Rear Wheel Seals....

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R1Kirby

R1Kirby

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I'm not sure where to post this...I have 95 Bounder on a ford chassis with 60,000 mile on it. I had the rear seals on the duels replaced. 4 months later they were leaking again. They were replaced again at a different dealer. Now 3 months later they are leaking again. I am wondering what is going on. Any thoughts or ideas?
 
Your axle vent is probably plugged up. There is usually a vent fitting either on the pumpkin or axle tube with a hose reaching up high above the axle to keep water from puddles from contaminating the gear oil. When the axle heats up during use the oil and air inside the axle expands and pressurizes the axle. The pressure is supposed to equalize through the vent. When the vent is plugged oil gets pushed out through the seals. Brake shoes/pads should be looked at for contamination.

Bill
 
Keep us posted on what you find... I'm not having the problem but would be curious as to what the problem may be.

driftless shifter's explanation sounds good to me.
 
JFR said:
It is also possible the axle is bent near the flange and/or the bearing is not holding the shaft true.
Just a thought.
Click to expand...

IMHO, I don't believe it would be a bent axle first because they are case hardened I believe and I would think it would break before it would stay permanently bent. Also the bearings should be tight on the shafts and in the housing. If they were that loose, you'd be able to move the shafts around by hand. I could be wrong. He said it was happening on both sides. If the vent is not plugged as stated earlier, I would be looking at the seal surfaces real close and measuring the OD of the shafts in the seal areas and comparing the measurements with the dimensions of the shafts adjacent to the seals.
 
I agree with Bill, most likely a plugged vent. If it were a bearing issue or a bent axle, you should be experiencing some pretty good vibrations going down the highway.
 
Tend to agree with the guys here you most likely have a plugged axle vent. I've sen several vehicles with pinion seal or axle seal leaking and clean the vent up and POOF! Problem gone.
 
Here's an update....(1) The rear axle vent was definitely plugged. (2) The differential was over filled. After cleaning out the vent, I opened up the fill plug and oil began running out until it was level with the fill hole. I drove 150 miles without a problem or smell of oil. Thanks for the input.....
 
Thanks for the update. Many times the person who's looking for advice never replies back telling us if the advice someone gave, worked.
 
Most mechanics don't think of it either. It should be the first thing to check when an axle or manual transmission starts leaking. It falls under checking inexpensive things before expensive ones first. Like fuel filter before fuel pump.

Bill
 
Don't forget to inpect your brakes.  If they go gear oil on the friction bads they will need to be replaced.
 
Typically I over fill my axle a extra pump so when inspection time comes I just unscrew and look for oil to run out knowing its full. Also I can sample the oil at that point and see if the oil needs changing.
 
Arch Hoagland said:
OK exactly where is the vent hole?  Mine is a 2003 W22 chassis.
Click to expand...

Can't tell not knowing. Google around, figure out what axle(s) were used on a 2003 W22 then Google that axle for vent location.

Bill
 
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