99 Elantra, front CV boots rebuildable?

I was replacing the brakes on my GF's Elantra and saw that the outer CV
boots are torn.
Does Hyundai sell just an outer CV boot replacement kit, or do I need to buy
a whole axle assembly? my other choice would be to get a rebuilt axle and
turn in my cores I guess... The joints arn't clicking, yet.

 

I just replaced the axles on my 2001 this saturday. No core charge on the
axles, got them for about $70 each brand new. replacement took less than 3
hours for both (I flushed the brakes, and replaced the rotors while I had
the wheels off, otherwise I'd have been done much sooner)

I'd rate the job as "easier than it sounds", check a chiltons/haynes manual

 

My experience has been that it's much more of a hassle to replace the
outer joints than to replace the halfshafts and there's not much
difference in price. Considering the age of the car, that seems like the
prudent thing to do.

 

Dealer will sell you a boot kit. No problem.

 

It's not dificult to replace the boots just messy.
YOU will need new bands for the inboard boot as well as the outer boot
kit. Pull the axel, slide the inner boot back, remove the snap ring pull
the inner end off. Then you can replace the outer boot, reassemble the
inner & your all set. YOU will need the special tool to tignten the axel
boot clamps I would also order new axel retainer
clips--- order at least a week ahead of time from your dealer

 

While that all sounds relatively simple, it doesn't address the
contamination of the outer joint. Once a boot has torn or split, water,
dirt and other contaminants get into the joint and will eventually
destroy it, if they haven't already. Additionally, sliding the new boot
along the halfshaft is a guaranteed way to drag dirt and rust into the
joint. Also, by pulling the boot back on the inner joint, you're risking
contaminating it, too, which is a strong possibility if you're working
under the car. If you're going to do the job right, it requires pulling
the halfshaft off the car, completely the entire assembly of dirt and
rust, cleaning both joints of all grease (and any contaminants that may
be in it), installing the new boot(s), greasing the joints, then sealing
them.

In other words, it's much faster and a LOT less hassle to simply pop in
a new halfshaft after pulling the old one out. More importantly, you
KNOW that the joints are free of contamination and should last for tens
of thousands of miles, at least.

 

True Just trying to show him it is alot of work for the little bit of
savings