shark

Just wondering if any members of this board have had any problems with the driver side rear axle seals. I have had them changed several times now (thru a extended warrenty) and they seem to leak after a few hundred miles. The seals have been changed with new ones and they AGAIN it is leaking. There is oil all over the inside of my wheel. Does anyone have a suggestion on how to reapair this. The Stealer is killing me over this they seem to not know how to fix this issue!!!

Thanks,

bob200587

mine was passenger seal.....i replaced it and its been fine. Have you checked the breather for obstructions? that can force it out the seal if it cant breath properly.

shark

Where is the breather located?

bob200587

on top of the diff I believe....it should have a little cap on it and look something similar to a grease nipple at first glance.

shark

Now the question is how do I know if there is something obstucting it and if so how do I clear it.

BTW thanks for your relply.

bob200587

that im not sure.....maybe someone else would know what is good for cleaning it with. WD-40 couldn't hurt.

AW1090

It's just a jiggle cap......try and move it back and forth with your fingers. You could also just take it out and get a new one from the stealer.....they're not very expensive or anything.

Unhappy99

I don't know who started the 'plugged diff breather' excuse, but I'd put money on betting it was a dealer trying to explain why Toyota seals fail so often.

In my experience, Toyota axle seals are just like their brake rotors...crap. Get your next set of seals from NAPA or Autozone (Timken) and don't worry about leaks anymore.

bob200587

i got mine from Autozone....the first one lasted 17 years tho, and the drivers side is still original.

AK95Taco

Are you sure about this I have seen several original rear axle seals go for 200k plus miles and 15 plus years. Heck mine lasted until the rear wheel bearings started failing at 190K and lets just say I'm not very easy on things...

Speaking of wheel bearings have you "shark" had them look at your rear wheel bearings? I can't see how they could have failed so early but if they have rapid seal damage whould be a result.

leebee

i just finished doing the drivers side seal, bearing and new drums and shoes on mine. the bearing was done but i had to have it pressed off as it wouldnt co-operate using 'the pound' off method! funny part of it all, the first and last thing the dealer said was 'did you check the breather' and ' dont forget to check the breather'! as soon as you can smell gear oil, get things apart and check it out, in both cases with mine, the bearing was shot causing the seal to fail.

lee

shark

The dealer tech said that the bearings and seals were new. Now my break shoes need to be replaced. They are soaked with gear oil. My truck in the shop right now I hope they fix it properly this time.

Thanks for all the repies. I will fill everyone in with an update.

Adam F

I went through 2 seals in 2 years with my 96. On the second seal, my mechanic noticed that my rear axle shaft was slightly bent. We replaced the shaft and it has been good ever since.

AW1090

I just know that I replaced my seal and it started to leak again......I replaced it a 2nd time and the breather. It has been fine since then....I also noticed that the breather that I replaced was stuck closed so I don't know where you're getting this, but they do eventually get clogged with mud and junk. I also thought I read that timken makes the wheel bearings for toyota so would they not also make the wheel seals?

Unhappy99

ICBW, but I think Timken is an American company. Most Japanese companies do everything possible to avoid using non-Japanese suppliers.

Toyota bearings are sourced by NTN, NSK or Koyo.

leebee

you should be able to hit the shoes with the brake cleaner spray instead of replacing them. it cleaned the leaked gear oil out of my back brakes quite nicely.

lee

Jason B

I had to do this too.

Here is the inner seal removed.


On jackstands:


This was the best write-up I found, but I read them all. This is specifically for models with ABS, which makes a little difference, well, it's just a little trickier to get the inner seal out on models with abs.

https://www.yotatech.com/~corey/tech...m1_oilseal.htm

It wasn't bad at all. I took my time and had a friend help me pull the axel out. I wanted to make sure I kept it real steady when pulling it out.

All the time as spent on cleaning up all the oil soaked stuff, wheel, drums, etc.

Some other tips that worked great.

Make a note of these:

1) "I did find out if you put the new axle seal in the freezer for about 10 minutes, it shrinks just enough to easly slide back in the place of the old one. The seals are very hard to fit back in if you dont do this and they have to go in perfect or you might damage it."
by Jataga

2) "You'll need to bleed the wheel cylinder on that side. That's probably my least favorite part of the job.

You can try gravity bleeding it by just leaving the bleeder screw open and draining into a cup while keeping an eye on the master cyl. to make sure it doesn't run dry. It doesn't drain very fast, but keep an eye on it.
Gravity bleeding usually works, but if not you can have your friend step on the brake pedal an hold it, while you crack open the bleeder to let the pressure out, then close the bleeder, and have your friend let back off the brake. A few cycles of that after gravity bleeding should do the trick.

Don't let the master cylinder run dry and don't let your buddy let off the brake while you have the bleeder open. Either one will introduce more air into the system instead of get it out.
If you're going to be working on your (or a buddies) truck and bleeding/flushing brakes, buy a motive products power bleeder. Its worth it."
by Erik

3) Buy some rubber vacuum caps from Advance auto to plug your brake line after you disconnect it.
7/32in. part # 47392, about $2.



I just had a a friend bleed it at the back when I stepped on the brake pedal. This whole process for the bleeding took 1 min exact, very easy with two people.

Adam F

Also a tip to bleed the brakes if your by yourself. Get some sort of clear bottle. I used a snapple bottle. Anything will work. Fill the bottle maybe a 1/4 with clean brake fluid. Get a hose that will SNUGLY fit over the bleeder valve. Stick one end of the hose over the bleeder valve, and one end into the bottle, into the fluid. Crack the bleeder open. Get in the truck, and pump the brakes a bunch of times. Periodically check the bottle to make sure you don't overfill it. If you have a long enough hose or a rubberneck, you can look at the bottle while your pumping and see the air bubbles coming to surface. Keep pumping until there are no more air bubbles. Tighten the bleeder, remove the hose, and refill the master cylinder and your done.

You can buy a kit from AutoZone or wherever called a "one man brake bleeder" but the bottle is small and you have to empty it quite often. With a larger bottle of your choice you can bleed them much easier.

shark

Update:

The service manager has informed me that the wrong axle shaft was installed and that this has been causing the leak. Freaking Stealers how in the hell could they install a smaller axle shaft? Well leason learned. Be persistant. If you feel you are in the right fight for it.

leebee

good to hear you have the problem solved, unfortunately, it took several tries to get it right.

lee