Most of the aftermarket boots (even name brands) are not as good as the original. Sitting on the shelf for years also makes them garbage. Proper packing and there should be no grease inside. They should not need to be serviced in 2 years/20K miles. Dennis
-----Original Message----- From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of Jonathan Poole Sent: Wednesday, January 27, 2010 6:38 PM To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM Subject: Lobro CV joint boots review Howdy List, I installed new cv joints and boots on my 83 westy 2 years and 22000 miles ago and haven't serviced them since installation so it seemed time to remove/inspect and change the grease. I was surprised and disappointed to find that the cv joint boots were all pretty deteriorated and cracking. One had torn all the way around on one of it's cracks. Perhaps I got a few boots from a bad batch or that had been sitting on a shelf for years before I installed them or something like that but in any case I had hoped they would last more than two years. I cleaned them up to see what brand they are and found that they are the Lobro units and all were cracking heavily in the seams. Luckily when I installed the new Lobro boots I kept the 4 original boots that were still in good shape though I have no idea how old they are. They don't show any cracking but do show some rust on the collars. These are labelled with vw/audi part numbers and symbols and also have a nice lip to hold the grease in on the joint molded into the inside of the boot. I'm not sure if these are readily available any longer but after this experience I will look for them and will be willing to pay extra. I know that this may be an isolated occurance in the grand scheme of things but thought I'd contribute my findings for the general mass of Vanagon knowledge that the list contributes to. Jonathan Poole 83 AC Westy |
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