How to know if an axle is damaged?

Knowing if your car’s axle is damaged is crucial for maintaining safe driving conditions. According to a recent Google search, some clear signs your axle might be damaged include abnormal vibrations, loud noises, and issues with wheel alignment.

You probably don’t need us here at Urb’s Garage to tell you that driving on a broken axle is dangerous. Basically, your axle is a large bar that connects to the engine, steering system, transmission, and wheels. The engine and transmission transfer power to the axle and drive wheels. This is what makes your wheels turn. Most cars have two axles, but if you drive a heavy-duty truck or large SUV, you might have more. Here are signs that you have a broken axle.

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No Tire Rotation

The most common sign of a broken axle is that your tires won’t rotate. This might happen suddenly if your axle breaks while you’re driving, or it might happen when you’re trying to accelerate from a stop. No matter how much power and torque you try to send to the axle, it cannot rotate the wheels because it’s broken.

Hard to Accelerate

In some cases, you may still be able to drive on a broken axle, although we do not recommend it. Your wheels may rotate, but you may find yourself straining to get them to do so. If the axle is damaged or bent, you may find yourself pressing down much harder on your accelerator in an effort to get your vehicle going.

Clunking Noises

Another sign of a broken axle is unusual sounds. You may hear clunking or sputtering sounds, and you will hear this noise when your wheels begin to turn. In some cases, you may also hear when your axle breaks. You will hear a loud clunk. You can break an axle if you fly over a road hazard such as a pothole too quickly.

Wobbly Ride

There are many things that can make your wheels wobble while you drive. The wrong tire inflation, misaligned or unbalanced wheels, and even loose lug nuts can make the wheels wobble and your vehicle vibrate. If you have a wobbly ride all of a sudden accompanied by the other signs on this list, it’s possible that you’ve broken an axle.

Misaligned Brake Pads

Finally, if your axle is broken, the alignment between your brake pads, rotors, and wheels is going to be thrown off. Signs that your brake pads are not aligned properly include skidding or slipping to a stop. If you don’t have this problem addressed right away, you may actually lose the ability to stop your automobile.

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Urb’s Garage in Burlington, KY, can inspect your vehicle’s axles to ensure that they aren’t broken. If there is axle damage, we can fix it or, if we can’t, we can replace your axle. Call us today.

A vehicle does not get far, or anywhere if it has a damaged drive axle. Axles are rods or shafts that connect to the drive wheels. The main purpose of axles is to transfer power from the transmission to the wheels. As the axle turns, the wheels go around, and without a functioning axle, wheels do not move.

Axles also serve to bear the weight of the vehicle and its passengers and cargo. Even though axles are built to be tough, an overloaded vehicle can sometimes crack or break an axle. Bad carrier bearings or bad potholes are other common causes of axle problems.

There are four ways to tell if your car’s axles need repair. It is time to for professionals to check your vehicle if you encounter one of the following indicators of axle damage.

1. Bad Vibes
   Bad vehicle vibrations after a collision with a bad pothole, unexpected curb, or other objects may indicate axle damage. Vibrations may be accompanied by an unusual rumbling noise underneath the vehicle, strange tire wobbling, or sluggish driving and steering, which may indicate a bent axle. Vibrations may be particularly noticeable during accelerations, decelerations, or turns. If the vibrations are also apparent while driving at slow speeds, that is often a good indication that there is something wrong with an axle. Excessive or unusual vibrations can cause other issues with vehicle handling, comfort, and safety. If the axle is damaged enough to cause vibrations, it generally needs to be replaced.
2. A Loud Clanking, Clunking, or Clicking
   If there is an unusual loud clanking or clunking as you put your vehicle into gear, or if a vehicle seems to struggle to get power as it starts to move, there may be axle-joint damage. This kind of noise usually indicates that the transmission is unable to transfer power adequately to the wheels due to slack in the joints. A loud clanking or clunking noise can also be indicative of a transmission failure, and a professional assessment may be needed. When constant velocity axles fail, you may also hear an unusual clicking sound when turning the vehicle as joints become loose. These clicks are on the side of the faulty axle shaft and typically become noisier during sharp or fast turns.
3. Leaking Grease
   Leaking grease underneath the vehicle or on the inside tire edge can mean a leaking axle boot or CV boot, which is the rubber cover over the drive axle joint or CV joint. Though a leaking axle boot does not mean that the axle has been damaged yet, inadequate grease due to the leak can cause future problems. Dirt can also enter a joint through a broken joint cover and cause failure to the axle joint and/or axle. Axle boots and boot clamps should be inspected regularly for splits or leaks, and they are easily visible underneath a vehicle. A leaking axle boot should be repaired promptly to avoid a more serious failure to the axle system.
4. Going Nowhere Fast
   If a vehicle goes nowhere, even though it starts fine, goes into gear, and has a normal engine sound, it likely has a broken axle at the universal joint. In this case, no matter how much you press the accelerator pedal, the engine only revs, and the vehicle does not move. This is the classic situation of going nowhere fast, and the vehicle will not move until it is repaired.

It is important to be aware of the critical function of drive axles and have them inspected regularly during vehicle maintenance. Though perhaps not as commonly understood, axles are as important to a properly functioning vehicle and vehicle safety as the engine, steering system, brakes, and tires are. If an axle does get damaged, have a reputable technician repair it promptly.

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