THE PORTAL HUB - Pinzgauers, Haflingers, Volvo 303s and more!

Ok, here we go again. I took the pinz today to the mechanic to have him go over it once more before getting it 100% ready to be shipped to south america. Once he was under it looking for any leaks or abnormalities, he found a cut on the front drivers side boot, It is not wide open but there is a cut on it. There is no oil leaking out of it at all, and does not seem to have leaked anything out of the cut.

1. Would I be damaging the pinz driving it around town with a cut book? How urgent should I change it?
2. Can it be something that can be taken care of in South America before they actually go off road with it?

Please Advice.

Super common. Lots of discussions about proper repair (sealed original) vs temporary (split boot). Most people replace with the split boot version as it doesnt require tear down to install. I keep a few extra on me at all times.

They are just a dust cover so its not extremely important to repair right away but stay out of dusty/muddy/sand until its fixed.

Ohhh, in regards to the split boot style - there are a few different quality boots out there. The lesser split on me in one season! I ordered a bunch from Expedition Imports and so far they are much more pliable.

1) Possibly. It depends on what kind of crud you find around your town. You haven't posted your location, but things like salt, sand, mud, etc. could cause problems. Urgency depends on your use. But, why wait?

2) Certainly a split boot could be installed, even sitting in the middle of a field. If you want a solid boot, there are some tools which would be darn handy but are not in the tool kit. Either way, it could be taken care of in S.A. I'd guess.

IMHO, if the truck's headed for action outside of the US, you should probably be carrying a few spare boots (and other parts too) with you. Obtaining parts would likely be more of a pain, once there.

While having new tires installed this morning, I noticed that one of my boots was kind of ripped up. A well informed source suggested going to Scott at EI as the quality of his replacement boots was likely superior to some of the other split boots floating around in the marketplace.

When I get the replacement boot, I'll check previously posts for any wisdom on the subject but my recollection about other's questions on this subject is the key feature is to clean up the area where the clamps go to ensure a tight seal.

Not to hijack the post but if there's anything else that jumps out at you with regards to boot replacement, perhaps y'all can weigh in now.

Thanks!