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Driver's side axle won't come off

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by taupehat, Mar 29, 2021.

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  1. taupehat

    taupehat Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Santa Rosa, CA
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    2013 Prius
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    Two
    Hi all, I could use some help. I'm following the the steps on the 1A Auto video I'll link below, but I can't for the life of me get the axle to pop loose - everything is off of it but no matter how hard I lean into a 18" pry bar the thing just doesn't go. I've tried whacking it with a hammer, rotating the axle to another position, etc but so far no luck.

    What's the trick to removing this? I have to R&R the thing because the #@#^@#%!! spindle got stripped when I went to do a wheel hub, classic case of a job snowballing. Thanks!

    Here's the vid:
     
    #1 taupehat, Mar 29, 2021
  2. TMR-JWAP

    TMR-JWAP Senior Member

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    I've dealt with a few 'stuck' axles. The easiest way to get it out is to peel the boot back, (I use a dremel tool cutting wheel to cut the metal band, the brown lube will drain out, so have something ready for that) push the axle (three little rollers) as far into the CV joint housing as possible, lock a set of vice grips on the end of the CV joint housing to prevent the axle from coming out, and then use the axle as a slide hammer. Push it all the way into the housing and then pull it toward you quickly. The vice grips act as a mechanical stop that 'rollers' hit. It's amazing how quickly the whole assembly will just pop out.

    Best trick I ever learned.
     
    #2 TMR-JWAP, Mar 29, 2021
  3. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    An axle murderer.
     
    #3 ChapmanF, Mar 29, 2021
    taupehat likes this.
  4. taupehat

    taupehat Junior Member

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    2013 Prius
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    Two
    Finally got the thing off. While the approach TMR-JWAP offered would probably have worked well I didn't want to deal with the mess (I drained the transaxle anyhow since it was due for a fluid change). What worked for me was to get a piece of wood that just fit in the gap between the top of the fat part of the axle and the overhanging part of the transaxle. This meant the lever I was applying to the bottom of the axle didn't turn the spindle sideways and further wedge it in place. Still took a lot of force, but the thing did pop loose that way. Happy dances ensued.
     
    #4 taupehat, Mar 29, 2021
    Mohammed tamimi123 likes this.
  5. Mohammed tamimi123

    Mohammed tamimi123 New Member

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    Location:
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    2012 Prius v wagon
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    Four
    I gave up
    Whould not come out and don’t understand how u got it out u mean drain the transmission oil that would help I spend 6 hours no luck at
     
    #5 Mohammed tamimi123, Oct 18, 2022
  6. tak1313

    tak1313 Member

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    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    Some use this (attached to a slide hammer)
    upload_2022-10-19_14-37-21.png

    Some swear by this (axle popper):
    upload_2022-10-19_14-39-10.png
     
    #6 tak1313, Oct 19, 2022
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