I've got an 86 5 speed Getrag and I bought 2 rebuilt Cardone CV axles. the drivers side appears to have 'snapped' into place but not the passengers side. It slides into the tranny just fine but the snap ring does not seem to snap into place; I'm afraid if I try to drive it the axle will work its way out and the seal will leak. Is it possible the snap ring is the wrong size? Does anyone know what is the correct size and where to buy them? Unfortunately I trashed the old axles. Anyone out there got some used snap rings????
I personally would send it back as defective and try another CB axle That's what we do with our suppliers. If that does not work then the problem is in the transmission. I do not think the snap rings can be replaced. Also did you remove both axles at the same time?
Peek inside to see if the spring from inside the axle seal has come out and moved to the back. It can cause just enough interference to keep the axle from fully seating.
Yes, I replaced both at the same time, why? I replaced both seals with the bearing stabilizer seal; I'm pretty sure part of the old seal didn't fall in but I will check this week end. I've had good luck with NAPA stuff, may just order a new axle from them.
A very experienced club mechanic fought the same problem. He's the one that told me about the spring sliding all the way back on the tranny output splines. It's just thick enough to prevent the axle from locking in. He said he used a straightened paperclip and made a small hook on the end to fish it off the shaft. The spring, if there, may have come out of the old seal during removal.
