Some time ago, I changed the CV boots. After a while, I noticed part of the circlip that holds the CV to the drive shaft poking out the new boot. I pulled out half a circlip!
The drive shaft had a bit of float, but I assumed that as everything was bolted together no harm would happen.
Would this fail an MOT, and if so, where on earth do I find a new circlip?
To add to my woes. I'm in the middle of replacing my lower suspension arms (see e-bay item 150325402246) and the drive shaft has slipped out of the CV inside the boot!
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The missing snap ring is not an mot failure in itself, the hole in the boot from the broken clip IS. Youll also find as you drive the shaft may come adrift from the hub and drive will be lost.
As for replacing the snap ring ask at your nearest friendly independent, thats the sort of thing that mech's may have in the box of odd nuts bolts and stuff that 'might come in handy'. Probably available from the dealer for a few pennies?
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Also, don't be too surprised to find more damage than just the broken clip when you get the joint apart properly.
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>>The missing snap ring is not an mot failure in itself, the hole in the boot from the broken clip IS. Youll also find as you drive the shaft may come adrift from the hub and drive will be lost.
I was thinking of a 'cycle repair patch' type jobby for the pinhole in the gaiter. I doubt if the shaft can come out of the CV once everything's bolted back together. If it could, the circlip certainly isn't man enough to hold it all together. I'll certainly try a few indies for another circlip What chance a Kia dealer having parts? I think I'm too embarassed to walk in one and ask ;>)
>>Also, don't be too surprised to find more damage than just the broken clip when you get the joint apart properly.
I did wonder what happened to the rest of the circlip, but there's been no untoward noises. I've got to take the gaiter off to put the joint back together, I'll have a look for it.
Thanks for the replies.
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>>I doubt if the shaft can come out of the CV once everything's bolted back together.
I wouldn't be quite so bold.
The clip is there to make sure all the plunge happens at the inner joint. If there's more plunge on the inner joint than there is engagement length in the outer CV joint, then it's possible for the 2 to seperate.
Also, the clip ensures full engagement of the splines - if the shaft is most of the way out of engagement of the splines, and you put your foot down, say, to pull out of a junction, then, you'll likely strip the splines, because they are designed to have full engagement. When the inner joint plunges, the contact areas don't change.
I would suggest that it's best, and probably cheapest to mend the shaft properly now.
For the CV gaiter, I would probably clean it up, and apply a small smear of RTV - it should maintain some flexibility, and so should stand a chance of lasting.
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Point taken, I hadn't considered the implications of inner joint movement.
What's the betting I end up buying a driveshaft for the sake of a twopenny-halfpenny circlip?
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Update.
On taking the gaiter off, I found the remaining part of the circlip (they're actually called snap rings) nestling in the groove of the drive shaft, so at least it hadn't been floating around damaging the CV.
I had no luck sourcing one locally, but found a spring clip of similar diameter amongst my 'things that may be useful one day'. I don't know what I did to it's temper in cutting and bending it to a suitable replacement, but it sort of fitted. The CV took an awful lot of force getting it back in situ - I hope I never have to remove it again!
I cleaned up the gaiter and then couldn't find the pinhole the rest of the old clip came out of.
It passed it's MOT this morning. :>)
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I may be wrong but I use nylon cable ties for this purpose and they work well and cause no damage.
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