whats the best way to replace the pinion seal in the 44?

[MikeyFord3]

bought a dana 44 from a eb and everything else is rebuilt i guess from just where it was sitting in the garage that it was in the pinion seal went bad.. correct me if im wrong but the pinion seal is on the back of the axle where the driveshaft connects and the yoke comes out..?

well thats what im talking about and i need to replace it so whats the best way to do it? take axle apart or just take the yoke off and pry the old one out? or does anyone else have any better ideas.

 

[martin]

Assuming the bearing is ok, just remove the yoke and change the seal. Should be easy on a 44.

 

[Bray D]

Luckily the D44 used a shim type assembly to ensure proper pinion preload. To be 100% sure its done correctly, you'd need to disassemble the axle (remove axles, and carrier), remove the yoke, pop the seal off, install new seal, then I think the torque spec for a D44 pinion nut is ~225 ft lbs. You'd have to torque up to that, checking the pinion bearing preload as you to go make sure you are within spec. If you make it to the torque rating, and preload is in spec, put it all together and you're good to go.

BUT, its a front axle, and will probably be used for off road only. You could pop the yoke off, seal, install seal, install yoke, then torque it down good and you may be fine. Its your call. If it were me I'd tear it down and make sure it was done correctly. I just hate having failures down the road that I knew I could've prevented if I would've just spent a little more time and did it right the first time.