Cv joint leak - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

StingrayblueSS · 07-03-2019, 02:37 PM

Back in March I swapped my differential for a 1le with 3.91 gears. When I was resembling I saw a small pin hole in the cv boot on the drivers side. I didn't think much of it but next time I washed the car there was grease on the barrel of the rim and fender well. I cleaned it up and knew I'd need to fix it soon. Well it been 3 months now and no noises or anything else. My question is is it safe to keep driving as is or do I risk breaking something if it fails.

fly2hip8 · 07-03-2019, 03:04 PM

If it has leaked out fix it. No grease no good

RJT Impala · 07-03-2019, 04:35 PM

On my old VW GTI, leaking CV boots would lead to CV joint replacement very quickly! They were expensive--and that was 30 years ago.

Rock-It Man · 07-03-2019, 04:45 PM

Gotta wonder why there was a small pinhole in the boot. When boots fail, it's usually due to being torn by debris or melted by some bubba using a blowtorch to loosen a suspension fastener.

A pinhole might indicate that a pinhead used a needle to "lubricate" the joint by piercing the boot. Yes, such needles are available and advertised for that purpose. But then again, Lucas oil "additives" are also advertised and sold. There's a sucker born every minute.

Are you the original owner? If not, suspect an intentional piercing.

Either way, you need to get after this right away. And since the amount of labor to replace the boot is similar to that needed to replace the CV joint, I would do both.

StingrayblueSS · 07-03-2019, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rock-It Man

Gotta wonder why there was a small pinhole in the boot. When boots fail, it's usually due to being torn by debris or melted by some bubba using a blowtorch to loosen a suspension fastener.

A pinhole might indicate that a pinhead used a needle to "lubricate" the joint by piercing the boot. Yes, such needles are available and advertised for that purpose. But then again, Lucas oil "additives" are also advertised and sold. There's a sucker born every minute.

Are you the original owner? If not, suspect an intentional piercing.

Either way, you need to get after this right away. And since the amount of labor to replace the boot is similar to that needed to replace the CV joint, I would do both.

I think it was self inflicted when I was pulling the axle.

Rock-It Man · 07-03-2019, 06:27 PM

OK. So since the labor is your own, it may be worth replacing the boot only if only a low volume of grease was expelled.

When this happened to me, the wheel well was pretty well coated with grease, and the bubba who melted my boot while replacing a strut (FWD car) was obliged to replace both the boot and the CV joint at his expense.

07-03-2019, 02:37 PM	#1
StingrayblueSS Drives: 2013 Camaro SS Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: Indiana Posts: 901	Cv joint leak Back in March I swapped my differential for a 1le with 3.91 gears. When I was resembling I saw a small pin hole in the cv boot on the drivers side. I didn't think much of it but next time I washed the car there was grease on the barrel of the rim and fender well. I cleaned it up and knew I'd need to fix it soon. Well it been 3 months now and no noises or anything else. My question is is it safe to keep driving as is or do I risk breaking something if it fails.

07-03-2019, 03:04 PM	#2
fly2hip8 Drives: 2013 Camaro 2SS Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: Kansas Posts: 342	If it has leaked out fix it. No grease no good

07-03-2019, 04:35 PM	#3
RJT Impala Stovebolt BluFlame 6 Drives: '12 2LT/RS, IBM; '20 Traverse Prem Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Wherever! Posts: 893 View My Garage	On my old VW GTI, leaking CV boots would lead to CV joint replacement very quickly! They were expensive--and that was 30 years ago.

07-03-2019, 04:45 PM	#4
Rock-It Man 376 cubic inches of fun Drives: 2023 Camaro ZL1 A10 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: MA Posts: 4,027 View My Garage	Gotta wonder why there was a small pinhole in the boot. When boots fail, it's usually due to being torn by debris or melted by some bubba using a blowtorch to loosen a suspension fastener. A pinhole might indicate that a pinhead used a needle to "lubricate" the joint by piercing the boot. Yes, such needles are available and advertised for that purpose. But then again, Lucas oil "additives" are also advertised and sold. There's a sucker born every minute. Are you the original owner? If not, suspect an intentional piercing. Either way, you need to get after this right away. And since the amount of labor to replace the boot is similar to that needed to replace the CV joint, I would do both.

07-03-2019, 06:27 PM	#6
Rock-It Man 376 cubic inches of fun Drives: 2023 Camaro ZL1 A10 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: MA Posts: 4,027 View My Garage	OK. So since the labor is your own, it may be worth replacing the boot only if only a low volume of grease was expelled. When this happened to me, the wheel well was pretty well coated with grease, and the bubba who melted my boot while replacing a strut (FWD car) was obliged to replace both the boot and the CV joint at his expense.