My front left wheel hub has been leaking Demand Drive fluid for the past two years despite my best efforts to fix it. History is available here for reference:
http://forums.atvconnection.com/pola...nside-pls.html

As a result of those failed efforts, I've decided to now try replacing the entire front left hubstrut housing assembly. My question for the board is what else should I do/replace/consider while I have the front end torn apart for this repair?

- I'm already planning to buy a CV boot kit and replace the outer boot, just based on age. It's original.
- Should I also plan to replace the strut? I've never seen it leak oil, and not 100% sure how to fully test it. But based on it being 14 years old and ~2,500 miles, I think it would make sense to replace it anyway. Is it OK to just replace this side, or do I have to replace both the FL & FR?
- What about the original springs? Again, I haven't really had any issues... but are the springs a "wear" item, and does it make sense to just replace them while the bike is already apart?
- I don't have a winch or plow, only front tubular bumper, and the quad is used for fun/aggressive trail riding (somewhat high speed). I don't want to lose the Cadillac ride, but it may be nice to go with a slightly heavier duty spring - JIC I do want to put a plow on, etc. Would you guys recommend sticking with new OE springs (64-113# progressives), or move to something like an EPI WE320000 (77-132#) or 7041674-067 (80-120#)?

Anything else I'm missing? Trying not to spend a small fortune on a 14 year old quad, but I also don't want to put a bunch of 14 yo stuff back in and then have to re-rip into it next year when things fail.

 

After reading over all what you've done in the past,replace the strut assembly! Sometimes better to just bite the bullet. Struts don't last forever as the inner pole is what can grind down enough that most people don't notice also and makes life tough on repair/rebuilds. If the springs still felt good,you can reuse them,but if in doubt,replace them both. Choice is yours as to std or heavy duty springs.Again on the drive shaft if it has a lot of back and forth play on the cv joints,might be time to replace them after 14 years. All this can save you more pain trying to repair them,but is a pain in the wallet.. As your last lines said,you didn't a want to spend a fortune,but didn't want to put 14 year old stuff back in. I think you've reached that point. Either replace with new parts or start looking for a newer machine.

 

Thanks for the response OPT. A couple more questions:

1) Is there a proper way to test the CV for too much play? I assume this is rotational play, not in & out along the driveline axis? e.g. Can I just reach under the quad w/ it on the ground and try to rotate the 2 front axles? Or is assessment more involved?

2) Is the best option, if the CV is showing wear, to replace the entire front driveshaft (pn# 2200961) * 2? That's painful @ $300 ea.

3) If I replace the strut housing and the strut itself on the left front, do I need to replace the strut on the right front side too? e.g. will it hurt anything to have a new strut on one side, and a 14 old one on the other? I'm talking about the "shock"/dampener specifically - pn# 7041761.

 

Here is a good video one the insides of the Polaris CV joint. When I rip a boot I take the CV apart and clean and repack them with grease. Once a boot rips and sand gets in its a good thing to do.
Also you can really check the true condition of the CV joint rather then the shake the wheel test.

Its a shame Polaris does not sell CV alone instead of buying the whole $300 axle. Maybe there is a aftermarket stand alone CV out there?

Your front end may sit a little lop sided with a fresh taunt spring on one side and a 14 year old spring on the other. One of these spring stiffener on the old spring may help even it out.

 

Good video on taking a cv apart,but he didn't get far enough into checking for wear in the channels of the main cv body. This where a lot of the play happens and wear is also. If there is a lot of back and forth slack in the channel area after a dry refit with the shaft,it's going to start click clacking. Rear cvs were the worst on this because of constant load on them,not so much on the front drive shafts that free wheeled most of the time.

 

Adding the heavy duty springs can really help to stablize the ride. I was amazed how much better my machine felt when having the HD springs....

 

That was the was the first thing I did with my Sportsman was add 4 HD springs, it was a incredible difference.