Hows this for a loose CV axle? (video)

[ginandtonic]

Does this look like rounded-off splines? This is the passenger side of my 2014 1500. I'm really not wanting to drop 525$ CAD on the inner shaft if I don't have to! Pulling off half the front diff would also probably be at the top end of my mechanical ability. What's everyone's thoughts on this?

https://youtu.be/_QBzge47HPc

 

[Nicholas Cove]

Yup. You can replace the axle and it'll help a bit but ya you need to take diff apart unfortunately.

 

[ginandtonic]

Too bad! I'll try to do a little progress/how-to video when I do it because it seems like a quite common issue and outside of this forum I don't think anyone knows you can in fact get the part.. just not from Mopar.

This is the video(and manufacturer) I'll be using for guidance, for anyone else in this same position.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpTrPXNbE3A&t=301s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpTrPXNbE3A&t=301s

 

[jws123]

Mine have almost the same amount of play maybe not as bad no issues and they dont slip so i left it alone.

 

[ginandtonic]

Mine have almost the same amount of play maybe not as bad no issues and they dont slip so i left it alone.

Any noises in 4wd? I *think* I can hear mine slipping, but I haven't had enough opportunities to run 4wd lock lately..

 

[Jeepwalker]

Definitely make the repair you're talking about. Is the front of your pickup lifted?

Its interesting to note, a 31.6" diameter tire makes 638 revolutions per mile (or 638 RPM @ 60mph) ..according to an online calculator I plugged in. So there's not a lot of speed on the axle shaft. Most owners probably don't know theirs has some free-play or not, until by happenstance (or a routine inspection) someone detects is (even though few other symptoms were present). Front wheel drive cars can suffer the same issue/s and run fine for 250k in many cases.

But definitely do the repair. Avoid buying cheap axles though, or you might wear out the new half shaft sooner.

 

[jws123]

Any noises in 4wd? I *think* I can hear mine slipping, but I haven't had enough opportunities to run 4wd lock lately..

No unusual noises 4x4 will always make a little noise but not anything cracking/slipping.

 

[Jeepwalker]

I did a similar job on a GM vehicle 2 or 3 years ago and it was pretty straight forward. If you replace the bearings you'll need some removal tools for that. Harbor Freight. It's great you recognize the outer edges of your mechanical abilities. This would be a good, straight-forward job to stretch those a bit, but shouldn't get you too far over your head. Otherwise, should be a pretty quick dealer fix too.... (notice I didn't say cheap) .lol

 

[Wild one]

I did a similar job on a GM vehicle 2 or 3 years ago and it was pretty straight forward. If you replace the bearings you'll need some removal tools for that. Harbor Freight. It's great you recognize the outer edges of your mechanical abilities. This would be a good, straight-forward job to stretch those a bit, but shouldn't get you too far over your head. Otherwise, should be a pretty quick dealer fix too.... (notice I didn't say cheap) .lol

Princess Auto is about as close as you're going to get to Harbor Freight in Canada

 

[ginandtonic]

Definitely make the repair you're talking about. Is the front of your pickup lifted?

Its interesting to note, a 31.6" diameter tire makes 638 revolutions per mile (or 638 RPM @ 60mph) ..according to an online calculator I plugged in. So there's not a lot of speed on the axle shaft. Most owners probably don't know theirs has some free-play or not, until by happenstance (or a routine inspection) someone detects is (even though few other symptoms were present). Front wheel drive cars can suffer the same issue/s and run fine for 250k in many cases.

But definitely do the repair. Avoid buying cheap axles though, or you might wear out the new half shaft sooner.

Ya it has the 4" Rough Country lift with the differential drop bracket. The angles seem almost perfectly straight for the CV's which is great. The previous owner was extremely hard on this thing though.. so I'm not surprised it's worn the way it has. Upon further inspection today it seems that they tried to weld the axle to the shaft but the weld didn't hold.

I've got Cardone CV's in my cart at the moment - I think those are decent!

 

[ginandtonic]

I did a similar job on a GM vehicle 2 or 3 years ago and it was pretty straight forward. If you replace the bearings you'll need some removal tools for that. Harbor Freight. It's great you recognize the outer edges of your mechanical abilities. This would be a good, straight-forward job to stretch those a bit, but shouldn't get you too far over your head. Otherwise, should be a pretty quick dealer fix too.... (notice I didn't say cheap) .lol

Haha the dealers version of fixing this is replacing the entire differential because Mopar doesn't make the part which given this severe design flaw, blows my mind.

 

[Jeepwalker]

Are you sure? What front diff do you have? What side is 'sloppy'? A quick search I found these:

2012-2021 Ram Axle Intermediate Shaft 68146594AB | Mopar eStore

2012-2021 Ram Axle Intermediate Shaft 68146594AB

store.mopar.com

Genuine Mopar Axle Intermediate Shaft Right 52114636AB | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Genuine Mopar Axle Intermediate Shaft Right 52114636AB at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

2012-2022 Dodge Ram 1500 Front Right Intermediate Shaft 68257420AF 68257421AF 68257422AF 722N695BK

Feature:1: According to the original factory specifications,perfect match for the original car.2: Own different test machines to design exact accurate parameter for our products.All switches were tested for performance.3: Made by high quality material, lightweight, anti-rust, colorfast and...

jcarpart.com

 

[ginandtonic]

Are you sure? What front diff do you have? What side is 'sloppy'? A quick search I found these:

2012-2021 Ram Axle Intermediate Shaft 68146594AB | Mopar eStore

2012-2021 Ram Axle Intermediate Shaft 68146594AB

store.mopar.com

Genuine Mopar Axle Intermediate Shaft Right 52114636AB | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Genuine Mopar Axle Intermediate Shaft Right 52114636AB at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

2012-2022 Dodge Ram 1500 Front Right Intermediate Shaft 68257420AF 68257421AF 68257422AF 722N695BK

Feature:1: According to the original factory specifications,perfect match for the original car.2: Own different test machines to design exact accurate parameter for our products.All switches were tested for performance.3: Made by high quality material, lightweight, anti-rust, colorfast and...

jcarpart.com

The passenger side is the sloppiest of the two. The mopar link you sent is for the drivers side which is easily found through most parts stores(and a much easier install!), the eBay one doesn't look right, and the jcarpart one looks right! Similarly priced to the other shop that makes them around here (Roods).


From what I've read across this forum is that because Mopar doesn't sell/make this part, dealers will only opt to replace the entire differential assembly.

EDIT: the second link is for the 3rd Gen diff!

 

[Jeepwalker]

I think the ebay one was for the driver's side.

Did you plug your truck's vin into Mopar's site and poke around? I just did a quick general search, and didn't take a ton of time. I've found sometimes the part isn't always listed how/where I would 'think' it should be, and I need to sometimes trianglulate the part searches using different descriptions before I find what I'm looking for. Look for 'output shaft' or stub shaft ...intermediate shaft.. those kind of descriptions. Google it too, bc sometimes that's a good way. Sounds like you know what you're doing ...I'm just tossing out some things that have worked for me when I can't find a certain part that should be listed where I 'think' it should be. Ebay and Rockauto are always great for those kind of things too.

 

[ginandtonic]

I did, ya :/ I did a quick search initially with no results, then came on here and looked around and everyone says that the dealer only offers to replace the whole diff. There's 2-3 companies in north america that make the passenger side intermediate shaft; JCarPart, Roods Transmission in Nova Scotia Canada, and one other that I forget the name of. Appreciate your advice!

The weirdest thing is that Mopar makes the part for the 3rd gen diffs, but not for the 4th gen. The 4th gen has no dust boot etc and is prone to stripping the splines on the right side because of all the crud that can easily get inside. Fortunately the repair kit from Roods comes with their own rubber dust boot that conceals both the intermediate shaft and wraps around the end of the CV to seal it in tight.

 

[Jeepwalker]

Thanks good info. I agree, no boot on the axle shaft seems like a lousy design. So, are you going to buy/do the repair? Just curious what your game plan is now?

 

[ginandtonic]

Thanks good info. I agree, no boot on the axle shaft seems like a lousy design. So, are you going to buy/do the repair? Just curious what your game plan is now?

Ya I'm in Canada and winters coming which means I'm going to be needing 4wd quite often! I'll try to make a video of the process so it hopefully helps someone else out here. But, if things go sideways and I'm spending all my time trying to break rusty bolts loose I may give up on the video haha.

 

[tb123]

Avoid buying cheap axles though, or you might wear out the new half shaft sooner.

What is meant by this? Are the cheap axles harder material, or is the fit sloppy (resulting in more wear)? I have used cheap aftermarket axles in a few applications without trouble so far.

Is it dangerous to continue to drive the truck in 2WD with this front CV axle issue? Will the shafts continue to wear if only in 2WD operation (free spinning)?