Front diff leak?

[David Dousette]

I had my 2003 up on ramps today and noticed a sludge at the bottom of the front differential cover. I have never noticed oil under the truck before, but I'd like to nip this in the bud before it gets to that point. What is the best way to correct this since the front cover is not removable (or at least not as easily as the rear cover)?



[Broken External Image]:

 

[Vic Sorlie]

Looks to me like you're going to have to pop that front diif cover off and reseal it.

 

[David Dousette]

While I'm at it I might as well reseal the rear cover, too, since the lube is due to be changed anyway. I know that my rear axle is a Ford 8.8 non-limited slip, and I see that pre-cut rubber gaskets are plentiful for those. The service manual says the front axle is a Dana 35, and I found a gasket to fit that at Summit Racing (though the applications only list AMC and Jeep vehicles).



I got quite a few service records with this vehicle and from those I see that in December 2005 the front pinion seal needed replacement and that in May of last year the driver's side front axle seal needed replacement. I believe the diff cover has to be removed for both of those procedures so it is possible that it was not resealed correctly or that the replacement seal was just barely sufficient.



I also have two months of powertrain warranty left from the dealership, but they are 100 miles away and I'd hate to burn a half a tank of gas there and back if this is a relatively simple job. Thoughts?

 

[Yardsale]

I think access to the front cover is not good while in the car. I'd take the drive and let someone else get dirty fixing it. Maybe they'll find something else you can have fixed on warranty.



Kind of a moot point, but I believe that the axle seals can be changed without removing the cover; perhaps I'm thinking of the "excluder" seals. (Anyone verify this?)

 

[EddieS'04]

Is it driping on the driveway? If not just change the fluid for now. It doesnt look like the leak is blowing backwards on the chassis.



Im lazy. I fix leaks that drip alot and blow backwards.

 

[David Dousette]

If the front axle has to come out of the vehicle for the cover to be removed then that is too big a job for me at this point. I do hope to be there someday but for now there is a guy for that.



The leak isn't dripping on the driveway, but the sludge on the cover is moist and I'm just afraid that the crusty bit of lube that is holding everything together is going to move and spill it all. The truck came with a 90-day powertrain warranty from the dealer and so there should still be 60-ish days left on it. I'll send them the picture tomorrow and see what they want to do to fix it.

 

[Yardsale]

Verify if leaks are covered by that warranty; if so - let 'em fix it.



I HATE leaks. This noted, if it's not covered, I side with Eddie - wipe it clean and see how long it takes to get wet or gooey. Check it every day for a few days and this will give you a good idea from where and how large is the leak. Monitor for the next few months (be sure to check it at least two weeks before the warranty expires).

 

[David Dousette]

The dealership says that if it is actually leaking then they will fix it under warranty but that even on new Fords some seepage is considered normal.



Is the difference between a "leak" and a "seep" whether it drips onto the driveway? The rear diff does neither of these things.

 

[Yardsale]

RantOn;



"on new Fords some seepage is considered normal." BS!



That's dealer speak for "we don't want to cover it".



If it comes up again, ask this person if they think that the engineers that design these systems engineered then to have "some seepage"?



Idiots.



RantOff;

 

[David Dousette]

Had my appointment at the dealership today and got this fixed... turned out to be a left front axle seal instead of the diff cover like I thought. The service guys gave me no trouble covering this under the used powertrain warranty, though they did ask me for the salesman's name for their records. My theory is that maybe the $287 that it "cost" to fix it (or a portion thereof) came from the salesman's commission.