By now I had like the entire afternoon into this job and had only accomplished the driver's side. I decided to move to the passenger side and see how far I could get before running out of steam for the day.
It turns out I did not have the same luck on the passenger side. There are two main reasons for this:
1) I made a critical mistake and forgot to reinstall the upper ball joint nut after I finished the shock job (like I had done on the driver's side). What this caused was as I moved to the LCA after no issues doing the shock, the weight of the knuckle and brakes just put a ton of stress on....something. That something was holding everything up. What was that something? The goddamn axle. I pulled the axle right apart at the inner CV. Looks like I popped the boot off.
2) Even after I screwed that all up I decided to keep going and see if I could at least get the LCA removed before quitting time. Nope. Why? Because the geometry is slightly asymmetrical on the passenger side and there was not room to pull the bolt out using my tie rod lift trick, which DID work on the driver's side. So I will have to lift the steering rack after all that. The two bolts look not too terrible to access so hopefully I can just loosen the bolts, prybar up the rack enough to slip the bolt out and carry on.
Carnage.
Plan is probably just to buy a new axle rather than screw around with this one, trying to clean it all out, fill it with oil and clamp the boot on. Modestly priced axles are like $50. AC Delco is over $200.
I may need a slide hammer and some weird adapter to pull it out of the diff....
05 STS front end clunk
Re: 05 STS front end clunk
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Re: 05 STS front end clunk
Ordered the Cardone front right axle.
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.ph ... ba%2F0g%3D
It was $66.60 shipped and says delivery by the 20th....oy. Hopefully that is a very pessimistic estimate for FedEx ground. In the meantime I have to decide if I want to order the Kent Moore slide hammer, with adapter, and the U-clamp type remover.
Remover:
https://www.freedomracing.com/axle-shaf ... 45341.html
Slide hammer with adapter to fit the remover:
https://www.freedomracing.com/slide-ham ... 619-a.html
I know, this shit is expensive. There is no apparent release crows foot type adapter for this diff. You just sort of brute force it out to release the internal retainer. I was wondering if I could have any luck just prying between the diff and axle but I don't want to break anything. The diff housing is aluminum of course. Also I did order the special seal protector that you are supposed to attach to the inner shaft, slide into the diff seal, and use that as a guide when you pull the spines past the seal.
Here is that tool.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Kent-Moore-J-4 ... 2749.l2648
And no I can't find the remover or slide hammer on eBay unfortunately. The key there is the adapter that fits the remover. The slide hammer itself is just a 5lb slide hammer....
Here is the adapter:
https://www.freedomracing.com/threaded- ... -8007.html
The specs are helpful. The female thread fits the slide hammer, with large 5/8"-18 threads. The male end threads into the J-45341 remover and those threads are 1/2"-13. So maybe I can find a slide hammer with 5/8"-18 threads and the right adapter....then I'd just have to buy the actual remover. Buying an expensive Kent Moore slide hammer seems kind of ridiculous even though the J-45341 remover itself is like $100, too.
Also unfortunately, there ARE some listings for the J-45341 remover on eBay, and they sold as cheap as $45 shipped. That's more than 50% off.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Kent-Moore-Axl ... 7675.l2557
I really just need to suck it up and get back under the car today and see if that will pry out of there without breaking anything. I won't even remove it until I have the seal protector.
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.ph ... ba%2F0g%3D
It was $66.60 shipped and says delivery by the 20th....oy. Hopefully that is a very pessimistic estimate for FedEx ground. In the meantime I have to decide if I want to order the Kent Moore slide hammer, with adapter, and the U-clamp type remover.
Remover:
https://www.freedomracing.com/axle-shaf ... 45341.html
Slide hammer with adapter to fit the remover:
https://www.freedomracing.com/slide-ham ... 619-a.html
I know, this shit is expensive. There is no apparent release crows foot type adapter for this diff. You just sort of brute force it out to release the internal retainer. I was wondering if I could have any luck just prying between the diff and axle but I don't want to break anything. The diff housing is aluminum of course. Also I did order the special seal protector that you are supposed to attach to the inner shaft, slide into the diff seal, and use that as a guide when you pull the spines past the seal.
Here is that tool.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Kent-Moore-J-4 ... 2749.l2648
And no I can't find the remover or slide hammer on eBay unfortunately. The key there is the adapter that fits the remover. The slide hammer itself is just a 5lb slide hammer....
Here is the adapter:
https://www.freedomracing.com/threaded- ... -8007.html
The specs are helpful. The female thread fits the slide hammer, with large 5/8"-18 threads. The male end threads into the J-45341 remover and those threads are 1/2"-13. So maybe I can find a slide hammer with 5/8"-18 threads and the right adapter....then I'd just have to buy the actual remover. Buying an expensive Kent Moore slide hammer seems kind of ridiculous even though the J-45341 remover itself is like $100, too.
Also unfortunately, there ARE some listings for the J-45341 remover on eBay, and they sold as cheap as $45 shipped. That's more than 50% off.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Kent-Moore-Axl ... 7675.l2557
I really just need to suck it up and get back under the car today and see if that will pry out of there without breaking anything. I won't even remove it until I have the seal protector.
Re: 05 STS front end clunk
OK I found the adapter!
OTC 8007
https://www.ebay.com/itm/OTC-8007-Threa ... SwULNfMZNr
$15 shipped. Then I would just need any 5lb slide hammer with a 5/8"-18 thread which I would hope is common.
Just like this:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/OTC-Tools-1155 ... SwkplfgS7-
So....Kent Moore J-02619-A is $83 (probably plus shipping). Or assemble my own for $15 + $47.25 = $62.25. I guess not the discount I was expecting but it's cheaper anyway. Probably paying a premium for OTC over pure Chinesium so I could probably knock some more bucks off. And that's shipped, as well. And they seem plentiful/available on eBay. The remover is the hard to come by item. Not sure I want to preemptively buy the slide hammer stuff without the remover. Goes back to trying my pry idea....
OTC 8007
https://www.ebay.com/itm/OTC-8007-Threa ... SwULNfMZNr
$15 shipped. Then I would just need any 5lb slide hammer with a 5/8"-18 thread which I would hope is common.
Just like this:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/OTC-Tools-1155 ... SwkplfgS7-
So....Kent Moore J-02619-A is $83 (probably plus shipping). Or assemble my own for $15 + $47.25 = $62.25. I guess not the discount I was expecting but it's cheaper anyway. Probably paying a premium for OTC over pure Chinesium so I could probably knock some more bucks off. And that's shipped, as well. And they seem plentiful/available on eBay. The remover is the hard to come by item. Not sure I want to preemptively buy the slide hammer stuff without the remover. Goes back to trying my pry idea....
Re: 05 STS front end clunk
Wow, very productive morning. I couldn't have been out there much more than 1-1/2 to 2 hours either. I also exchanged my broken 6mm hex driver at Home Depot, bought an 18mm and 21mm ratcheting wrench as well as a replacement 6mm 1/4 drive socket that I broke.
On the car I accomplished the following (all great progress).
- Loosened steering rack bolts
- Raised it enough to work the rear bolt out for the right LCA. Yes!
- Dropped the old LCA
- Start saying encouraging words to the remnants of the axle shaft, and pry gently. Shockingly, it popped free. I then carefully pulled it out without nicking the seal. This would be hard with the entire axle assembled and flopping around but it was easy broken apart...I will still need the seal protector thing when I get the new axle. But this is great news - don't need to buy a slide hammer (I should have one anyway but that will be for another time), adapter and special remover thing. It would have come out in just one tap anyway.
- Installed the new LCA, hand tightening the hardware.
- Tightened down the steering rack.
- Hand tightened the lower BJ on the LCA, installed the grease zerk and greased it.
In fact this is about as far as I can go until I get my new axle. That should just go in hopefully with a minimum of fiddling and I can just continue putting things back together, tightening bolts, etc.
Kind of a satisfying save for a job that went sideways (they seem to usually go sideways these days). Really just being able to walk away and stop is very key. In fact I came in the house in a good mood, knowing that it was only like 7pm, showered, had dinner and we finished watching ET with the kids. Knowing I had today off and that I certainly did not need the car immediately was also helpful to remain at a low stress level. The fact that this morning went so well is also calming. Phew. Pics in a bit.
On the car I accomplished the following (all great progress).
- Loosened steering rack bolts
- Raised it enough to work the rear bolt out for the right LCA. Yes!
- Dropped the old LCA
- Start saying encouraging words to the remnants of the axle shaft, and pry gently. Shockingly, it popped free. I then carefully pulled it out without nicking the seal. This would be hard with the entire axle assembled and flopping around but it was easy broken apart...I will still need the seal protector thing when I get the new axle. But this is great news - don't need to buy a slide hammer (I should have one anyway but that will be for another time), adapter and special remover thing. It would have come out in just one tap anyway.
- Installed the new LCA, hand tightening the hardware.
- Tightened down the steering rack.
- Hand tightened the lower BJ on the LCA, installed the grease zerk and greased it.
In fact this is about as far as I can go until I get my new axle. That should just go in hopefully with a minimum of fiddling and I can just continue putting things back together, tightening bolts, etc.
Kind of a satisfying save for a job that went sideways (they seem to usually go sideways these days). Really just being able to walk away and stop is very key. In fact I came in the house in a good mood, knowing that it was only like 7pm, showered, had dinner and we finished watching ET with the kids. Knowing I had today off and that I certainly did not need the car immediately was also helpful to remain at a low stress level. The fact that this morning went so well is also calming. Phew. Pics in a bit.
Re: 05 STS front end clunk
Some pics.
Front diff with the inner CV stub pulled out. And the CV stub. You can see the clearance (or lack of it) for the rear bolt. They could have simply put the bolt in with the nut on the outside but I guess it was done this way for a reason so I reinstalled this way (with the steering rack raised like 1/2"). You can also see the passenger side steering rack bolt there. The passenger side cat is right above it so you can't put a socket on it. But other than the bolt sort of fighting a bit (and it was hell to break loose even with wrenches doubled up), it's fine. That thing directly above the rack is the front driveshaft as it enters the front diff pinion. And I inserted the stub just to keep junk out of the diff. There's absorbent stuff all over the floor and as I roll around and move stuff around, it can get a little dusty. Figured this was safer. Look at that brand new (passenger side) LCA. Need to remember that the lower BJ is NOT torqued. Neither are either of the LCA bolts. To do the axle I will probably finish torqueing the lower BJ. It's 30 lb-ft plus 120 degrees. Then I will probably remove the upper BJ nut again (I never tightened it) to install the axle. Well, actually I know I will - I'm not removing the lower BJ again. Plus it would probably be easier to have the opening from the top to manipulate the axle.
Front diff with the inner CV stub pulled out. And the CV stub. You can see the clearance (or lack of it) for the rear bolt. They could have simply put the bolt in with the nut on the outside but I guess it was done this way for a reason so I reinstalled this way (with the steering rack raised like 1/2"). You can also see the passenger side steering rack bolt there. The passenger side cat is right above it so you can't put a socket on it. But other than the bolt sort of fighting a bit (and it was hell to break loose even with wrenches doubled up), it's fine. That thing directly above the rack is the front driveshaft as it enters the front diff pinion. And I inserted the stub just to keep junk out of the diff. There's absorbent stuff all over the floor and as I roll around and move stuff around, it can get a little dusty. Figured this was safer. Look at that brand new (passenger side) LCA. Need to remember that the lower BJ is NOT torqued. Neither are either of the LCA bolts. To do the axle I will probably finish torqueing the lower BJ. It's 30 lb-ft plus 120 degrees. Then I will probably remove the upper BJ nut again (I never tightened it) to install the axle. Well, actually I know I will - I'm not removing the lower BJ again. Plus it would probably be easier to have the opening from the top to manipulate the axle.
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Re: 05 STS front end clunk
Ugh, next Monday. From CA. Maybe I should have just gotten one from Napa. Not that much more expensive actually, but that's assuming there was one relatively locally I guess. Maybe would have also been better than Cardone, too, but too late now.
Re: 05 STS front end clunk
Yay. Looks really nice from the outside for a new Chinesium Cardone part. Of course looks can be deceiving. Crossing fingers ...
Not like it needs to last 200k either.
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Re: 05 STS front end clunk
The seal protector tool.
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Re: 05 STS front end clunk
Finished this afternoon. Probably had another 3.5 hours in it.
I had some trouble getting the axle to slide into the diff but I finally figured out to just push and wiggle as much as I could and that seemed to do it. I was pushing and moving but not as violently as it needed apparently.
Tightened various bolts. Also tightened the LCA bolts. I ended up jacking it up to what I thought was ride height and tightened them. Did the same on the driver's side. Put the underbody cover on. Wheels.
Showered. Came out and test drove.
First the good news:
The suspension feels good. It mostly feels like it did before except when the road gets bumpy and then you can tell the difference. Definitely improved. I didn't hear any clunking and the new shocks seem to be doing what they are supposed to do. Shockingly, my care in aligning the LCA mount locations seems to have paid off because I actually can't detect ANY alignment issues. It steers perfectly straight, no pulls. I still think it probably needs an alignment but I thought that was cool. It does still need tires. The very inner shoulder is worn bald which is a shame because across most of the rest of the tire there is definitely still usable tread.
Now the bad news:
There is a disconcerting, rotational grinding sound that speeds up as the car speeds up that seems to be emanating from the left front wheel area. Turning a little to the left makes it almost go completely away. Turning to the right doesn't change it or maybe slightly louder. It doesn't seem to be normal rusty brakes from sitting because I kept applying the brakes and it did not seem to have any effect on the noise (braking or not). So that sucks. I'll have to pull the left front wheel tomorrow and see if I can tell what is rubbing on what. Hopefully it's something simple.
Bonus bad news:
Seems that the left rear caliper is sticking again. Geez! I did the rear calipers some time ago for this exact problem. It's crazy - this car really did not do well with all the sitting during COVID. Of course, that made me really start to think that it may also suggest that this is not going to be a good winter beater. Well, it should be OK when I get it sorted and drive it. But lots of sitting is no good. So maybe I'll have to make an effort to drive it periodically. FWIW, I drove the CTS-V the other day and it is still totally fine even with all the back to back months of sitting it does. It is garaged so maybe that helps somehow.
I'll report back if I figure out what that damn noise is. Again, I hope it's nothing major. I will have to inspect the left axle since I think that one did also get pulled a bit (just not all the way apart). Ideally I would put the car up on stands and put it in gear. Quickjack would help....
I had some trouble getting the axle to slide into the diff but I finally figured out to just push and wiggle as much as I could and that seemed to do it. I was pushing and moving but not as violently as it needed apparently.
Tightened various bolts. Also tightened the LCA bolts. I ended up jacking it up to what I thought was ride height and tightened them. Did the same on the driver's side. Put the underbody cover on. Wheels.
Showered. Came out and test drove.
First the good news:
The suspension feels good. It mostly feels like it did before except when the road gets bumpy and then you can tell the difference. Definitely improved. I didn't hear any clunking and the new shocks seem to be doing what they are supposed to do. Shockingly, my care in aligning the LCA mount locations seems to have paid off because I actually can't detect ANY alignment issues. It steers perfectly straight, no pulls. I still think it probably needs an alignment but I thought that was cool. It does still need tires. The very inner shoulder is worn bald which is a shame because across most of the rest of the tire there is definitely still usable tread.
Now the bad news:
There is a disconcerting, rotational grinding sound that speeds up as the car speeds up that seems to be emanating from the left front wheel area. Turning a little to the left makes it almost go completely away. Turning to the right doesn't change it or maybe slightly louder. It doesn't seem to be normal rusty brakes from sitting because I kept applying the brakes and it did not seem to have any effect on the noise (braking or not). So that sucks. I'll have to pull the left front wheel tomorrow and see if I can tell what is rubbing on what. Hopefully it's something simple.
Bonus bad news:
Seems that the left rear caliper is sticking again. Geez! I did the rear calipers some time ago for this exact problem. It's crazy - this car really did not do well with all the sitting during COVID. Of course, that made me really start to think that it may also suggest that this is not going to be a good winter beater. Well, it should be OK when I get it sorted and drive it. But lots of sitting is no good. So maybe I'll have to make an effort to drive it periodically. FWIW, I drove the CTS-V the other day and it is still totally fine even with all the back to back months of sitting it does. It is garaged so maybe that helps somehow.
I'll report back if I figure out what that damn noise is. Again, I hope it's nothing major. I will have to inspect the left axle since I think that one did also get pulled a bit (just not all the way apart). Ideally I would put the car up on stands and put it in gear. Quickjack would help....
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Re: 05 STS front end clunk
I worked on the car in my mind while in bed last night.
What I came up with is that there is probably a heat shield behind the rotor that I bent and is rubbing on the rotor. I jacked up the driver's side by the ball joint and the stud dug into the wood possibly enough for the wood to contact the bottom of the rotor. It may have bent that into the rotor somehow. So I have a hypothesis. I may also knock off the rust on the outer edge of the rotors with a wire wheel on a drill for good measure.
What I came up with is that there is probably a heat shield behind the rotor that I bent and is rubbing on the rotor. I jacked up the driver's side by the ball joint and the stud dug into the wood possibly enough for the wood to contact the bottom of the rotor. It may have bent that into the rotor somehow. So I have a hypothesis. I may also knock off the rust on the outer edge of the rotors with a wire wheel on a drill for good measure.