I am planning to replace the passenger side (right?) rear axle on my 1983 300d because the boot is torn. There is a noise coming from the rear of the car that sounds like snow tire whine (but I don't have snow tires) that changes when I take my foot of the accelerator. I don't know if the axle is the cause but I figure I should replace it anyway.

I have searched the board and see that a number of people have in the past replaced their axles with rebuilt ones from Autozone. I was wondering how these are holding up. They now cost $100 plus shipping, which also seems to be the going price for used ebay axles. Which do you all think is the better way to go?

Also, what other parts do I need to have on hand (bolts, gaskets, etc?) before I get started? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

my rebuilt 1/2 shafts were from a carquest autoparts shop and they have held up for about 25000miles.
you will need to drain and refill the diff when you replace it.

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1984 300D Turbo - 231k....totalled 11/30/07 RIP

My biggest problem was getting the fill plug out of the differential housing. I had to put the housing in a vise and use a pipe on the allen wrench for extra leverage. You also need a large allen wrench, the size escapes me right now. But I will look it up if you need it. Easy job. The books say you need to remove the brake caliper but I did mine without yhat step.

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'83 300D 283,000 mi.
'88 Jaguar XJ40 132,000 mi.(sold)
'88 Olds 88 190,000 mi.(given to grandson)
'81 300SD 313,000 mi. (given to granddaughter)
Maintained by Me and my offspring.
ESCHEW OBFUSCATION

Mine has held up for about 20,000 miles. The passenger side has more clearance than the drivers side, and so you shouldn't have to remove the caliper. The allen wrench size for the drain and fill plugs is 14mm. Most folks don't have one of these laying around, and most auto parts stores don't have them either. I got mine at Fastenal, however, I have heard some say Sears has them.

Good luck!

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1976 240D
1987 560SL
2007 E320 Bluetec
1998 C280 (now son’s car)
1982 240D Manual - Sold

I'm going to have to add my 2 cents here. Last summer, I replaced both half shafts on my 300D with replacements from Carquest. As I am typing this the car is on my lift getting (you guessed it) two new half shafts from Carquest. They lasted a total of 7000 miles and were in the process of self destruction. They had more slop in them than a pig's sty and one of the boots had pulled off. Hope you have better luck than me.

Tom

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1993 300TE
1984 300D
1984 300SD
1976 BMW R90S

wow tom, now you have me wondering..


i'm hoping mine have settled in enough to last another 25000 miles..
otherwise at least they are guaranteed for ''life'' which may be a looong time with these cars, heh.

time will tell..

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1984 300D Turbo - 231k....totalled 11/30/07 RIP

I had a Carquest axle eat itself right after I installed it. I think I over-extended it during the install and this is what did it in. When you have the diff cover off and the rear trailing arms are in full drop the new axle can be installed in the wheel hub and the 8 or 12mm retaining bolt tightened. The differential side of the axle can then be guided into the differential. I think I made the mistake of using some force to seat the differential side and this over extended the CV joint(s). When I test drove the car the banging and grinding was obvious. The second install I inserted and tightened the axle side and then inserted the differential side. In order to get the differential side to fully seat so I could install the retaining clip on the inside of the diff I used a floor jack to jack up the trailing arm to shorten the axle assembly and give me the length I needed to put the retaining clip on. My feeling is that full suspension drop is not a good thing with new/rebuilt axles as they have not settled in to their normal running position and the are more likely to suffer from damage. I have @25K on my Carquest axles, no issues. They were $69.95 each with no shipping. RT

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When all else fails, vote from the rooftops!
84' Mercedes Benz 300D Anthracite/black, 171K
03' Volkswagen Jetta TDI blue/black, 93K
93' Chevrolet C2500HD ExCab 6.5TD, Two-tone blue, 252K

Certainly you want to replace a halfshaft if one of the boots is torn, although the usual auditory symptom of axle joint failure is a knocking sound that speeds up and slows down with vehicle speed.

I swapped out the left axle on my coupe without removing the caliper as well. The manual does recommend that you replace the dished washer that goes on the bolt that attaches the hub to the outer axle end (look in the hub on the brake disc). I think it took my local dealer three days to get one..grr.

I've always heard that the way to go is to replace the failed part with a junkyard axle unit. They don't fail all that often, considering the age and mileage they hold up to. I've put about 40K miles on the used axle shaft I got from Euro-Werks in Winchester, KY. Potomac German Auto would be another good source.

If you're in the Twin Cities area, you might check with Strandberg Auto in Centuria, Wis. Their online inventory indicates they have a used shaft in stock for $60. http://www.strandbergauto.com/

Russ M

My wifes 300D has 2 carquest rebuilds on it. One annular and one homokenetic. The homokenetic (inner shaft bolted on to the joint) came apart within 1000 miles and had to be replaced.

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'84 300CD Turbo 132k (Anthracite Grey) - WVO - My daily driver - Recently named coo-coo-coupe by my daughter.
'84 300D Turbo 240k (Anthracite Grey) - Garage Queen
'83 300D Turbo 220k (Orient Red) - WVO - Wifes daily driver

I'm not a certified mechanic, but I did stay at a HolidayInn Express last night.

Does the Carquest parts state who is the rebuilder?

Thank's
Don

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1980 300TD-T (82 Turbo and Trans) 159,000 Miles "Jackie-O"
1983 300SD 272,000 Miles "Aristotle"
1987 Jeep Wagoneer Limited - keeps the MB's off the ice and out of the snow
1994 BMW 530it

The first time around I was especially careful to follow the FSM on installation. I don't believe that the axles were overextended. But having never done it before, I may have. In any case, one of the new shafts is annular versus homokinetic(sp?), I haven't received the other shaft from Carquest right now. It will be interesting to see if the annular does better than the original replacements.

Tom

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1993 300TE
1984 300D
1984 300SD
1976 BMW R90S

okay i am running about 250 horses on these two carquest axles...so far okay....

in the start the WHOLE REAR SUBFRAME was out of the car and the axles were replaced as flat as possible and as clean as possible....i dont remember the FSM requirement for the install angle BUT THERE IS ONE THAT YOU CAN NOT OVER EXTEND! so that was that - the parts were in....

oh no that was not it...

first ....
all of the bolts that connect the shafts together were loose - as a goose...and with no torque spect i choose something i found to be able and tightened them up...used some locktight too

second...
before the work i ordered all new hardware from MB and replaced every nut bolt washer with new hardware....that was nice...

third...
the inner washer shim is very very important in the rebuilt...i have read THAT SOME PEOPLE ONT EVEN KNOW THAT THERE IS ONE...this shim is what takes up the slack in the system but still allows the axle to slide as the suspension travels....and it has to be in spec....

no washer would fit one of the rebuilt sides (you can search that thread under my name) i hade to put it on the surface grinder and deck it down....details in that thread

fourth....
i bought all the washers so i have a few if you need one...they are like 6 dollars a pop...ouch

good luck
work safe -

jake



oh - and buy the MB diff oil, there has to be some majic in the sauce as my oil had no metal or problem in it....