I’m trying to get the left front cv axle out of my c300 4Matic. I have a ripped outer boot. I received the boot kit but can not get the axle out, nor can I get the outer joint off of the shaft while still in the car. Any help would be appreciated.

 

I and several other members accidently did this job the very hard and expensive way!

We all used slide hammers to yank the axle out. Problem is this method broke the upper oil pan and pulled the intermediate shaft out with it..

There is a C clip holding the intermediate shaft bearing into the upper oil pan. Remove the clip and pull the CV axle out with intermediate shaft still attached and deal with it from there...

Trust me, you DO NOT WANT TO YANK IT OUT AND BREAK THE UPPER OIL PAN! Its expensive even to replace it yourself, not to mention a huge pain in the ***....

I ended up giving up trying to separate axle from intermediate shaft and just replaced them both. After replacing the oil pan of course...

 

[QUOTE=GunDriver;8397245]I and several other members accidently did this job the very hard and expensive way!

We all used slide hammers to yank the axle out. Problem is this method broke the upper oil pan and pulled the intermediate shaft out with it..

There is a C clip holding the intermediate shaft bearing into the upper oil pan. Remove the clip and pull the CV axle out with intermediate shaft still attached and deal with it from there...

Trust me, you DO NOT WANT TO YANK IT OUT AND BREAK THE UPPER OIL PAN! Its expensive even to replace it yourself, not to mention a huge pain in the ***....

I ended up giving up trying to separate axle from intermediate shaft and just replaced them both. After replacing the oil pan of course...


Thank you for the advice. I ended up cutting the inner boot off and getting a new inner boot kit from FCP Euro. I pulled the shaft from the inner joint, replaced the outer joint boot kit (also from FCP Euro) and then put the new inner boot on, packed it with the new grease and was able to crimp the boot clamp. All set now. Going down for an alignment! Thanks for the responses, I appreciate the input.

 

I'm in the process of the same removal and the Left CV Axle is stuck. Passenger side was a breeze to R&R. I feel like the next step is to use the slide hammer with a cv fork but I fear making the same mistake as posted previously by others. I have a new axle and thought about taking it apart at the boot, connecting it to the old one, filling with grease and clamping it on. Just not sure about being able to clamp the boot on in such a tight space. Is there room to do so? Or if I remove the intermediate shaft will that cause any issue when reinstalling it? How do you do this if anyone has done it? Really not sure how to proceed.
Car W204 2010 C350 4Matic 273,000 Km.

 

Dude, just remove the C Clip and pull the intermediate shaft out of the oil pan. It has a slip ring on the other end that snaps in and out of the front differential gears very easily so it's a piece of cake getting it back in. Once its out do what you want. If the CV joint looks good you can try to reboot it as opposed to replacing it all. Too much pulling and you will have the same job I did when I tried yanking it off...

 

How do you separate the CV outer axle from the intermediate axle once it's been removed from the car.
I don't want to damage the intermediate shaft, so I can reuse it. I used some penetrating oil already and also did a few heat and cool cycles with a torch (on the housing) to try an break up the rust. How much heat will do the trick if that's the way to do it?
Although the bearing is a bit gritty and rusted I think it should be replaced. And the ring clip is a bit bent from taking it off. For anyone who's replaced these where's the best place to get a new bearing and retaining clip?
Bearing on intermediate L front axle

Outer front L cv axle housing rusted to the intermediate axle.

Intermediate axle "retaining clip" used on the oil pan side wall.

Slightly bent

Old axle looks perfect of course!

 

Some heat (not red hot) and an impact flat nose punch around (radially) and along (axially) the rusted spline.

 

I gave up trying separate intermediate and CV axle shafts. I tried WD-40, PB blaster, heat, force and shock. I finally decided if it was that stuck, even if I could get it apart, I would not want to slide a new part onto that mess.

The new Intermediate shaft I purchased came with bearing already pressed on and may have come with clip as well. Found it all on Ebay. 1.5 years and about 10k miles still going great

 

I finally got it apart with a bit of heat and more penetrating oil then continued hammer taps to work it off. Now just the bearing, it feels a bit rough, not smooth, so I'm unsure about putting that back in or will it cause damage/wear out soon? Also not really sure how to get the bearing off if it can be replaced.

 

Not really sure why you just don't want to replace everything with new. It looks like the new parts are less than $400 (or they were in 2020). If you are going through all that trouble, you should just replace rather than rebuild.

 

I have all new parts except the intermediate shaft since I wasn't planning on taking that out. And I've read other people ordered new then noticed the quality to be an issue with the new part so they reinstalled the old intermediate axle they took out.

 

So the job is finally done. I removed the bearing from the intermediate shaft, replaced it with a new one ordered from local MB Dealer. The removal just took a bit of pounding to get the bearing to slide off. I was a bit gentler with putting the new one on. The Intermediate shaft went into the car with just a little tapping on the end with wooden block and a mallet (to seat the bearing in place). The Snap Ring was a bit tricky to get back on I used a needle nose pliers and straight slot screwdriver. Took some time and effort but it went in smoothly. On the outer end, I did have to reshape the c-clip a bit to make it easier for the CV axle to connect. That was a bear to remove and install on the installed intermediate shaft (used a needle nose and screwdriver). Then installed the left CV axle, connected it to the strut assembly, attached the rotor shield & rotor, break calliper and wheel, lowered the vehicle and torqued the axle bolt. Also soaked my rotors to remove rust.

Parts: ($CAD)
R CV Axle $176.21
L CV Axle $208.09
Bearing for Intermediate Shaft $62.23
Retaining Ring $4.98
Snap Ring $1.65

If anyone is doing this job and the left cv axle doesn't just pop off as easy as the right side, STOP pounding or prying to get it off. Just remove the retaining ring and slide the intermediate shaft out with the cv axle. Then disconnect them from each other. Don't make the mistake and break the retaining ring housing leading to replacing your oil pan. You also don't have to remove the steering rack to do this job you can maneuver around it just fine. I did this job on my driveway with the car on jack stands. With some patience and effort you can do this too.

 

Thanks for the multi-view photos. Is that an aftermarket blue bushing/cover at steering box ?

 

You're welcome.
I'm not sure, I didn't install it and it was like that when I purchased the vehicle.

 

this is the worse job to do on a w204...i spent 8 hours trying to get the damn thing off on a lift. passenger side came off using a ratchet strap and a pry bar under the car. drivers side is defiantly seized in there. took off the c clip and the shaft won't even slide out. I'm back at it again today but dear lord its hell. slide hammer, ratchet strap and someone hitting it with a hammer from the bottom and it won't even move a millimetre.

I love DIY stuff and it beats spending $5500 at the dealer(parts and labour). lol if i could go back id take this job to an indy so i don't have to deal with this crap.

 

i had the same situation doing mine. Unlike others claim I can’t see how you can remove the intermediate shaft without dropping the steering rack. It was impossible to get the clip with snap ring pliers( it was orientated at 12 o clock). Then it was also stuck in the pan. I took a hammer and draft and hit the back of the inner joint casing and gradually got it out but it took a while! Putting everything together I guess I would have replaced the bearing but I reused it. I had to tap the shaft back into the pan it was that tight. I wish I lubed the bearing first to go in easier though. The job took about 3.5hrs and I was rushing as I didn’t want to get my car locked in the building. Not a fun job

 

theres no way that shaft comes out lol!!!! i got the c clip off from underneath, just be carful or i can see how the oil pan could crack where the clip is held.

I came up with a marvellous plan. with a 1/4" drill, drill out the middle of the stuck CV axel and wow as soon as i drilled the hole the backing was a cap..... it popped of so i could see the intermitted shaft. sprayed the crap put of it with strong penetrating oil and 5 hammer hits later from underneath it flew off.

I got the car back together in 1 hour. it blew my mind that 1" depth of rust made this job a 15 hour job for me when it should take 5max. the car drive like a dream no more grinding lol.


Thank you OP this thread was very helpful!

 

can you take a picture of what you mean?

 

Hello,
Can you point me out where did you drill the hole ?
I can not separate CV from axle....
Thanks

Best

 

hey sorry i didn't get email notifications for some reason. I could get a picture if my uncle didn't chuck the part, i won't be going to his garage for a week or so.

the best way to describe it with no image is. pull the boot off, remove the bearings and grease. it will look like a coin in the back of the housing almost nickel size drill right in the middle with a smaller drill. the whole thing just popped out,

 

Just the information I needed. I'm working on a new-to-me 2011 C300 4matic. I couldn't get the CV axle out and was worried about taking the retaining clip out. I removed the retaining clip. The opening in the clip was at about 5:00 so it wasn't too difficult. I will spray it with penetrating oil and beat on it some more. I can see the intermediate shaft has moved already, but maybe the CV axle will come out of the intermediate shaft before the whole thing comes out. Either way, this thread has been very helpful and I just wanted to let you know. It is good to see a little light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you.

 

Still have the w204 eh?!

 

lol ya but man its hard to sell it when theres only one issue with my headlight getting stuck( adaptive headlamp inoperative) . other than that maintenance wise its a tank. 250,000km CV axels, brakes, secondary air pump, oil & air filters is basically all the maintenance done lol, PLUS if I sell it for what 8K canadian you can't buy squat with that now a days. its my wifes car now I drive a truck.

I was looking at a C43 wagon If I had to buy something else, extra space, its pretty quick, and great for a family.

 

Working on the engine swap on C300 4matic. I got stuck on the left axle separtaion from intermediate. I am glad I found this thread I used slide hammer and crowbar with no luck but I did not crack my oil pan yet... As suggested I will try taking the C Clip out and remove the Intermediate and left axle out together. I'll report back on how it goes but thank youfor all the photos and guidance. This is very helpful.

 

hey how did you remove the intermediate shaft? I was able to remove the c clip off the intermediate shaft but the shaft itself is stuck and can’t get a grip. Any tips?