Passat 35i: Disassembling Right Driveshaft/Halfshaft

Dear DIY enthusiasts,

Can the inner bearing of the right driveshaft be replaced without a hydraulic press on a VW Passat 35i? Etzold says that the inner bearing can only be separated from the shaft using a press and must also be pressed back on. I would be very grateful for any suggestions.

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Is it possible to replace the inner bearing of the right driveshaft on a VW Passat 35i without a hydraulic press, and without professional help?

Normally, the joint is simply attached and secured with a retaining ring.

Hi.

You don't need a press for that; just a few hammer blows once the retaining ring is removed, and it should come right off.

Best regards, Rüdi.

Dear DIY enthusiasts,

There's still another problem: My parts supplier informed me that the bearing on the transmission side cannot be purchased separately. You either have to buy a completely rebuilt shaft or a used one. Also, on relevant websites, you can't find any inner bearings for sale for my 35i (although there are plenty of outer joints available).

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My parts supplier informed me that the bearing on the transmission side cannot be purchased individually.

Part number: 357 498 350X, costs approximately 138.- including VAT for exchange at .

Our still has the old pharmacy prices. At the nice online auction house with the "e" at the beginning, I can get the entire set for 110€ in exchange, with a 2-year warranty. In that case, it's not worth disassembling it.

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In that case, it's not worth disassembling it.

Well, I'm not so sure about that. Give me some feedback on how long it lasted.

'A perfect example: a colleague bought a spark plug for a Polo 6N. It costs a good 100 at the official dealer, around 80 at an aftermarket supplier, and 26 including shipping on eBay, with a 2-year warranty.'

muah hahaha
This thing didn't even start. I could encourage him to throw it in the trash and write off the 26 (euros). This is the last, and truly the very last, piece of junk they're selling. I once bought tie rod ends for a Golf 3 for a cheap price, but they were broken after less than 6 months.

I am healed.

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At the nice online auction house with the "e" at the beginning, I can get the entire set for €110, including a 2-year warranty. In that case, it's not worth disassembling it.

You can just leave the old wave in place and throw your money down the drain – it's essentially the same thing, with the difference being that you don't have to install the new wave.
"Spidan" joints or shafts (available on the open market) can be used instead. A former drawback: the boots are not very good.

A more cost-effective solution: you swap all the joints from one side to the other. This way, the joints will be loaded on the unused, rear side of the track.
The success rate is approximately 80%.

BM wrote:

A more cost-effective solution: you swap all the joints from one side to the other. In this way, the joints are then loaded on the pristine back side of the track. The success rate is approximately 80%.

Okay, you guys have convinced me. There's a junkyard around the corner, and thanks to this whole "scrap car" nonsense, I bought a starter motor there for 50 euros. He told me that I can exchange it as many times as my car lives, in case it ever stops working.

I called my parts supplier again, and to my surprise, the information I had received earlier that the inner bearing wasn't sold was incorrect. It would have cost around 80 euros. However, I decided to avoid the hassle of disassembling everything.

@BM:
Unfortunately, I can't swap both shafts/bearings on my Passat because they have completely different diameters and lengths. On my older model from 1985, this worked and actually had success for tens of thousands of kilometers.

It would be interesting to know what actually happens when the seal fails and dirt gets into the joint. Could the driveshaft suddenly fail as a result? In my old Passat, worn-out wheel bearings were noticeable through vibrations when accelerating in curves. What happens with defective inner bearings? Probably, everything lasts much longer than you might think...

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Unfortunately, swapping both shafts/bearings doesn't work on my Passat, as both shafts have completely different diameters and lengths.

On my older model from 1985, this did work and actually had success for a few tens of thousands of kilometers.

I only meant to replace the joints, not the entire shaft.

If the inner joints fail, vibrations usually occur under load because the length compensation no longer functions correctly. If you then swap them from right to left, it will vibrate when driving in reverse }.