Went for the MOT! Fail... There was grease coming out of the joint as the glue didn't bond propperly. I then took the shaft back off, knocked the CV joint off and put a propper boot on. Refitting the CV only required a hose clip and a soft face mallet. Just as easy and.took LESS time than the glue on boot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren m Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 how big are these CV boots , would they be big enough for a 4x4 thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren m Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 They aren't a new invention Frencie!! Glad your car is sorted. I've used glue on cv boots for years on all sorts of vehicles they're much easier! hi michelle - i,ve got an isuzu trooper that needs CV boots , do you think one of these sticky boots would fit do they come in different sizes. it went for an mot yesterday day and failed on 2 CV boots and a ball joint , the mot tester said to just put wrap around boots over the top and he would pass it ok. its just getting hold of them and if there are different sizes thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshLamb Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 They're universal. Cut it down to the size you need Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren m Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 They're universal. Cut it down to the size you need ok great so they are pretty big to start with , that just might save me getting stressed out trying to do it myself or even £100 in labour at the garage thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scutt Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 pack these with the proper grease and make sure they are sealed if not you will knack the cv and cost you a lot more in the long run .ps I think renault you have to change the whole shaft if cv packs in .you can drop the lower ball joint off and remove drive shaft hub nut to get at the shaft cv end if i remember right you can get a cone tool to force a complete boot over and on to c/v. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchieboy Posted May 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 (edited) pack these with the proper grease and make sure they are sealed if not you will knack the cv and cost you a lot more in the long run .ps I think renault you have to change the whole shaft if cv packs in .you can drop the lower ball joint off and remove drive shaft hub nut to get at the shaft cv end if i remember right you can get a cone tool to force a complete boot over and on to c/v. I believe that you are right here. The Clio has it's normal CV joint at the wheel end and another UJ at the gearbox end. I'm not sure if the UJ at the gear box end can be removed which is why I went for this one. I only replaced this same O/S complete drive shaft in February of last year so I would have expected the robber boot to have lasted a bit longer than it did! Edit: To those that have said that this is not a new idea - You could well be right, what I should have said was that it was a new idea to me! As for the few posts that said that the ones they fitted started to leak grease this has caused a bit of a bit of a concern for me - I will check for any leaks on it this morning to make sure but mine had a "tongue and grove" joint on it which I would imagine/hope would minimise the possibility of this happening. 2nd Edit: I've just been down to the car park and had a really close and careful inspection of the front rubber boot that I fitted. I have done 40 odd miles with the car since fitting it and as yet there are no signs whatsoever of any leaks or anything, so touch wood all is well, but I am grateful for the warnings about the possibilities of leaks guys, Thanks! Edited May 9, 2013 by Frenchieboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 lots depends how clean you keep it all Frenchie, get any oil or grease on the surfaces to be glued and they don't seal properly. done well though these can last ages Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren m Posted May 14, 2013 Report Share Posted May 14, 2013 whats the biggest ones of these you have seen , i bought a pair for my trooper but alas they are too small anyone know a type that will fit 4x4 front drive shaft cv thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackinbox99 Posted May 15, 2013 Report Share Posted May 15, 2013 pack these with the proper grease and make sure they are sealed if not you will knack the cv and cost you a lot more in the long run .ps I think renault you have to change the whole shaft if cv packs in .you can drop the lower ball joint off and remove drive shaft hub nut to get at the shaft cv end if i remember right you can get a cone tool to force a complete boot over and on to c/v. Im not sure on the newer clios, but on the older ones, and most french cars like that you can just replace the CV joint. I did it on my missus`s Peugeot 206 the other year. You dont even have to pop the drive shaft out. Just undo the strut bolts holding the strut to the hub (or pop the bottom ball joint off), undo the big hub bolt, then you can pop the splined end of the drive shaft out of the hub. Undo the CV gaitor, Push the CV joint bit down, then a couple of smacks on the back of the CV joint with a hammer and the CV joint will just fall off the drive shaft. Replacement was £30, compared to £100 for a whole drive shaft incl CV joint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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