Well, I took my EXT in for an oil change yesterday at the caddy dealer. They did the inspection *part of the service*, and noted on the checklist that I had front torn cv joints/boots?..

I asked the guy if it needs to be replaced and he said that it won't hurt anything or effect anything. So to not worry about it and leave it alone for now.

So what do you guys think? I am not a mechanic and not sure if this is okay or not? It wont kill me on the road right? lol

Should not be an issue. :)

Hell yea Ide fix it. the boot covers the joint that the axle pivots on when it rotates. the boot also holds the grease in that lubricates the bearings in the joint. if not repaired the gease gets flung all over the place when the axle rotates at high rpm's & also alows dirt to get into the joint and damage the bearings. so fix it now or buy a axle later.

CV joint boots don't make it through the winter around here and many, many people have found out the hard way that everything that happens after that is bad. CV joints and axles are big business in the far north. Ignore split CV joint boots at your peril. You have been warned.

I'm in California and my left CV boot was torn for many months in the middle of winter. I eventually changed it when I had some spare time, but the only disadvantage I experienced was the constant spitting grease and mess it made. I think that was my main motivation to get under there to change it ASAP before it made a bigger mess.

The joint gets contaminated with sand and pebbles thrown up by the tires. The first clue that something is going wrong is loud clicking while making turns. The next clue is the shimmy that about takes the steering wheel out of your hands.

The joint gets contaminated with sand and pebbles thrown up by the tires. The first clue that something is going wrong is loud clicking while making turns. The next clue is the shimmy that about takes the steering wheel out of your hands.

You are exactly right. I got light clicking before replacing mine. Fortunately, I never lost my steering. Its an easy fix.

A CV joint is a giant, expensive bearing. If you leave it open to the elements you will ruin it.
The grease will get flung out, then you will be driving with a giant bearing with no lubrication.
Drive in the rain you are filling it with water, dirt, road grime.
Does that sound like something you want to ignore?
Call a few parts stores and price a front halfshaft or two, then think about all the money you might "save" by ignoring it.

Of course a lot of it depends on how "bad" the leak is.
A pinhole can wait a while, a torn open boot... better get it done.

I have experience some clunking noises only at wide turns already. Kinda sounds like something is "loose" up front? I spoke with the gm service dealer and they said it might be the intermediate shaft, but they are not sure. Since my schedule is booked, they told me to bring it back when I get a chance for them to get a "better" look.

So you think its the cv joints going out then? They listed on the comment notes that the cv joints are torn, but told me its okay and not to worry about it? So if something bad happens that is related to it, will they be liable? My warranty is up. I past 50K miles...

I live in the NW where it rains, etc a lot! When I get a chance, i'll take it to the dealer again and have them fix it. I just dont understand why they would even tell me its okay to drive and not to worry about it then?

I don't know why they would tell you that either.

There is a new intermediate shaft for a clunking noise that you can feel in the steering column on turns. A bad joint would be rhythmic and regular if it were going bad. They are pretty tough, but left unattended they will destroy themselves with no grease in them.

It might be a pinhole type leak, "torn" is a generic term... it may not actually be torn.