hey everyone, i have a 1992 toyota pickup 4x4 with about 118,000 miles. the transfer case is leaking oil from the drain plug and after numerous attempts of trying to fix it, my efforts have proven unsuccessful. when i removed the factory drain plug, the metal o-ring was severely bent (so i figured that was the case) i bought a rubber o ring and stuck it on the bent bolt to see if that would temporarily solve the problem. no luck. i then went to my local toyota dealership and got a brand new factory plug from them, screwed it in, and again, no luck. i then applied synthetic o-ring paste to the threads and the head of the bolt, screwed it in, no luck. im at a dead end here and the last thing i want to do is buy a brand new transfer case. i dont want to remove the transfer case because i use my 4wd quite often. PLEASE HELP!

 

Post some pics of it. Are you sure it's leaking at the drain bolt? Cleaned the area really good? Could be a crack in the housing

 

im pretty sure its coming from the drain bolt. i cleaned the area fairly well and i dont see any oil anywhere other than at the head of the bolt.

 

Did you replace the metal gasket on the bolt? You said new bolt, just to make sure

 

the metal gasket is part of the bolt itself. at least to my knowledge. i could always call toyota and ask.

 

There should be a separate metal washer, that is the seal. It's aluminum.

 

thanks for the advice, ill try that and see if it works.

 

alright. i know its been quite some time since i started this thread, but i finally got around to picking up a brand new drain plug and washer from my local toyota dealership. i just put them in the truck and waited to see if anything leaked. when i looked on the ground, a small puddle of oil had accumulated directly under the transfer case drain. i have no idea what else it could be. i replaced the fill and drain plug as well as both washers. PLEASE HELP!

 

Only other place would be to look at the shifter base. If it's leaking it could make it's way down to the bottom. Should be easy to find the leak if the case is clean

 

I was going to suggest trying a brass crush washer on it and see if that would help to seal.

 

i checked to see if it could be leaking from somewhere else. sure enough, the entire front end of the transfer case is covered in oil. i smelled the oil and it smells exactly like the oil i put in the transfer case (75-90 full synthetic). could it be a cracked housing or transmission oil? i do notice some significant resistance when shifting, sometimes i have to force it into first gear. does the transmission use the same oil? thanks for all your help so far i hope we can solve this!

 

let me know if you need better pictures

 

^^ This. I had a slow leak, and replaced the front output shaft seal to no avail. I finally figured out the leak was from the top plate where the shifter levers attach. The mechanic who pulled my tranny to replace the clutch forgot to seal the top plate when he put it back together. A little RTV FIPG and no more leaks.

Pull the trim and shifter boots off from inside the cab, and see if the top of the transfer case and transmission are covered with fluid. If so, you've found your problem.

 

thanks everyone. problem solved. turned out to be a top end transmission seal and a transfer case seal.