I just bought a '94 626 with CV joint problems. I'm tempting maintaining this car myself for the first time rather than rely on a garage. But am I biting off more than I can chew with replacing a CV joint? I've seen quite a bit about people struggling to free the halfshaft from the transmission. I'd get a Haynes before I started of course. Or is it worth paying a mechanic for this kind of problem?
Cheers

 

Ah, you can do it. It helps if you have a garage and air tools vs. trying to do it in a driveway, et al.
The lower suspension (A-arm) has to be dropped @ the ball joint to relieve the spindle from the axle. I"m not sure about your car but sometimes (a certain Nissan I owned comes to mind [:@]) the axle is pressed into the spindle and therefore must be pressed out andthe new one pressed back in. Usually on the tranny side, the axle has a tension clip around the stub entering the trans, or in the best cases I"ve seen, a bolted flange.
Does that tell you what you want to know? (+/-)

 

You might want to invest in a real Mazda workshop manual. There's one on ebaymotors. I had to use what some people call a "pickle bar" to get the joint out of the transmission. Just a couple prys and whacks and it popped right out. Got the new cv axles from a company called Raxles. They ship you new ones, you send them back the old ones, they're very helpful on the phone also.

Yes, the axle is supposed to be pressed on the spindle. Went to the trouble of renting a tool to push out the axle from the spindle. But when I unbolted everything the axle pushed right out and never needed the tool. Sometimes things go a lot easier than expected....

 

Garage and air tools eh? Well... I have a spoon in the kitchen and a swiss army knife somewhere... I just moved to Seattle from England and brining my tool box just wasn't an option. Though starting home repairs on the car will give me a good excuse to get some nice new tools in. Air tools probably aren't the sort of thing I'd invest in - but if something is well and truely stuck, maybe. If it is going to cost me a fortune in a garage then it might end up worth while doing it myself and spending the money on the tools.
Ok so next question; this real Mazda workshop manual. Is this better than a Haynes? Would I be better served by the Mazda manual than a Haynes being a novice car fettler?
It sounds as if doing it myself is viable- I'd get the manual first and go through it thoroughly so I understand what is required... Quite excited by the prospect!

One last thing if it isn't too much trouble - I saw on another thread someone had put up an exploded diagram of a peice of the suspension of a 626 - is the CV joint and how it is located in the tranny and wheel available online?

Thanks guys.

 

A pro with shop equipment and the proper tools can usually do these kinds of jobs in about an hour. For a novice, 3-4, but you could do it. The only thing is that you might not have the right tools, or need something else and have to run out several times. Plus the cost of buying or renting tools you do not have.
If you"re not willing to take on that challenge, you might want to price a rebuilt axle assem and then find out what a local shop would charge?
When I had my Mitsubishi, and this wasfew years ago now, I had no place to work on it. A shop charged me somewhere around $325. The rebuilt axle was 1/3rd-<1/2 of that cost. I would guess prices have risen about 20-25% since then though.

 

Didn't know you have a Mitsu, Rich...lemme guess, a Starion?

 

Actually... an Expo! Well, really a rebadged Expo (Plymouth Colt Vista.) I liked it.
It was AWD, as you can see, had a 5-sp, A/C, cruise, power windows and locks.

 

Aah yes, the ultimate wedding carridge... The ones with AWD, power locks and 5sp (man I hope?) are the best, most photogenic and most romantic. I think this was Borats get away vehicle when he bagged Pam Anderson you know...

 

Maaaan, that's some open space behind it. Must've been hard to kiss your wife while shifting. [8D]

 

Well, not when I owned it at least. (Pam Anderson!! [:-]What a *****.)