Anybody try an Autozone CV axle? - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

ThomasLeT · 07-02-2018, 06:07 PM

Well, it finally happened. Snapped the passenger CV Axle on a 1-2 shift. Need to get my car fixed quickly so I ordered an Autozone Duralast Lifetime Warranty CV for $112 bucks.

Has anybody used one of these yet? I can’t imagine it’s high quality. I figured I’d just use it for now, to get the car moving and upgrade in the future.

I’m kind of worried about how quickly this ones going to break, I’d guess that it’s going to be lower quality than the stock shaft.

Anybody have experience?

Moto-Mojo · 07-02-2018, 07:56 PM

I have been 'in the business' for 43 years. L O N G story on CV axles. Generally speaking, the big name, national chains don't sell quality stuff. You may luck out. Because the retail price was driven to the bone by these guys, it killed it for the drivetrain people who knew how to do it right. Blah, blah. If you can find someone who still does it in house, that's a better choice.

The CV axle pretty much became the starter-alternator rebuild business. Clean, replace as few parts as possible and do an aerosol overhaul. I've been out of that segment for a while (cuz my guys just gave up trying to compete with a crappy part) but with the advent of the muscle car, you might be able to actually find someone now. Hope you do. Then share the info!

You may try "Fast Shafts" in Des Moines, IA. He's a gear head. Or Inland Empire Driveline in CA. Or...one of the sponsors here, The Driveshaft Shop. Good luck.

ThomasLeT · 07-03-2018, 04:29 PM

Well.... I went against my better judgment and ordered the $112 autozone cv shaft.

It’s tiny! It’s not as noticeable in the picture but the tube diameter is way smaller than the stock shaft. I think I’ll be either returning this one, or keeping it as a spare.

I just bought another factor shaft, just bummed I have to wait another week for the new shaft to get here!

Factory on top, and Autozone shaft on bottom.

Moto-Mojo · 07-03-2018, 05:11 PM

Hmm, hard to say what the tube wall thickness is. Diameter also adds strength. More so on high RPM standard drivelines but I think I’d go OE on this part. As I said, lots of inferior crap out there.

LETHAL2SS · 07-03-2018, 05:17 PM

If I remember correctly, and it may be my GTO I'm thinking of, isn't the Right shaft a larger diameter than the left shaft from the factory on our cars? Haven't been under there in a while...

Moto-Mojo · 07-03-2018, 05:23 PM

As soon as I finish this beer I’m going to go look. I’m thinking that in a ‘posi’ diff they should be the same.

LETHAL2SS · 07-03-2018, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moto-Mojo

As soon as I finish this beer I’m going to go look. I’m thinking that in a ‘posi’ diff they should be the same.

Man, I'm still kickin back at work waiting on the clock. have another for me, I've got 2 more hours.

Matt8892(2) · 07-03-2018, 05:34 PM

They are in fact two different sizes on our cars. Couldn’t tell ya which side getsbthe bigger one though. Maybe they sent op the wrong side and that’s that it’s thinner? That new part (the thinner one) looks about the size of the thinner axel on our cars

DT10 · 07-03-2018, 06:28 PM

Ah man... good luck. I stay away from those parts because I hate doing things twice. I certainly understand having to get back on the road though.

silversleeper · 07-03-2018, 06:43 PM

I'm not a big fan of those cv setups. I've only used them on other cars I had. Worst case they had a split boot and not the superior OEM once piece boot cover of thin plasticy rubber that quickly split and leaked.
The shafts are different sized because the bright engineers realized the one side had more torque trying to twist it apart than the other side. I'll spare you the physics speech this time but look at pic...

DT10 · 07-03-2018, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by silversleeper

I'm not a big fan of those cv setups. I've only used them on other cars I had. Worst case they had a split boot and not the superior OEM once piece boot cover of thin plasticy rubber that quickly split and leaked.
The shafts are different sized because the bright engineers realized the one side had more torque trying to twist it apart than the other side. I'll spare you the physics speech this time but look at pic...

That’s just what mine does!

Moto-Mojo · 07-04-2018, 08:59 AM

I almost forgot to look. Hard to see both at once on your back in the garage but it does appear the right (passenger) side has a larger diameter tube.

TXhogghunter · 07-04-2018, 09:00 AM

you would think they would just to the big shaft on each side, what do they save $3? My 1970 scat pack v code super bee came with 7 springs on one side and 6 on the other from the factory, which I understand but 1 small shaft and 1 large?

HDRDTD · 07-04-2018, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LETHAL2SS

If I remember correctly, and it may be my GTO I'm thinking of, isn't the Right shaft a larger diameter than the left shaft from the factory on our cars? Haven't been under there in a while...

Not sure about the SS, but the ZL1's do indeed have different size axles.

Larger diameter on one side but hollow, and smaller on the opposite side but solid. They engineered them this way to help minimize wheel hop.

07-02-2018, 06:07 PM	#1
ThomasLeT Drives: 2010 Camaro SS Join Date: Mar 2018 Location: Michigan Posts: 19	Anybody try an Autozone CV axle? Well, it finally happened. Snapped the passenger CV Axle on a 1-2 shift. Need to get my car fixed quickly so I ordered an Autozone Duralast Lifetime Warranty CV for $112 bucks. Has anybody used one of these yet? I can’t imagine it’s high quality. I figured I’d just use it for now, to get the car moving and upgrade in the future. I’m kind of worried about how quickly this ones going to break, I’d guess that it’s going to be lower quality than the stock shaft. Anybody have experience?

07-02-2018, 07:56 PM	#2
Moto-Mojo Fast Cars and Old Guitars Drives: 2015 2SS RS (L99, baby!) Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: N. CA Posts: 3,973	I have been 'in the business' for 43 years. L O N G story on CV axles. Generally speaking, the big name, national chains don't sell quality stuff. You may luck out. Because the retail price was driven to the bone by these guys, it killed it for the drivetrain people who knew how to do it right. Blah, blah. If you can find someone who still does it in house, that's a better choice. The CV axle pretty much became the starter-alternator rebuild business. Clean, replace as few parts as possible and do an aerosol overhaul. I've been out of that segment for a while (cuz my guys just gave up trying to compete with a crappy part) but with the advent of the muscle car, you might be able to actually find someone now. Hope you do. Then share the info! You may try "Fast Shafts" in Des Moines, IA. He's a gear head. Or Inland Empire Driveline in CA. Or...one of the sponsors here, The Driveshaft Shop. Good luck. __________________ “I don’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member.” - Groucho Marx

07-03-2018, 05:11 PM	#4
Moto-Mojo Fast Cars and Old Guitars Drives: 2015 2SS RS (L99, baby!) Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: N. CA Posts: 3,973	Hmm, hard to say what the tube wall thickness is. Diameter also adds strength. More so on high RPM standard drivelines but I think I’d go OE on this part. As I said, lots of inferior crap out there. __________________ “I don’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member.” - Groucho Marx

07-03-2018, 05:17 PM	#5
LETHAL2SS Drives: 2011 Camaro 2SS Join Date: May 2016 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 413	If I remember correctly, and it may be my GTO I'm thinking of, isn't the Right shaft a larger diameter than the left shaft from the factory on our cars? Haven't been under there in a while... __________________ 2010 Camaro 2SS-Mods: Nightfury cam, CNC ported LS3 heads, CNC ported TB, Ported Intake, RX Catch Can, MGW Short Throw Shifter, Mantic 9000 Clutch, TSP 1 7/8 headers, catless NPP, BMR trailing arms, MMR Z/28 Reps 20" gloss black. SOLD 2011 Red Jewel Tintcoat 2SS-Mods: Edlebrock E Force S/C w/ 3" pulley swap,Texas Speed roller Boost Cam 227/235, 641"/649", 114 LSA, PRC Ported Heads, Ported TB,ARH 1 7/8 headers, McLeod RST twin disk 1000 hp clutch, ZL1 Fuel Pump, 620whp

07-03-2018, 05:23 PM	#6
Moto-Mojo Fast Cars and Old Guitars Drives: 2015 2SS RS (L99, baby!) Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: N. CA Posts: 3,973	As soon as I finish this beer I’m going to go look. I’m thinking that in a ‘posi’ diff they should be the same. __________________ “I don’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member.” - Groucho Marx

07-03-2018, 04:29 PM	#3
ThomasLeT Drives: 2010 Camaro SS Join Date: Mar 2018 Location: Michigan Posts: 19	Well.... I went against my better judgment and ordered the $112 autozone cv shaft. It’s tiny! It’s not as noticeable in the picture but the tube diameter is way smaller than the stock shaft. I think I’ll be either returning this one, or keeping it as a spare. I just bought another factor shaft, just bummed I have to wait another week for the new shaft to get here! Factory on top, and Autozone shaft on bottom.

07-03-2018, 05:34 PM	#8
Matt8892(2) Drives: Black camaro 2ss 45th Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Central NJ Posts: 359	They are in fact two different sizes on our cars. Couldn’t tell ya which side getsbthe bigger one though. Maybe they sent op the wrong side and that’s that it’s thinner? That new part (the thinner one) looks about the size of the thinner axel on our cars

07-03-2018, 06:28 PM	#9
DT10 Drives: 2015 2SS/RS Join Date: Feb 2018 Location: Poughkeepsie Posts: 109	Ah man... good luck. I stay away from those parts because I hate doing things twice. I certainly understand having to get back on the road though.

07-03-2018, 06:43 PM	#10
silversleeper Big Crow Drives: '13 ZL1 Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: California Posts: 1,486	I'm not a big fan of those cv setups. I've only used them on other cars I had. Worst case they had a split boot and not the superior OEM once piece boot cover of thin plasticy rubber that quickly split and leaked. The shafts are different sized because the bright engineers realized the one side had more torque trying to twist it apart than the other side. I'll spare you the physics speech this time but look at pic...

07-04-2018, 08:59 AM	#12
Moto-Mojo Fast Cars and Old Guitars Drives: 2015 2SS RS (L99, baby!) Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: N. CA Posts: 3,973	I almost forgot to look. Hard to see both at once on your back in the garage but it does appear the right (passenger) side has a larger diameter tube. __________________ “I don’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member.” - Groucho Marx

07-04-2018, 09:00 AM	#13
TXhogghunter Drives: GTO Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Around the world Posts: 43	you would think they would just to the big shaft on each side, what do they save $3? My 1970 scat pack v code super bee came with 7 springs on one side and 6 on the other from the factory, which I understand but 1 small shaft and 1 large?