Fix your Axle and Differential

When it comes about the safety of your vehicle, one thing that cannot be neglected is the axle of your car. Considered as one of the most important parts of the car like brakes, axles are responsible for holding the entire weight of your vehicle. Axles are connected to the wheels of the vehicle and in some cases play a vital role in driving your vehicle. In some cars, axles form an integral part of the steering system.

Defining Differential
Often, people think that axle is a bar between two wheels as seen in a train car. However, the truth is something else, most of the axles are complex unlike the ones seen in trains. These days, most of the axles are split axles, meaning the wheel on each side is attached to a separate shaft. This kind of attachment, allows independent suspension of the left and right wheels for a smoother ride. Apart from it, this also lets the left and right wheels to rotate at different speeds when the automobile turns to improve traction by extending tire life, this is known as the differential.

Protective Covering for Axles
In most cars, axle is connected by the wheel to the CV joint and that in turn is covered by a CV joint boot, a protective flexible covering. Make sure that the boot is not leaking or cracked, as that can cause leakage in brake fluid resulting in serious damage to the CV joints.

Detecting Axle Damage
One of the most ways to detect axle damage is the axle shaft noise. You can easily distinguish this from gear noise, as it occurs in all the driving modes. Mentioned below are some other ways to detect axle damage.

• Tip-in moans of resonance vibrations occurring from stressed engine or driveline flexible modes or exhaust system.
• Vibrations caused from various unbalanced rotating parts of the vehicle.
• Resonance vibrations of the frame and body structures due to rotating of unbalanced parts.

Detecting Differential Leakage
Repairing differential leakage can be done only if you know how to detect it, so here are some simple ways by which you can detect a differential leakage in a vehicle.

• If your car doesn't go into any gear.
• If your car's clutch doesn't work smoothly.
• If your car has a manual transmission and the engine produces a speeding up sound when it is really not speeding up.
• If your clutch pedal stays on the floor.
• If you hear a knocking noise at low speed.

Steps for Axle and Differential Repair
Though repairing axle and differential of a vehicle is not a tough task if done in a proper way. Have a look at the tasks involved for repairing axle and differential in a vehicle.

• Removal
• Disassembly
• Cleaning/ Inspection
• Assembly
• Installation
• Follow-on Maintenance

You are sure to detect when your vehicle needs an axle and differential repair by keeping the above-discussed points in mind. Remember, that axle and differential repair for any car can only be done, one you are sure of detecting any such damage while driving your car.