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JKwock's avatar
JKwock
Explorer
Apr 30, 2017

Cracked Rear Axle on 5er

Pulled into a fast food place on my way home from Kernville and noticed my rear axle was cracked which made my rear tire protrude out. It was cracked at the u bolt where the leaf springs meet.

Luckily, I noticed it when parked so I pulled the tire off and slowly drove it 1 mile to a possible mechanic. The axle luckily did not come off while driving.

WHAT COULD CAUSE SOMETHING LIKE THAT?

Now that one axle cracked, should I be weary of the other axle. I believe there must be extra force at the u bolt so maybe a leaf spring linkage went out? Lets see what the mechanic says tomorrow. I have to remind him that rv axles have a camber in them.

Jason
  • Veebyes's avatar
    Veebyes
    Explorer II
    May 01, 2017
    Hope the repair goes well.

    An axle by itself is not an expensive thing. With the tools, You Tube & maybe a bit of help from the DW it could be an at home job taking a day. Less if you are very familiar with doing that type of work & Murphy does not stop by to help. He usually does.
  • JKwock's avatar
    JKwock
    Explorer
    May 03, 2017
    Picking up the 5er tomorrow. $575.00. The broken axle was taken off and sent to "Sample Axels" where there are going to cut it to the same size as my old one because the original one they shipped was not the right size. I guess axle lengths are not standard? Luckily the axle shop is local because it is only adding two days to the original pick up day.


    Jason
  • JKwock's avatar
    JKwock
    Explorer
    May 04, 2017
    Picked up the 5er today and everything felt fine. Question though? When they replaced my axle, were the bearings automatically regreased?

    Jason
  • pointrow's avatar
    pointrow
    Explorer
    May 04, 2017
    JKwock wrote:
    Picking up the 5er tomorrow. $575.00. The broken axle was taken off and sent to "Sample Axels" where there are going to cut it to the same size as my old one because the original one they shipped was not the right size. I guess axle lengths are not standard? Luckily the axle shop is local because it is only adding two days to the original pick up day.


    Jason

    I think that price was reasonable. You lucked out with a good shop if the work was done right.

    pointrow
  • Veebyes's avatar
    Veebyes
    Explorer II
    May 05, 2017
    Back to original question, perhaps the rig was jacked up by the axle at some point weakening it, perhaps starting the crack. Over time with wear & tear it expanded to become a real problem.

    You will never know.
  • Ron3rd's avatar
    Ron3rd
    Explorer III
    May 05, 2017
    Sounds like a good job by a good shop at a fair price

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