getting axle out of the hub

[beppomarx]

ok i tried to get my axle out before just because i had my tranny out but it wouldnt budge.

webtech says tap it with a plastic hammer but for the 2001 tib it states a special tool should be sue which is a puller that screws onto the lug studs. this is odd because its almost the same setup.

what i did was try to push it out. then hit it with a rubber reinforced mallet to no avail. then we replaced the main nut about 90% of the way on and taped a shop rag 2 or 3 fold to i believe a 4lb hammer and attempted to hit the nut/driveshaft. the nut was there so i dont ruin the threads obviously. THE THING WOULD NOT BUDGE!!!

anyone have any tips besides that special puller??? i wonder how much that lil bitch costs :dead:

[4doorGL]

We just hit it from behind with a sledgehammer.

We weren't keeping the rotor though, so we had no remorse beating on it.

[cclngthr]

Originally posted by 4doorGL
[body]
We just hit it from behind with a sledgehammer.

We weren't keeping the rotor though, so we had no remorse beating on it.
[/body]

I would think a puller would be better; if it is needed, because the ramming of a hammer could damage something inside the tranny. Personally, I would think the axle should just slide out easy. If it needs to be hammered out, I would check things to see why it needs a puller to come out. Those I have yanked, don't need hammering, they slide out real easy.

I'll check with my tranny guy tomorrow on this issue.

[4doorGL]

Sorry, we hit the rotor, not the axle.

It popped off fairly easily too. Do you have the CV Joint hooked up still? It will be easier to get the axle out with the CV Joint off.

[Mach5]

yes, take cv joint off, make life simpler

[Machine]

All i did was undo the two bottom clevis bolts in the strut and undo tie rod end ball joint. Move the hub assembly out a little and downwards to provide some space for the axle to move in the joints without damaging them and give a little tap on the axle with a rubber mallet. Then turn the hub assembly to remove the axle, use a pry bar carefully to remove axle from transaxle case as its held in by a small clip. Shouldnt need any force when doing any of this. Dont know how your going to take the 'cv' joints apart with the axle still installed. Manual instead of removing two clevis bolts says to remove lower ball joint, spose its just a preference thing as both will allow you to move the hub assembly out of the way to get axle out, i prefer my way as those two bolts are very easy to remove.

Nearly forgot, again, if you dont want a mess drain the transaxle fluid and after place a clean rag inside to prevent any dirt entering, better still also wipe the tranaxle case clean first.

[Edited by Machine on Jun 2, 2003 10:22 PM]

[cclngthr]

Originally posted by 4doorGL
[body]
Sorry, we hit the rotor, not the axle.

It popped off fairly easily too. Do you have the CV Joint hooked up still? It will be easier to get the axle out with the CV Joint off.
[/body]

I did not remove my axle, but have on other accents, and they slid out by hand. The X3 I recently had in the shop (1999 X3) I had to remove the engine assmbly to fix the front end. That one had damage on the front, which I suspected the axles were going to be a pita to remove, but they slid out very easy. I usually replace the entire axle/cv joint as one unit, not attempting to repair it. For me, it is a lot easier and cheaper to get a new cv/axle assembly than trying to get the separate pieces.

[magus]

take a crowbar and pry it out by the cv joint houseing or whatever that thing is called.

[Machine]

Problem seems to be that he cant get the axle out of the hub, not the transaxle case. If all you are doing is banging it you are just causing damage as there is no where for it to move, your just banging the driveshaft into the case. Whats the whole point of this exercise anyway.