E30 Axle Shaft: OEM, OES or Rebuild

[Maddog]

Bimmerheads,

It appears GKN axles have become unavailable or if available, is way overpriced. Only option on new axles is China made ones not considered OEM or finding a place that can rebuild mine.

For the life of me I have not found a shop in Northern California that rebuilds CV axle shops; several in SoCal and know of one vendor who only sources using original BMW shafts to rebuild.

What have your experience been with the China produced ones; Trakmotive, GSP, etc. My “is” is stock with exception to the suspension and minor engine upgrades (S50 rods and JB aluminum flywheel); I don’t track it but occasionally auto cross and spirited driving.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

[MrBurgundy]

Rebuilders tend to only rebuild OE

my guy won’t even take a china PDL for a core.

I didn’t have an oe option when I replaced mine.

[McGyver]

I tossed a set of cheap chinese axels in my car because the whole unit was the same price as buying boots and grease for a rebuild. I ran them for ~8 years until the car was totaled.

If you need a quick solution, tossing a set of cheap axels in isn't a bad idea. Just keep your OE axels in case you want to rebuild later.

[82eye]

rebuild the originals if you can. if you use cheap axles replace the boots before install. chinese rubber is notoriously awful. most times the axles aren't too bad but the boots fail in few hundred kilometers and axles go shortly after.