Pre mot

[bowthruster]

Had my mot station give the car the once over,possibly o/s cv is causing the noise,and the n/s track rod end needs replacing,oh and a new rubber-which is holding the exhaust up.
Wheres the best place to buy track rod ends from,seen them on europarts,can i get the rubber from an exhaust place or ?Dont feel confident doing the cv so might get the garage to just do that bit.Thanks

[Captain Peanut]

ECP should do all of the parts, if you can order them online use PARTS25 at checkout for a 25% discount. Otherwise I'm sure Pete will be along soon with a load of links!

If you have the tools the cv joint (assuming its the outer one) isn't too bad a job, I managed to do mine and it took about an hour each side.

[stamford]

Any decent motor factors will stock the parts, generic MGR/Honda stuff. Exhaust mounts are again generic so no issue there. The CV could be problematic, I've had issues getting the shaft through the hub on occassion.

[bowthruster]

I dont have all the tools for the cv,and trust me i would take about 3hrs each!
cant find the exhaust rubbers on eurocarparts-are they called autogem/timax as there the only things i can find under exhaust accessories?Thanks for the code!

[Captain Peanut]

I'm guessing the garage meant the exhaust hangers so yes they are correct. The Autogem (manufacturers name btw) part looks identical to the one listed on Rimmerbros and is nice and cheap!

The track rod ends are about £15 each but I have no idea how difficult a job that is to do yourself as haven't tried it before.

[bowthruster]

Mot tester showed me how to do the track rod ends,as it looks pretty easy hopefully.

[bowthruster]

Ordered rubber hanger & track rod end & next day delivery and used code(thanks),all for less than local motofax:crazy:

[peterzs]

I always get the car tracked if I have swapped over steering bits.

Some places will check and only charge if adjustment needed.

Good luck with it all.

[Enright]

I dont have all the tools for the cv,and trust me i would take about 3hrs each!

You might find it's not as bad as you feared. I had to do one of these fairly recently, and it's a job I've always hated. But they are now making these stretchy boots that you can fit all the way over the CV joint.
Honestly, I was amazed that the small hole in the CV boot can stretch so much without splitting, but it worked brilliantly. The only special tool needed other than the one that came with the kit was a ball-joint splitter, which you may well need to do your track rod end anyway.
Here's a link to the sort I got: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130690876307
They used to have a video of a mechanic using the cone to put the CV boot on embedded in their ad - it may still be available on YouTube. Worth a look as it could save you a packet.

And Peter's absolutely right - putting a different track-rod end on, no matter how careful you are, is likely to throw your steering geometry out, so you should at least take it for a tracking check afterwards.

[bowthruster]

Cheers i think i'll leave the cv joint until the mot day and as theres no leaking of it or splits,and if it passes i'll have a go at it so ive got no pressure as such.Have to wait and see.Cheers all:happy: