Drive shaft leak?

[Mbrockman5]

I have an 88 ranger 4x4, and noticed a puddle under my truck below my rear diff and drive shaft area. Can anyone tell me what's going on? Or any advice on how to fix it?

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[UrbanRedneckKid]

Did your pinion nut back off?

Assuming the leak is in front of the yoke, if it's behind the yoke then a new pinion seal is in order.

Pull the driveshaft, remove the pinion nut and washer.
Brake clean the $#!+ out of it, make sure it's clean and dry, smear some etc down in there around the splines.
Reinstall the washer and nut, with red loctite, tighten as per manufacture's specification. (i won't say how, too many people get it wrong)
Reinstall the driveshaft.

Don't forget to top off the fluid, to the bottom of the hole, parked on a level surface.

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[adsm08]

Yeah, kinda looks like the rear is leaking past the pinion nut.

That's a new one on me though. Usually pinion leaks run down the diff.

 

[UrbanRedneckKid]

You haven't seen that yet...?! I fix probably 1-2 a month.
Oh but your a dealer tech, you probably don't see to many high mileage trucks.

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[adsm08]

You haven't seen that yet...?! I fix probably 1-2 a month.
Oh but your a dealer tech, you probably don't see to many high mileage trucks.

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I see leaking pinion seals all the time. Most vehicles that I work on fall into one of two categories, less than 30K or more than 75. Also, look at what I drive. I am my shop's expert on "high mileage rusty junk", as I put it.

What I meant is that I has never seen the leak in that particular pattern before, where the U-joint flange is soaked but it doesn't look like there is a drop on the diff housing.

 

[jhammel85]

Usually pinion leaks run down the diff.

Ditto....That looks pretty bad. If I were you, I would start taking it apart and having a look. If you get the drive shaft off and find that the nut is loose, something odd is going on.

I would replace that seal and see if it helps. I'd look into looking for a sleeve for the pinion flange as well. I bet it's leaking due to some bad scoring and the lipseal is gone too.

Make sure to follow the instructions, especially when setting the pinion nut torque.

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=102444

 

[Mbrockman5]

Ok. Do you think I'm looking at a good chunk of change for the repair? I'm sure I can do the labor myself, but current "fundage" is pretty low to pay for someone else to fix it.


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[UrbanRedneckKid]

Should be an hour labor and shop supplies, if the pinion seal and bearings are ok.

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[jhammel85]

Should be an hour labor and shop supplies, if the pinion seal and bearings are ok.

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Agreed. Honestly though, If you have a standard tool set and a cheap puller, it'll
be worth doing it yourself. The parts are so cheap....The only "difficult" part is setting the load on the pinion bearing. Even that isnt' that big of a deal.

 

[Sasquatch_Ryda]

Seen that where it is actually leaking up past the splines inside the flange....not the seal. Usually due to worn splines. You can get away with removing the flange (replace the seal anyways since you are in there) and clean up everything and reinstall the flange with some RTV on the pinion splines.

 

[Mbrockman5]

Ok. I need to invest in a repair manual. But I'm sure I can tackle it at home. This issue just pooped out of no where(popped, pooped, whatever, haha) the last "major" thing I did with the truck was hauling an upright freezer home, and my heater core blew on that same trip. Of course this has to happen right before hunting season starts......


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[Mbrockman5]

Here are a couple closer shots if that helps anyone get a better idea....


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[UrbanRedneckKid]

Yup, pinion nut is leaking.

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[Mbrockman5]

Ok..... So I failed to mention that my truck is backed up in my driveway at an angle. I was reading the reply' and noticed some comments about where it's leaking. And after some research and looking at my pictures, I see that the whole flange is black. Which leads me to believe that the leak is coming from the pinion seal. Can anyone back me on that?


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[UrbanRedneckKid]

Why haven't you pulled the driveshaft and actually looked at both sides of the pinion flange yet?

Internet diagnosis will only get you so far...

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