VWDiesel.net The IDI, TDI, and mTDI source.
General Information => General => Topic started by: rabbitman on December 29, 2010, 11:15:39 pm
-
My ball joints last about 1 year, they've been meyle in the past then I tried Febi.
Tie rod ends are about the same except the last one I changed out I BOUGHT october 22 this year and put it on a week or two later, now the boot is split (moog) and barely hanging on so it's doom is sealed >:(.
Outer CV boots tear every winter without fail, I've tried meistersatz and the latest GNK, they don't seem much different.
Today I found an inner one (empi) torn but it's a few months shy of 4 years old.
I'm thinking of trying Beck Arnley for the inner boot.
What brands have you guys liked?
-
Dang... how low are you?
I've never replaced any steering parts I've installed myself. Granted, I've never had one car for more than 30,000km, but I've never seen wear on any of them
Usually EMPI axles and febi for most other mechanical parts
-
WOW.. Rough roads? A lot of dirt and debris?
I put cheapo Treadsaver parts on Frankenbunny and got about 150K miles before I sold it.. Current Bunny has all Meyle parts and is going strong after 80K miles.. THe Carquest issue axles have about 30K on em.. I have a half mile dirt driveway, romp it around the farm, through the woods, and junkyard.. No failures yet...
-
Dang... how low are you?
I've never replaced any steering parts I've installed myself. Granted, I've never had one car for more than 30,000km, but I've never seen wear on any of them
Usually EMPI axles and febi for most other mechanical parts
Stock height, maybe even a bit higher with the heavy duty springs.
I have wondered if the cold temperature (a lot of -30F and some -50F) has something to do with it but everyone drives in the cold and nobody else has these problems. I know of cars that haven't ripped any boots or wore joints out in a couple years
I drive 12,000-14,000 miles a year which is more than lots of people around here.
-
WOW.. Rough roads? A lot of dirt and debris?
I put cheapo Treadsaver parts on Frankenbunny and got about 150K miles before I sold it.. Current Bunny has all Meyle parts and is going strong after 80K miles.. THe Carquest issue axles have about 30K on em.. I have a half mile dirt driveway, romp it around the farm, through the woods, and junkyard.. No failures yet...
That sounds about like how I drive, off roading, trails, blasting through snow.........I'm not real easy on it :D.
We have quite a few gravel roads but I only drive on 'em maybe a quarter of the time. This is getting rather expensive and time consuming........sometime this winter I'll have to do the vac pump too.....
-
That's weird that everything seems to be going constantly, not just isolated parts
Is it just one car with this problem?
Has that car ever been in an accident?
When was the last alignment?
Just thinking that something might be skewed in the front end so that the tie rods and ball joints are getting some weird loads on them. The CV's I'm less surprised about given that you live in a fairly harsh environment.
I think you should just slam your car to the ground so you at least have an excuse for wearing everything out so quickly! :)
-
My guess would be the extreme cold periods along with lots of salt...do they use a lot of salt up there?
Sorry, I've never had the priviledge of coming to Alaska.
I've noticed that many of the tie rods just don't have as good of rubber compounds as they used to. Seems like they split at like 1.5 years or so. I've gotten pissed at the cracking and popped a few of them loose and wrapped with tape to extend their lives a bit.
Is there a chance that you are over-tightening your CV clamps when installing?
-
I spray a lube on the rubber stuff before and after winter. Usually a silicone based lube. I think it just keep the atmosphere off of them so that they don't dry rot as fast. Since I have been doing that I haven't replaced any rubber suspension parts that I put on.
-
I think too that no matter who makes it, nothing is made decently anymore.. Proof is in the pudding here, all the old 20+ year old vehicles with WELL over 100K I've had all had original suspension parts that were fine.. Yet now I see 4 year old cars with 50K on them in the shop for all sorts of ball joints, tie rods, etc... Some have been in for the SECOND time around by 100K...
-
on all the mk1s i have had i have not replaced any front end parts except for strut bearings and wheel bearings
-
All my MK1's started with a failed ball joint after 250K + miles.. I've just always opted to replace everything while I'm at it.. Reality is though I think I could have just replaced the ball joints and been fine.. Knock wood, I've never had a front wheel bearing fail, yet....
-
Usually they only salt a little bit in the fall and after that it gets too cold for salt to have any affect. This year we did get lots of freezing rain (not normal) so they salted quite a bit.
X2 on new parts being poor quality.
-
Iam going with MK1 16 V spindles next, Going to remove the bearings, powdercoat and install fresh stuff
these will allow me to run 100mm outer cv joints
I use meyle everywhere else since I get it for cost from a dealer freind on trades of part's
I hope to make GAP a dealer for my scirocco stuff this year....
GB
-
Start of Rant............................................................
All those penny pinching managers and accountants that destroyed all of Britains industry, didn't all commit suicide after a job well done. ::). Notice to industry, there are still people who buy up to a specification, not down to a price. Crap Bosch nozzles from india spring to mind, but steering parts? Two weeks is my record for a failed pair of ball joints. If you let accountants do engineering, then the last 60 years of the UK will tell you to herd them all into a deep dark pit and let them be of use to one another. Apparently the UK has at least ten times the accountants that Germany has. Maybe that speaks volumes
............................................................End of Rant. :P
-
Start of Rant............................................................
All those penny pinching managers and accountants that destroyed all of Britains industry, didn't all commit suicide after a job well done. ::). Notice to industry, there are still people who buy up to a specification, not down to a price. Crap Bosch nozzles from india spring to mind, but steering parts? Two weeks is my record for a failed pair of ball joints. If you let accountants do engineering, then the last 60 years of the UK will tell you to herd them all into a deep dark pit and let them be of use to one another. Apparently the UK has at least ten times the accountants that Germany has. Maybe that speaks volumes
............................................................End of Rant. :P
Totally agree.. It's far too much the same thing on this side of the pond...
-
I think too that no matter who makes it, nothing is made decently anymore.. Proof is in the pudding here, all the old 20+ year old vehicles with WELL over 100K I've had all had original suspension parts that were fine.. Yet now I see 4 year old cars with 50K on them in the shop for all sorts of ball joints, tie rods, etc... Some have been in for the SECOND time around by 100K...
I'm going to go with deteriorating infrastructure as part of a slide to 3rd world status.
-
The first time I changed the steering parts I think I had one wore out part (ball joint or tie rod end, can't remember) and I was gonna get an alignment afterwards so I changed everything. The whole tie rods, ball joints and new rack boots.
I had to drill the rivets out of at least one ball joint (maybe both, I remember drilling rivets but I can't remember how many) and one of the tie rods was nonadjustable meaning it was original. That was in march '07, the next winter both rack boots ripped which is weird 'cause they haven't gone since.
Both ball joints have been replaced since then a couple times and both tie rod ends. Surprisingly, the inner tie rods have been fine all along.
One rear tranny mount failed within a year of install, I changed it and have been good for a couple years. It's sad how low quality parts have gotten, like a couple years ago I had an original-to-me front brake hose pop. So I change it out and within a year the new one had cracks in it just like the 25 year old one did.
I've changed the rear wheel bearings twice in almost 70,000 miles. Part of that is probably due to the "chocolate" axle stubs though.........
-
i agree newer parts do seem to be crappy, i bought an overflow tank for my rabbit brand new from my usual parts source(almost all oem stuff he always has best prices), a year later it was cracked and pissing coolant out the side, my dad has replaced axle boots on his 85 jetta multiple times
-
i agree newer parts do seem to be crappy, i bought an overflow tank for my rabbit brand new from my usual parts source(almost all oem stuff he always has best prices), a year later it was cracked and pissing coolant out the side, my dad has replaced axle boots on his 85 jetta multiple times
Yup, I bought a new coolant tank few years back for my gasser rabbit but I put the new tank on my daily and it's old tank on the other rabbit thinking I might as well use the new part. A month or two ago it got a crack around the edge so the old tank is back in.........pitiful :'(
-
While we are ranting: In large part this is due to the stupid focus almost all industry has on getting the lowest cost part in the door. Low initial purchase price does not save anyone any money if it results in higher production, rework, quality and warranty costs. I don't get the whole "maximizing shareholder return" philosophy. So what if you can make an extra 2% by building garbage that will barely get out the door? What is wrong with building something good but affordable? Where is this generation's Henry Ford? I will also admit that the consumer must take some of the blame. If the only thing we look at is the cheapest price - that's exactly what we will get. I learned years ago when I bought my first socket/wrench set that the best price at the local C.T. store didn't save me any money - it actually cost me more when I had to buy a good set after all.
As far as suspension parts, I agree that older OEM parts are far superior to both much of current OEM and most aftermarket parts. My personal record on ball joint failure was less than one month. I just replaced an original balljoint on my Golf after 522K Km. I don't expect the replacement to last nearly that long.
-
Some of the failures are definitely weather and road condition related. I came to nc from michigan and i have seen first hand my ball joints, tie rod ends inner and outer all rubber boots in and out on driveshafts goo bad very premature.Changing a few pieces every fall. Even on old oem stuff, west german meistersatz etc before i even knew who meyle was. The rubber in use now is supposedly better than it was back when! I have purchased cars here in nc with 300,000 on them 14 years old with original suspension, driveshafts, exhausts everything. So i now figure that they design for a moderate climate and some folks like the northerners just seem to get the shaft!
-
I just remembered that I also got a new master cylinder a couple years back and about a year later the rubber grommets for where the reservior snaps in cracked up and started leaking so I pulled 'em off my '80 parts rabbit and they've been fine for 3-4 years since.
-
What about having Gee Bee make some rack boots :D
-
What about having Gee Bee make some rack boots :D
That is a good idea :o, hopefully flexible down to at least -50F.........
Also outer CV boots, good down to at least -50F.
and priced similar to regular stuff
Just dreamin' here..........