Hi All, was under car trying to see if brake pads were ok (failed, had to remove wheel in the end), and shock horror! Saw that an inner CV boot was badly split! Grease every where but inside boot. Have ordered a new boot kit from ICP, and wld like to know if anyone has managed to fit one using the cone method ?...Looks kinda brutal, like the boot might split..

 

the cones are designed to be used with specific 'stretchy' boots...........personally would simply strip and install a genuine Subaru boot

 

I did my 07 Fsti and it was just a circlip ,mine was the inner cv boot by the turbo, likely due to the heat , which seems to be the one to go ? What years did subaru go down the lines of not having a circlip ? , I’ve not had to change one before and was relatively easy , the only bit that can be a real bu…r is the drive shaft is stuck in the hub

 

Thanks for that, I've already bought the cone, not seen a 'stretchy' boot that's compatible, but hadn't considered removing the front cv joint as the way to go. I'll do some YouTube viewing on the subject.... every day's a school day!

 

You can use a universal stretchy boot with the cone, they can vary in quality and are not as robust as oe but they do work

 

When I changed the inner cv , the material felt very tough for a cv boot , it was a subaru original part , if it was me , I would only do a subaru part there as that’s what subaru planned , if the inner one fails then it’s grease onto a likely hot downpipe so for me a not worth taking the risk 👍

 

Thnx for that👍 have ordered a genuine boot + kit from ICP, have found a YouTube guide and have bought some of those boot clips + the pliers.

 

The good stretch boots are made by Bailcast.

Personally its all I use now, the Bailcast ones last just as long and much quicker to replace (especially with the air expander).

Yeah OE seems nice for originality, but if the OE boot is the hard plastic type and the CV joint is stuck on the shaft it can be a ball ache. Requiring complete shaft removal, big vice, hammering and a new circlip as the old ones mullared: Making a 30 minute job one taking several hours. Then the new boot pops off, CV joint knocks or shaft seal fails just to add insult making you have to do it all again. Or you have a really bad day and joint falls apart. I'm too old for dealing with that potential crap on my day off every time a boot splits, been there done that...stretchy it is LOL.

 

ALi-B....! made me chuckle.... yep, you're a realist alright 👍
Also thanks for the observations too.... made me realise I must check I've got some 90° circlip pliers, or buy some. (love collecting tools)

 

Exactly