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Going to service the front and rear diff's on my sons XJ. Is there any solution to keeping the stupid rubber plugs from leaking? Also anything special about replacing the trans rear tail shaft seal I should know? Thanks all
I just did mine this weekend. Just be sure to have rags. I replaced the gaskets around the diff cover because they are 10 years old. You can just suck that stuff out with a siphon though if you dont want to do that. simple job but if you are using the liquid gasket maker there is a debate on how long to let it set up... i let mine sit for 8 hrs in the front and 24 in the rear before I filled it back up. Use a little of the gasket sealer around the rubber plug to keep it from spilling out
I just let the plugs leak... they might have lost a couple teaspoons of fluid so far, and it keeps the axle housing from rusting in that one spot :dunno:
As for the trans rear tail shaft seal, are you talking about the transmission or the transfer case? What year? If it's 95 or earlier transfer case rear output seal, it's pretty easy, the other seals are a bit more annoying to do. To get at the transmission rear output seal you have to drop the transfer case. Pretty sure you mean the transfer case rear output though.
The rubber plugs leak after 10 years or so, no avoiding it as far as I can see unless you want to add gasket maker
If it were me, I'd buy a new diff cover gasket and just pull the cover to drain the diff. Ever try to suck old, nasty gear oil through a siphon? I used two different pumps, one of them powered, and it was still a PITA to get the old gunk out of there. Next time I crack a diff on my rig, I'm pulling the covers & replacing them with ruffstuff. Drain plugs FTW
Back on topic though... Rubber plugs will leak. Replace them or replace the whole cover. Otherwise, accept it as a fact of life I'm afraid.
I just did mine this weekend. Just be sure to have rags. I replaced the gaskets around the diff cover because they are 10 years old. You can just suck that stuff out with a siphon though if you dont want to do that. simple job but if you are using the liquid gasket maker there is a debate on how long to let it set up... i let mine sit for 8 hrs in the front and 24 in the rear before I filled it back up. Use a little of the gasket sealer around the rubber plug to keep it from spilling out
What's this about gasket maker waiting to set up? I used a thick bead of plain old RTV and I put oil in as soon as I get the bolts back in. No leaks ...
Oh wait ... that was then. Now I'm using Lube Locker gaskets. As often as I change my diff fluid (NAC members no comments! ), LL gaskets make things so simple it's shameful. No trying to get a thick enough bead, no "waiting to set up, no slipping, no RTV, no hassle. And they're re-usable.
I just use "The Right Stuff" it comes in a can and takes no set up time, and its easy as pie to lay a bead down. Its the only gasket maker i use.
And as far as the rear out put seal, if its on the actual transmission, assuming you have a 4x4 XJ, you will need to remove the Tcase as stated above, but if its the output shaft on the Tcase, its fairly straight forward to do. Remove the drive shaft, use a seal puller, and pop out the seal, and then tap in the new one. Be careful when you do this to make sure you dont bust the aluminum housing around the seal, i did that once replacing a seal while i was in Moab and had to epoxy everything back together to get it to leak slowly enough for me to get home.
When I use RTV, I buy it in the big caulking gun tubes... so much easier to apply a good bead. Just make sure you use a nail or piece of metal rod to plug the nozzle instead of the supplied cap or you'll get about one or two uses out of a whole tube.
Or buy LubeLockers, they're great as noted already.
Also, XTurboJ, for future reference - a broken housing makes a great seal driver when installing the new seal in the new housing :roflmao:
yeah your definitly gonna want to pull your covers off. expect to use about a can of brake clean per diff cleaning out all the crud and metal shavings. when everything is nice and clean (includes scrapping of any old gasket material) squirt on a thick bead of RTV all the way around the cover. make sure to go around each bolt hole in a complete circle to prevent leaks. let the RTV set for a minute, then press it on.
Ive used this stuff before too. Ive come to realize all of the RTV sealants are pretty much the same (made by permatex). I always let it sit for atleast 30 seconds to tack up. Oh and I forgot to say that let the cleaned Diff with a newly sealed cover sit for as long as possible (overnight). You cant really mess up a diff fluid change, but i just like to do things right the first time.
Oh and I highly recommend coastal gear oil that comes in 5 gallon containers from autozone. Its like $50 I do all my dads trucks with it and both our jeeps. Last a long time! I put it in a $5 pesticide sprayer I bought at home depot, works like a charm.
that sucks that you have metal shavings, I drive like such a puss i dont have that problem, even on a 10 year old jeep, the gears look brand new and the fluid (which i change every 40,000 miles) was still perfect color
Buy new diff covers or weld in a threaded bung to yours.
Definately get rid of the rubber plug,its not just that they leak,they get ripped out when you dont know about it(ask me how I know).
that sucks that you have metal shavings, I drive like such a puss i dont have that problem, even on a 10 year old jeep, the gears look brand new and the fluid (which i change every 40,000 miles) was still perfect color
Didnt mean shaving.... filings. Its natural for filings to be created when any metal parts wear in together. thats why your T case and trans both have magnets in them. I also just bought a ARB cover for my rear d60 because it has a magnetic dipstick built in.
