so after 4 hrs, with half my toolbox, and the mother of all breaker bars, successfully changed out drivers side hub bearing....but during the process, noticed/caused hole in inner CV joint boot(drivers side), grease oozing out small hole, not good...my choices, as I see them...boot kit with OEM boots from Tasca, $67 plus shipping, and some more fun in my driveway...haven't done before, but doesn't look too hard...replace whole shaft with rebuild from NAPA, about $60 plus core charge, but I'm concerned about quality of rebuild, and what was the source of the rebuilt shaft....rebuilt OEM, or rebuilt Chinese manufacturer?...or, brand new OEM from Tasca, $350 plus shipping...esxpensive, but worth it?? should be noted that shaft in car now is original(112k on car), but functions fine, with no noise/clunking issues, just a small leak as a result of my clumsiness, with a little credit given to aged boot, as it's been there for 17 yrs now...not sure which way to go, with priority being given to doing the job right, with longevity and quality my priorities...thanks all!

I am currently running both sides of my 97 850 with Volvo rebuilt shafts from CVJ in Denver, quality seems good, price is right, like 80 bucks. Google 'em. Didn't trust the China made stuff. Of course I only have a year on the one side, 6 months on the other so time will tell. You need to send old one back, they will provide a shipper, and you get a new nut. Your mileage may vary, but others pointed me to these guys. Good luck.

There are some horror stories about the shaft seal not working with some of the cheaper axles, but most work well.

Yes, you could replace the inner boot. It is a messy job and takes much longer than buying a reman axle. Check the posts, one of the BB'ers is doing that now. But the cost of the boots VS the cost of a new axle...

The OEM axles are just tooooo much.
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My back feels better when I sit in a Volvo seat

sounds like you're advising just replacing the shaft with a rebuild Klaus....are their quality rebuilds out there? don't know what the quality of NAPA shafts are, but they're close enough to my house that I can quickly stop in and enquire...

how tough to replace the axle shaft? as I just had the axle half out to replace hub bearing, not worried about outboard side...any trick to remove the transaxle side...??

The driver's side has a circlip on the tranny end. You need a crow bar or large screwdriver to force the axle out of the tranny. The axle gets 'tapped' back in to lock the circlip in place.

It is real hard to kill a CV joint. Until it becomes loose and clicks when turning or sucks up a lot of sand or salt, it can be salvaged.

If you want to spend 2-3 hours taking the axle apart and putting in new grease, fine. That is your call. Be sure to have a hazmat truck near to collect all of the greasy rags and cleaning solution :>)

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My back feels better when I sit in a Volvo seat

thinking already I'll just go the rebuild route....is the circlip holding in axle under the edge of the rubber boot? was poking around there today, and didn't see anything obvious holding axle in, but I'm new to the whole CV shaft thing on my car...is special tool required for removal?


thanks again Klaus1

Driver's side axle circlip is on the end of the axle that is in the tranny housing wall. If the new axle doesn't come with a circlip, just transfer it to the new axle.
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My back feels better when I sit in a Volvo seat