Easy Axle Removal!!!

[flacopower]

wow. i have ALWAYS dreaded removing axles.. always.. from hondas, to dodges, to mitsus they have always been a giant pain. well i have always had access to a lift and for the first time i did not. so i had to do this with the car jacked up 12 inches. went to autozone bought some pry bars for like $17.00, and once i got the tie rod upper control arm and damper fork off at like 20 till midnight, i attacked the axle, thinking that if i were lucky we would be done by 2am or so.. well i gave it one good push and BAM! out she came. it was a glorious moment.. until transmission fluid got all over my face

 

[luv2rallye]

Info for others who look here: An easier way to pull axels on a 2g without undoing any tie rods, ball joints, or upper control arms is just unbolt the 2 lower arms at the chassis end and remove the damper fork bolt and the entire assembly will swing out far enough to pull the axels out of the tranny. These bolts are easy to get at and remove. If you're also removing it from the hub see here (and do this first): http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=235884#post50449790

 

[Rice Over Wheat]

Would there be any difference between axle removal of a automatic vs a 5 speed? Because I have to change out both my axles very soon and this is what keeps me from attempting it myself. All the guides I find are for 5 speeds.

 

[Cs4g63]

It will be the same procedure. Just diferent axles.

 

[IslandTSI]

I need to replace one of mine. But I cant get the damn axle nut off. Even with a 4 foot breaker bar and me standing on the end it wont budge. Im gonna have to cut the nut off I guess with a die grinder. Its gonna be a pita every step of the way

 

[daren_p]

I've done the axles on a few different cars, including the Eclipse & never really had much trouble. They all seem to pop out within the first min or two. I've found some work well with a quick pop of the pry bar while other work well with constant pressure applied to break them lose.

Actually thats not true, there is one time I try to block out . Before I installed my Quaife into the tranny I was told (even by Quaife) it was a good idea to test your axles first to make sure they fit properly. Great so the axles are still attached to the wheel bearings at each end, tranny out, so I hold the Quaife up & click both axles in place. Didn't really think about it too much as the factory ones came out with ease. Well let me tell you these ones did not & the fact that the LSD wasn't attached to anything just made things worse. I'm sure it was atleast an hour before I got those suckers to pop back out. So if your test fitting axles into your Quafe, do not do it with the other ends still attached to the wheel bearings .

 

[flacopower]

I need to replace one of mine. But I cant get the damn axle nut off. Even with a 4 foot breaker bar and me standing on the end it wont budge. Im gonna have to cut the nut off I guess with a die grinder. Its gonna be a pita every step of the way

have you tried spraying A LOT of pb blaster on it??? that helped me project SOOOO much!

 

[IslandTSI]

Ya I soaked it like every night for a week. This things welded on its so rusted. Sucks. I wish I had an impact gun. I might just wait till I put the car back on the road and go by the shop I usually go to and have them break the nut loose for me then tighten it up easily.

 

[99gst_racer]

I need to replace one of mine. But I cant get the damn axle nut off. Even with a 4 foot breaker bar and me standing on the end it wont budge. Im gonna have to cut the nut off I guess with a die grinder. Its gonna be a pita every step of the way

An oxy-acetylene torch and a 1/2" breaker bar always worked well for us. I've also read about people splitting the nut with an air chissel. And then there's always the option of cutting it clean off with a cutting wheel. But then you'd need a new axle and nut.

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[flacopower]

An oxy-acetylene torch and a 1/2" breaker bar always worked well for us. I've also read about people splitting the nut with an air chissel. And then there's always the option of cutting it clean off with a cutting wheel. But then you'd need a new axle and nut.

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i think he said he needed to replace his anyways.. and the autozone replacement ones come with a new nut.

 

[IslandTSI]

Ya the thing is I dont mind cutting the nut off but I dont want to have to cut the axle at all. An axle will only cost me $120 or so from autozone. But they require a deposit of $70 until you give them the stock part for them to rebuild which they wont take if I cut the end off it.

Im also worried that the axle will be stuck to the hub in the same way and I wont be able to get it out without a press


Edit: I tried a plumbers blow torch but I should try and see if I can borrow a proper one for a few days. I have the supesntion apart now and dont really want to have to take it apart again.

 

[99gst_racer]

Ya the thing is I dont mind cutting the nut off but I dont want to have to cut the axle at all. An axle will only cost me $120 or so from autozone. But they require a deposit of $70 until you give them the stock part for them to rebuild which they wont take if I cut the end off it.

Im also worried that the axle will be stuck to the hub in the same way and I wont be able to get it out without a press


Edit: I tried a plumbers blow torch but I should try and see if I can borrow a proper one for a few days. I have the supesntion apart now and dont really want to have to take it apart again.

Yeah, propane won't work. It doesn't get near as hot as acetylene.
Use the "hack it off option" as a last resort. Some good heat should do the trick.

 

[Raph]

Well,i had a simular problem.. ive always used a lift at work to do clutch jobs..now im doing mine at home.. and as usual..the silliest things happen..first off,the impact wrench decides to DIE .. so i used breaker bars and a aluminum mallet to get the spindles out of the hubs..

i then yanked the drivers side axle out (ive done 4g63 galant,eclipse,hyundai etc clutch jobs before at work) and just as i suspected,the passenger side decides not to pop out..

i hurt my back getting the spindle nuts off,and i was pretty tired when attempting the passenger axle,i tried the prybar ,i tried working it from both ends..its rediculous.. no clutch job can take this long. AARGH .. two hours and the tranny isnt even out of the car..wtf is wrong here?

Having no lift at home SUX BALLZ -- anyone have a good suggestion or some motivational words..im going to attack it again tomorrow..hey,is there enough room to pull the tranny with the passenger axle in the tranny? looks as if it may work (and if it does,i bet the axle will pop out as soon as the tranny is out from under the car )

 

[Simpleman1]

I wish that my driver side CV shaft (TJ case) comes off fairly easy from the inner shaft. I tried 3 pound lead filled rubber mallet and still did not work. Tomorrow I will try to remove the inner shaft along with the bearing carrier and TJ case. I'm hoping that I can seperate them with the help of Kroil it and rubber mallet.

 

[Calan]

Mine weren't rusted REALLY bad, but they were on there. I used a propane torch for a couple minutes and an impact wrench. It took a lot of hammering (with no noticable movement) for a while with the IW, but they eventually spun off.

 

[IslandTSI]

The nut on mine that I was trying to break loose was so rusted that it would not even budge with a 3 foot breaker bar and me standing and jumping on it. And I weigh 210lbs

I might just have to hack it off.

 

[99gst_racer]

The nut on mine that I was trying to break loose was so rusted that it would not even budge with a 3 foot breaker bar and me standing and jumping on it. And I weigh 210lbs

I might just have to hack it off.

Have you tried heat?

Years back, I had a nut on a 1G that wouldn't come off. I broke two 1/2" breaker bars on it. Then we hit it with a torch, and it spun off with minimal effort.

 

[wret]

Info for others who look here: An easier way to pull axels on a 2g without undoing any tie rods, ball joints, or upper control arms is just unbolt the 2 lower arms at the chassis end and remove the damper fork bolt and the entire assembly will swing out far enough to pull the axels out of the tranny.

Actually, you need only remove the two bolts in the lower lat control arm and the shock fork. With the hub puller it's a piece of cake.

I changed one Sunday in couple hours. I could have done it in under an hour but my wife was helping.