CV Boot fault on low mileage Corsa

Careful_with_that_Axe

I bought my Corsa 5ish years ago (56 plate) as a pre-registered vehicle with 11 miles on the clock. It has been serviced regularly and has only done just under 14k miles.

It just failed the last MOT test as both CV Boots were cracked/broken. As I am very short of money, the garage did a repair with cable ties to get it through the MOT but have impressed on me the importance of having these replaced within the next few months.

Is it unusual for these items to fail at such low mileage? I am a little disappointed to potentially have a bill of £300+ when the car has so little mileage and has been looked after.

Any thoughts or advice please?

BlastRedeye

CV boots / Gaitors are perishable items and usually fail due to age rather than mileage. They could last 10 years and 200k miles or early like yours have just pot luck really.

Having been a passenger in a Fiesta which was running on split boots for 3 months I would advise that you get this sorted ASAP. Pulling off onto a major roundabout when the driveshaft decides to implode is not a good thing.

Hopefully the bodge will keep some grease in there for you

Careful_with_that_Axe

I had a feeling that was the case that I was just unlucky, looks that way.

I'm on a very low income but rely on my car utterly so am gathering pennies as quickly as possible to get it done; just coz it passed the MOT one day doesn't mean it's a safe fix a few weeks down the line.
Had thought about getting them done one by one until I realised the driveshaft had to come out. D'Oh!!

Hope you came away from your adventure unscathed!

scheming_gypsy

£300+ could be a bit on the high side.
Pretty sure my Celica needed a replacement CV gaitor for it's MOT two years ago. I'm pretty friendly with the garage who did it and they only charged me £20 and did it while I waited. The parts are relatively cheap if i remember correctly and it's not a long procedure; so under two hours labour and a hand full of beans for the boots.

BlastRedeye

Careful_with_that_Axe wrote: »

I had a feeling that was the case that I was just unlucky, looks that way.

I'm on a very low income but rely on my car utterly so am gathering pennies as quickly as possible to get it done; just coz it passed the MOT one day doesn't mean it's a safe fix a few weeks down the line.
Had thought about getting them done one by one until I realised the driveshaft had to come out. D'Oh!!

Hope you came away from your adventure unscathed!

It was a lucky escape, lets put it that way. Especially as we were two thirds accross the roundabout picking up bits of fiesta with just me trying to lift the whole front of the car to push it backwards off the roundabout, in rush hour traffic in the rain.

It can be done reasonably easy by a mechanically minded friend if you have one. As mentioned parts are cheap, ask around friends of friends etc.

Fingers crossed you will be fine.

Barneysmom

You can use a kit like this one.............

http://www.carparts-direct.co.uk/home/cv-joint-boot-kit

which means you don't have to split the joint. It won't last as long as but will give you some saving-up time.

I don't know what garage you use but that quote seems very excessive to me.

Careful_with_that_Axe

The quote (£303 plus some pennies) was from a Honda Dealer - I go there as I trust them implicitly, but they probably aren't the cheapest. They quoted 3 hours labour.
I'll maybe have a shop around some other places and see if I can get quote down.

I am mechanically minded, independent and fairly good at DIY, so would love to do it myself, but unfortunately I have very little mobility and a general lack of strength and movement in my hands. Really frustrating! Mind you, I suspect having the right tools is a large part of the job and I certainly don't have them.

Thanks for all the help/suggestions. I had half wondered if there was a Vauxhall issue with CV Boots, but looks like I was just unlucky.

Blastredeye, sounds like something you wouldn't want to make a hobby of! Will take getting it done a lot more seriously now. Although it was my intention to address it, it's easy to put things like this to the back of your mind while the car seems to be running OK.

Careful_with_that_Axe

Barneysmom wrote: »

You can use a kit like this one.............

http://www.carparts-direct.co.uk/home/cv-joint-boot-kit

which means you don't have to split the joint. It won't last as long as but will give you some saving-up time.

I don't know what garage you use but that quote seems very excessive to me.

Thanks for that. Just taken a peek at the kit and I think that is the equivalent to the fix they did on it to get it through the MOT. They only charged me approx £22 for the fix, so think it was pretty good value for money.

Bongles

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

£300+ could be a bit on the high side.

The OP hasn't said, but I'd guess from that price, and from the fact that the boots were already split and so the CV joints presumably exposed to some extent, that the garage is quoting for replacing the driveshafts, not just the boots.

rev_henry

Careful_with_that_Axe wrote: »

The quote (£303 plus some pennies) was from a Honda Dealer - I go there as I trust them implicitly, but they probably aren't the cheapest. They quoted 3 hours labour.
I'll maybe have a shop around some other places and see if I can get quote down.

I am mechanically minded, independent and fairly good at DIY, so would love to do it myself, but unfortunately I have very little mobility and a general lack of strength and movement in my hands. Really frustrating! Mind you, I suspect having the right tools is a large part of the job and I certainly don't have them.

Thanks for all the help/suggestions. I had half wondered if there was a Vauxhall issue with CV Boots, but looks like I was just unlucky.

Blastredeye, sounds like something you wouldn't want to make a hobby of! Will take getting it done a lot more seriously now. Although it was my intention to address it, it's easy to put things like this to the back of your mind while the car seems to be running OK.

CV boots used to be a common thing on old corsas didn't they? I presume its still the case.

And yes find a local independent! Ask around for a trustworthy one. NOT Kwik Fit.

scheming_gypsy

Careful_with_that_Axe wrote: »

The quote (£303 plus some pennies) was from a Honda Dealer - I go there as I trust them implicitly, but they probably aren't the cheapest. They quoted 3 hours labour.
I'll maybe have a shop around some other places and see if I can get quote down.

.

that could explain it as main dealer labour charges can sometimes be horrendous. Although i work with somebody who claims his local Honda dealer charge about £13 an hour.