Hi there. Fluid is leaking from where the driveshaft goes into my rear diff.
I'm assuming that this means my pinion seal is shot. Is this a difficult
job? The garage I use doesn't want to do it as they can't guarantee it won't
leak afterwards. Currently I have to add a little fluid every 1k miles, but
if changing the seal isn't difficult then I'll go ahead and do it.

If anyone has done this and can offer advice I would appreciate hearing it.

Thanks.

Will

 

Before you do this job you want to check the pinion shaft for excessive side
play. If there is excessive side play then the bearing preload must be
adjusted and this makes it a more difficult and involved job. Many times
the seal goes bad by itself, but many times also it is just a symptom of a
problem with the bearings.

That said it is not a real bad job if you follow the instructions in a good
service manual. You might need a puller to get the yoke off the pinion
shaft, and some other special tools. If you are clever you can fabricate
these yourself. Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
bearings, etc. at their cost.

Earle

"William Pughe" <wlp@ll.mit.edu> wrote in message
news:x54qym9hd0.fsf@ll.mit.edu...
> Hi there. Fluid is leaking from where the driveshaft goes into my rear
diff.
> I'm assuming that this means my pinion seal is shot. Is this a difficult
> job? The garage I use doesn't want to do it as they can't guarantee it
won't
> leak afterwards. Currently I have to add a little fluid every 1k miles,
but
> if changing the seal isn't difficult then I'll go ahead and do it.
>
> If anyone has done this and can offer advice I would appreciate hearing
it.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Will

 

Before you do this job you want to check the pinion shaft for excessive side
play. If there is excessive side play then the bearing preload must be
adjusted and this makes it a more difficult and involved job. Many times
the seal goes bad by itself, but many times also it is just a symptom of a
problem with the bearings.

That said it is not a real bad job if you follow the instructions in a good
service manual. You might need a puller to get the yoke off the pinion
shaft, and some other special tools. If you are clever you can fabricate
these yourself. Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
bearings, etc. at their cost.

Earle

"William Pughe" <wlp@ll.mit.edu> wrote in message
news:x54qym9hd0.fsf@ll.mit.edu...
> Hi there. Fluid is leaking from where the driveshaft goes into my rear
diff.
> I'm assuming that this means my pinion seal is shot. Is this a difficult
> job? The garage I use doesn't want to do it as they can't guarantee it
won't
> leak afterwards. Currently I have to add a little fluid every 1k miles,
but
> if changing the seal isn't difficult then I'll go ahead and do it.
>
> If anyone has done this and can offer advice I would appreciate hearing
it.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Will

 

Before you do this job you want to check the pinion shaft for excessive side
play. If there is excessive side play then the bearing preload must be
adjusted and this makes it a more difficult and involved job. Many times
the seal goes bad by itself, but many times also it is just a symptom of a
problem with the bearings.

That said it is not a real bad job if you follow the instructions in a good
service manual. You might need a puller to get the yoke off the pinion
shaft, and some other special tools. If you are clever you can fabricate
these yourself. Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
bearings, etc. at their cost.

Earle

"William Pughe" <wlp@ll.mit.edu> wrote in message
news:x54qym9hd0.fsf@ll.mit.edu...
> Hi there. Fluid is leaking from where the driveshaft goes into my rear
diff.
> I'm assuming that this means my pinion seal is shot. Is this a difficult
> job? The garage I use doesn't want to do it as they can't guarantee it
won't
> leak afterwards. Currently I have to add a little fluid every 1k miles,
but
> if changing the seal isn't difficult then I'll go ahead and do it.
>
> If anyone has done this and can offer advice I would appreciate hearing
it.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Will

 

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately not only is fluid leaking out, water
is leaking in. It's riding a lot quieter today now that it actually has
lube in the diff:)

"Earle Horton" <enfermero_diabolico@registerednurses.com> writes:

> Before you do this job you want to check the pinion shaft for excessive side
> play. If there is excessive side play then the bearing preload must be
> adjusted and this makes it a more difficult and involved job. Many times
> the seal goes bad by itself, but many times also it is just a symptom of a
> problem with the bearings.
>
> That said it is not a real bad job if you follow the instructions in a good
> service manual. You might need a puller to get the yoke off the pinion
> shaft, and some other special tools. If you are clever you can fabricate
> these yourself. Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
> in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
> ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
> van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
> bearings, etc. at their cost.
>
> Earle
>
> "William Pughe" <wlp@ll.mit.edu> wrote in message
> news:x54qym9hd0.fsf@ll.mit.edu...
> > Hi there. Fluid is leaking from where the driveshaft goes into my rear
> diff.
> > I'm assuming that this means my pinion seal is shot. Is this a difficult
> > job? The garage I use doesn't want to do it as they can't guarantee it
> won't
> > leak afterwards. Currently I have to add a little fluid every 1k miles,
> but
> > if changing the seal isn't difficult then I'll go ahead and do it.
> >
> > If anyone has done this and can offer advice I would appreciate hearing
> it.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > Will

 

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately not only is fluid leaking out, water
is leaking in. It's riding a lot quieter today now that it actually has
lube in the diff:)

"Earle Horton" <enfermero_diabolico@registerednurses.com> writes:

> Before you do this job you want to check the pinion shaft for excessive side
> play. If there is excessive side play then the bearing preload must be
> adjusted and this makes it a more difficult and involved job. Many times
> the seal goes bad by itself, but many times also it is just a symptom of a
> problem with the bearings.
>
> That said it is not a real bad job if you follow the instructions in a good
> service manual. You might need a puller to get the yoke off the pinion
> shaft, and some other special tools. If you are clever you can fabricate
> these yourself. Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
> in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
> ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
> van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
> bearings, etc. at their cost.
>
> Earle
>
> "William Pughe" <wlp@ll.mit.edu> wrote in message
> news:x54qym9hd0.fsf@ll.mit.edu...
> > Hi there. Fluid is leaking from where the driveshaft goes into my rear
> diff.
> > I'm assuming that this means my pinion seal is shot. Is this a difficult
> > job? The garage I use doesn't want to do it as they can't guarantee it
> won't
> > leak afterwards. Currently I have to add a little fluid every 1k miles,
> but
> > if changing the seal isn't difficult then I'll go ahead and do it.
> >
> > If anyone has done this and can offer advice I would appreciate hearing
> it.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > Will

 

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately not only is fluid leaking out, water
is leaking in. It's riding a lot quieter today now that it actually has
lube in the diff:)

"Earle Horton" <enfermero_diabolico@registerednurses.com> writes:

> Before you do this job you want to check the pinion shaft for excessive side
> play. If there is excessive side play then the bearing preload must be
> adjusted and this makes it a more difficult and involved job. Many times
> the seal goes bad by itself, but many times also it is just a symptom of a
> problem with the bearings.
>
> That said it is not a real bad job if you follow the instructions in a good
> service manual. You might need a puller to get the yoke off the pinion
> shaft, and some other special tools. If you are clever you can fabricate
> these yourself. Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
> in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
> ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
> van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
> bearings, etc. at their cost.
>
> Earle
>
> "William Pughe" <wlp@ll.mit.edu> wrote in message
> news:x54qym9hd0.fsf@ll.mit.edu...
> > Hi there. Fluid is leaking from where the driveshaft goes into my rear
> diff.
> > I'm assuming that this means my pinion seal is shot. Is this a difficult
> > job? The garage I use doesn't want to do it as they can't guarantee it
> won't
> > leak afterwards. Currently I have to add a little fluid every 1k miles,
> but
> > if changing the seal isn't difficult then I'll go ahead and do it.
> >
> > If anyone has done this and can offer advice I would appreciate hearing
> it.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > Will

 

On Mon, 6 Oct 2003 16:01:48 -0600, "Earle Horton"
<enfermero_diabolico@registerednurses.com> wrote:

> Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
>in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
>ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
>van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
>bearings, etc. at their cost.

This didn't happen because they took the yoke off with a hammer. It
happened because when they put the flange back on they tightened it
too much, crushed the crush sleeve beyond limits and increased the
preload on the pinion bearings.
They probably had to replace the carrier bearings and gears because
they were damaged by all the metal floating around in there that came
off the pinion bearings that came apart.
--
Old Crow
'82 Shovelhead FLT 92" 'Pearl'
'95 Jeep YJ Rio Grande
ASE Certified Master Auto Tech + L1
TOMKAT, BS#133, SENS, MAMBM

 

On Mon, 6 Oct 2003 16:01:48 -0600, "Earle Horton"
<enfermero_diabolico@registerednurses.com> wrote:

> Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
>in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
>ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
>van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
>bearings, etc. at their cost.

This didn't happen because they took the yoke off with a hammer. It
happened because when they put the flange back on they tightened it
too much, crushed the crush sleeve beyond limits and increased the
preload on the pinion bearings.
They probably had to replace the carrier bearings and gears because
they were damaged by all the metal floating around in there that came
off the pinion bearings that came apart.
--
Old Crow
'82 Shovelhead FLT 92" 'Pearl'
'95 Jeep YJ Rio Grande
ASE Certified Master Auto Tech + L1
TOMKAT, BS#133, SENS, MAMBM

 

On Mon, 6 Oct 2003 16:01:48 -0600, "Earle Horton"
<enfermero_diabolico@registerednurses.com> wrote:

> Many people like to use a hammer to get the yoke off, but
>in my opinion this is a bad idea as you can damage the bearings or even the
>ring and pinion with this method. A "Five Star" Dodge dealer did this to a
>van that I owned and later wound up replacing the ring and pinion, carrier
>bearings, etc. at their cost.

This didn't happen because they took the yoke off with a hammer. It
happened because when they put the flange back on they tightened it
too much, crushed the crush sleeve beyond limits and increased the
preload on the pinion bearings.
They probably had to replace the carrier bearings and gears because
they were damaged by all the metal floating around in there that came
off the pinion bearings that came apart.
--
Old Crow
'82 Shovelhead FLT 92" 'Pearl'
'95 Jeep YJ Rio Grande
ASE Certified Master Auto Tech + L1
TOMKAT, BS#133, SENS, MAMBM