[dfeldt91]

The drive shaft fell off because I assumed my friend tightened the bolts since he put that side back together after swapping the clutch. He assumed we were just finger tightening them at that point and didn't bother to tell me. I pulled in to the rest area for a break and backed up then put it in gear and it just revved as if the car was in neutral. It made a clunking sound so I assumed my new lug bolts were the issue and maybe one snapped. Looked at them and they were fine then got under the car and saw six 5/8" ball bearings on the ground...oops. The clunking ended up being the last bolt that was holding it together snapping since the others had already backed themselves out. It is a 1997 VW Golf. Cheap fix though, CV shaft was $15 at the junk yard and I only had to undo the large bolt at the end where the brakes are to get it out.

If the tires feel smooth at speeds of 60 mph then I would say they are close enough to not need to be balanced. At least I wouldn't bother. I paid $65 to get mine dismounted, cleaned, remounted, sealed and balanced for three tires. My new rims and tires were on a car that rolled so there was dirt in the bead causing them to lose air. They are doing well now though!

What were you getting before the tires mpg wise??