Grease on rear wheels???
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 1,884
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From: Walnut CA
Grease on rear wheels???
I took my car in for an alignment today and the shop confirmed something that I thought I saw when I washed my car last. Their is this grease that is stuck to the inside of my rear wheels on both sides all the way around. I tried to wash it off but its really stuck on there good. I'm just worried that the grease is coming off of my car... Where might the grease be coming from? Or am I being paranoid and maybe I drove through icky stuff?
Racer
Joined: Jun 2000
Posts: 481
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From: Troy MI
Originally Posted by Paras
I took my car in for an alignment today and the shop confirmed something that I thought I saw when I washed my car last. Their is this grease that is stuck to the inside of my rear wheels on both sides all the way around. I tried to wash it off but its really stuck on there good. I'm just worried that the grease is coming off of my car... Where might the grease be coming from? Or am I being paranoid and maybe I drove through icky stuff?
Sounds like the CV joint boots might be are ripped and the grease is being expelled while your driving.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,347
Likes: 4
From: Slidell La
Is it grease or road tar? I have driven through road construction and had a lot of tar on the inside of the wheel. Tough to clean out and it is rather hard. If you have "grease" on both wheels,, it might be tar.
Pro
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 586
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From: Idabel OK
Originally Posted by louzon
Sounds like the CV joint boots might be are ripped and the grease is being expelled while your driving.
thats it. Just happened to me no more than a month ago. Whitish colored grease all over the inside of the wheel.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 1,884
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From: Walnut CA
Thanks for the all the replies... The grease is dark (not white)--look like its mixed with mud and just formed a sludge... I hope its not coming from the CV boot... the dealer just replaced one of them a month ago...
By the way, what makes a CV boot go bad anyways?
And how would you know if the rear end is leaking? Does my car need Depends?
By the way, what makes a CV boot go bad anyways?
And how would you know if the rear end is leaking? Does my car need Depends?
Last edited by Paras; May 1, 2005 at 04:01 PM.
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Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2003
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From: Walnut CA
Originally Posted by jimcork1
Is it grease or road tar? I have driven through road construction and had a lot of tar on the inside of the wheel. Tough to clean out and it is rather hard. If you have "grease" on both wheels,, it might be tar.
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Originally Posted by Paras
Thanks for the all the replies... The grease is dark (not white)--look like its mixed with mud and just formed a sludge... I hope its not coming from the CV boot... the dealer just replaced one of them a month ago...
By the way, what makes a CV boot go bad anyways?
And how would you know if the rear end is leaking? Does my car need Depends?
By the way, what makes a CV boot go bad anyways?
And how would you know if the rear end is leaking? Does my car need Depends?
you look under there and you will know...if its isn't on the floor it will be on the leaf spring
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2003
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From: Walnut CA
Originally Posted by pewter99
you look under there and you will know...if its isn't on the floor it will be on the leaf spring
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2000
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From: Chicago
If you pop the wheel off you should be able to get a better idea of what it is. It is sounding like the cv boot though. The grease in there is thick and greenish in color. It could also be a ball joint end cover which would produce less grease.
Good Luck with it.
Good Luck with it.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,347
Likes: 4
From: Slidell La
If you inspect the cv boots by rotating the wheel you should be able to see a tear or defect in the boots.
Now lets consider the probability of both boots failing at the same time after you just had them replaced. It is possible, but then I would expect that you would see a defect.
One other option is to clean the wheels and continue to drive and see if it returns.
Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmm...If it doesn't I would wonder where it came from?.
Now lets consider the probability of both boots failing at the same time after you just had them replaced. It is possible, but then I would expect that you would see a defect.
One other option is to clean the wheels and continue to drive and see if it returns.
Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmm...If it doesn't I would wonder where it came from?.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2003
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From: Walnut CA
Thanks guys, I'll let you know what happens. I'm trying to figure out what I'm going to use to get the gunk off (suggestions?). The guy at the tire shop said to be careful in what I use cause I could damage the wheels. I tried soap and water and a cloth but it feels like it will take forever to get it off that way...
I also got to learn what a CV boot is and what it looks like...
(myself) And just for clarity, the dealer only replaced on CV boot
I also got to learn what a CV boot is and what it looks like...
(myself) And just for clarity, the dealer only replaced on CV boot
Last edited by Paras; May 2, 2005 at 02:31 PM.
Supporting Vendor
Joined: Jul 2003
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From: http://www.mphparts.com 800-364-1975
It's your CV boot for sure. I had the same problem on my car and the grease was not white colored, it was dark... and sort of hard to get off.
I have been carefully using engine degreaser and lots of water to get it off.
I have been carefully using engine degreaser and lots of water to get it off.
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You can use Orange Clean or any citrus based cleaner safely also maybe some Dawn dish soap and water
Instructor
Joined: Oct 2002
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From: Cologne Germany
The grease in the wheel bearings is (almost) white. I first had the white grease inside one wheel. It happened after three laps on the Nuerburgring in very hot weather last August. So obviously some grease had gotten very hot and been blown out somewhere. There was quite a bit of pretty hard white grease inside the wheel.
It was impossible to find where it had come from, there was nothing on the CV boot.
Then the car got louder and louder while driving. It wasn't screeching yet, but some bearing was obviously getting noisy.
Replacing the wheel bearing fixed the problem.
If the grease is dark, it may have been there for a while and just gotten dirty. If it is fairly new, it certainly isn't from the wheel bearing, since that is white.
If it was the CV boot, how would you fix it? is there a replacement boot?
Till
It was impossible to find where it had come from, there was nothing on the CV boot.
Then the car got louder and louder while driving. It wasn't screeching yet, but some bearing was obviously getting noisy.
Replacing the wheel bearing fixed the problem.
If the grease is dark, it may have been there for a while and just gotten dirty. If it is fairly new, it certainly isn't from the wheel bearing, since that is white.
If it was the CV boot, how would you fix it? is there a replacement boot?
Till
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,347
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From: Slidell La
I clean the inside of my wheels by wiping all the excess,, then soft sponge with car wash soap the inside of the wheel. WD40 takes off the road tar and contaminates without hurting the wheel. I don't use anything but a soft cloth and very mild soap on the outside visible wheel surfaces. Just cleaned the wife MB wheels yesterday. 
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 4,148
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From: Roxbury NJ
Like the others, been there done that. It's definitely the CV boots leaking. The grease, at least on my 03, is black and looks like tar. It really sticks to the inside of the wheel. I cleaned it off with rags, simple green, and some patience. Don't get any cleaner on the face of the wheel.
Look at where the axle connects inside your wheel. On that joint, there's a rubber cover that looks like an accordian. That's the CV boot, and it's leaking. GM sells replacement boots, as do other axle shops.
Look at where the axle connects inside your wheel. On that joint, there's a rubber cover that looks like an accordian. That's the CV boot, and it's leaking. GM sells replacement boots, as do other axle shops.
Last edited by Flareside; May 3, 2005 at 11:39 AM.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 1,884
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From: Walnut CA
Awesome how many responses I get...
Thanks guys--I will take a look and report back... I haven't heard any unusual sounds from the car... I'll try cleaning the wheels and we'll see what happens.
Thanks guys--I will take a look and report back... I haven't heard any unusual sounds from the car... I'll try cleaning the wheels and we'll see what happens.
