Last nite as I was changing my oil, I noticed my front diff was a little oily. I have never seen this when changing my oil. Does anyone know what the problem could be??? Also do you think my warrenty would cover it if there is something wrong?? I'm supposed to go to the dealership tomorrow, but I doubt they will do anything due to the lift. Do you think this could be due to the lift?? Here is a pic

 

That's a pretty common place for a leak. There are seals in there that wear out or sometimes get debris in them.

Have you had your axles out recently? It's easy to warp the seal when you are pulling the axles in and out.

In any case, it's a pretty easy repair once you pull the axle. Remove the seal, and press the new one in. It's easier with the diff out, but can be done with the diff in the truck.

...and no, it's not likely caused by the lift...

 

Nope I've never pulled the axles out. I did though go through alot of mud and water this past weekend. Do you think that could be the cause?? So do you think I should take it to the dealership b\c I'm what you'd call an ametuer mechanic, very ametuer I'm thinking they won't fix it though b\c they'll try to make up some bs on how the lift caused it or since I have the lift. grrr!!

 

Mud is a prime cause of failure for those seals

I would be willing to bet that the dealership will not eat the cost of that repair. They will play one of two cards, the modifications to your rig caused it, or, it was caused by the "abuse" of offroading. It will depend largely upon your relationship with the dealer/service manager.

It going to be pricey to have them do it. The parts are under $20, but it's at least a couple of hours of labor by their book. If you can change your oil, you can do the repair yourself if you choose. Removing the axle is something you should know how to do anyway for when you spin a CV on the trail, miles from no where.

You would need jack stands, a big ass pry bar (tool "b"), new diff juice and a socket set... not much else. I have done it enough that I have can have the axle out and back in, in less than an hour.

 

Rob, sounds like you have pulled the axle a few times. I currently have a leaky boot, seems the clamp is not holding. Is it pretty tough to change the outer boots and clamps?

 

If I can tackle it by myself, I'll do it. I'll have to find a big pry bar somewhere around here. Is there possibly any site or anything that would sort of step me through the breakdown of it all?? It would be nice to learn how to do something like this.

 

Data, if you do this, take pics and write down the details
We have a rear seal write-up in the Tech section, but not for the front.

If you get the pics and an explanation, I can put up an artilce on it for future reference.

 

It's not a big deal, but if all you have is a leak at a clamp, there is an easier way for you to solve it. They make a pseudo glue that can be inserted under the lip of the boot and when you clamp the boot down, it spreads and seals the leak That way you don't even have to pull the axle The glue is a gel that remains pliable, so when you do have to change a boot, you can just wipe it off. Almost any auto parts store parts counter will know what you are talking about and dealerships use this stuff on most installs so they don't get call backs Just pull the boot out a bit, squirt some new grease to replace what leaked out, clean it all up, squirt the glue in there and clamp it down. That's it

If you decide that you must replace the boot, you will need the pair. You have to remove the inner assembly to get at the outer assembly. The worst part is the needle bearings in the inner joint. If you are not careful, they go everywhere and you spend hours trying to find them all. Over all, it's not a very big deal. I have seen people do it alongside the trail in the pouring rain

 

I am pretty sure there is a write up for the process on the NE TTORA site. http://ttora-ne.mainpage.net/ That is actually a pretty comprehensive site for mod write ups and maintanance. Most everything you could ever want

You will need a 36mm socket to pull the axle nut, but other than that, you don't need anything too special in the way of tools.

 

Would following this link be about the same?
http://www.keystonekrawlers.com/Mods...eplacement.htm



So all I would need is the socket, new seal, diff oil and thats it?? No other special tools or oils needed for the job?? Hell while I'm doing this I may as well install my new rotors So I won't have to pull any balls joints out or anything like that??

You wouldn't happen to know the "proper" name of that seal do ya? Just wondering how to describe it to the stealer.

What about this? http://www.off-road.com/toyota/cheaptricks/quickcv/

 

http://www.keystonekrawlers.com/Mod...replacement.htm is a great write up! That's the one I used the first time I did the shafts.

Sockets, new seal, diff juice, that pretty much covers it You won't need to pop any ball joints beacause you will be removing the mount instead of popping the ball joint... see step #4 You will also want some blue locktite for the mount bolts when you put them back... you don't want those working their way out

It's something like "axle seal" or the like, but if you can wait until I get home tonight, I can look it up and give you a name and a part number from the service manuals.

One word of advice that will save you many tears, when you are reinserting the axle shaft into the dif, the inner C-clip must be positioned with the opening down! Put a dab of grease on it to make sure it stays in place.

 

Data, that Keystone site is pretty cool.
Nice pic they have there.

 

bad links..............

 

This one worked

http://www.keystonekrawlers.com/Mods...eplacement.htm

 

Hey Corey, what' up with this thing truncating our URL's?

Strange...

http://www.keystonekrawlers.com/Mods...eplacement.htm

Interesting... I tried it several ways... it seems to have a limit on the number of characters it will display without a space...

 

works now! thanks so much for the help man!!!!!

 

My pleasure Sir!

 

i think i'll be able to do this. so the whole axle assembly should slide out along with the cv boots and everything? so i'm assuming i won't have to put grease back into the cv's.

i'll just wake up tomorrow, go to the dealership, and get this thing over with. I'll go pick up the parts and start tearing her down what a fun weekend this is gonna be!!!

 

Unless you manage to tear a boot, you will not have to do anything to the boots or any other part of the axle The axle will come out as a complete assembly just like this;



Take a deep breath and go slowly. It's really not a big deal. It's not much worse than changing your oil, so I always wonder why people pay hundreds of dollars to have it done.

 

That is the sofware doing that on porpose.
It does that to shorten it so you don't see a mile long URL across your screen once it's posted.

The whole URL is actually there if you click on edit your post.
You will see it's all there.

One neat thing too about the software here is a lot of forums won't let you post a long link when you enclose it in code, or a clickable word you create for everyone to click on.
Not so here.
The URL can be a mile long and in most cases it will take.