Discovered a bit of a leak

[Shaheenis]

I don't know much about the shafts and CV joints themselves on these models but I was reading another thread where people have had problem with non-genuine replacements as the CV joint design itself is different and causes noises/issues. Others could shed more light on this.

[THE SpecB]

I don't know much about the shafts and CV joints themselves on these models but I was reading another thread where people have had problem with non-genuine replacements as the CV joint design itself is different and causes noises/issues. Others could shed more light on this.

OEM or nothing in my opinion

[peadya100]

I just went through the same thing. The grease from the CV boot was spraying up onto my dump and i had a big ploom of smoke come past my car when i stopped at lights... im surprised you couldnt smell it, mine had a very distinct smell.

Anyway, ultra tune replaced mine with a genuine boot for $180 from memory.

[tom_kauf]

That's a good price! Subaru did say if it's only been driven without oil for a short distance, it may still be ok (and only require a new boot). But usually it isn't. The car was smelling a bit after a sustained high speed run on a deserted road back from camping trip (a private road of course ). But I thought that was because of the higher speeds. And add to that, the 'scenic' road before that turned out to be an hour long drive over a very rough road (badly corrugated and fair sized rocks). So my suspension and drivetrain definitely got a workout. And any of the rocks could've punctured the boot.
If the boot split at that point, I drove 150km+ after I lost the oil .

[Shaheenis]

It shouldn't be oil, it is thick CV grease, messy stuff to deal with. Split boots are usually caused by worn joints and the metal filings mixing with grease and eventually wearing through from inside out. If you are lucky this is not the case and it is just boot perished with age and external dirt. You could buy the genuine boot and take it to a CV shop to have them clean it down, inspect and re-grease etc if joint ok.

[tom_kauf]

It shouldn't be oil, it is thick CV grease, messy stuff to deal with. Split boots are usually caused by worn joints and the metal filings mixing with grease and eventually wearing through from inside out. If you are lucky this is not the case and it is just boot perished with age and external dirt. You could buy the genuine boot and take it to a CV shop to have them clean it down, inspect and re-grease etc if joint ok.

Cool, thanks for the info. Yeah, definitely grease - I shouldn't have called it oil. Based on it wearing from the inside out, it makes it even less likely that most joints are still ok. So just replacing the boot will then not be a long-term fix. But some people might be lucky enough that the boot has just perished....

[shav]

Im hoping mine is just the boot perishing and nothing more. Will find out next week.

[tom_kauf]

Mine also goes in next week (Tuesday). So I'll get them to have a look at the CV Join itself and go from there.

[shav]

I'll report back my findings as well. Mines in on Thursday 19th.

[Bezzza]

Sounds like week of the CV Boot issues haha!
Mine is being looked at Friday after I noticed a nasty smell and smoke streaming up through the engine bay the other day.
Little bit of oil like substance and green goop on the dump pipe is what I could find when having a quick look.

Will find out more when it goes in to be looked at.

[shav]

Sounds like week of the CV Boot issues haha!
Mine is being looked at Friday after I noticed a nasty smell and smoke streaming up through the engine bay the other day.
Little bit of oil like substance and green goop on the dump pipe is what I could find when having a quick look.

Will find out more when it goes in to be looked at.

haha. Thats 3 of us so far Ian. Any others?

[tom_kauf]

Ok, so the dealer called to advise me that my CV joint & shaft is still ok. I should've written down the exact prices but I roughly remember what they were. Replacing the boot, refilling with grease, and cleaning up the mess on the underside would be high $300 ($389 or around there iirc). Replacing the CV shaft would be high $400 ($480 I think they said). With such little difference, I went with replacing it. My car already has 160,000km and I intend to keep it for a long time. So saving under $100 wasn't worth another potential issue in a few years time.

[shav]

Ok, so the dealer called to advise me that my CV joint & shaft is still ok. I should've written down the exact prices but I roughly remember what they were. Replacing the boot, refilling with grease, and cleaning up the mess on the underside would be high $300 ($389 or around there iirc). Replacing the CV shaft would be high $400 ($480 I think they said). With such little difference, I went with replacing it. My car already has 160,000km and I intend to keep it for a long time. So saving under $100 wasn't worth another potential issue in a few years time.

Thanks for the update Tom. Looks like I'll be up for a big bill once I have everything done on Thursday.

[tom_kauf]

So I just picked up the car and the bill was $598.30. I must've misheard them over the phone - was an extra $100. Lol, sorry. Hopefully yours will be cheaper, but it doesn't change my decision to get it fully replaced.

My quote for the Centre Diff Labour (just the labour) I got today is $550. That's the binding/jerking when turning at low speed (especially when car is warm). Quote with part was $2000. But I sourced the original part myself at $980. So saved almost $500 there

[shav]

Ah ok. Did you go to Subaru or a private mechanic?