dana 44 front axle

Ok, I have a dana 44 front axle. I droke my rear driveshaft so I took it off to get fixed. So I lock the hubs and put it into 4 wheel drive to get home. On the way home from work today, I got to the house and noticed fluid coming from the vent tube. What stuff would cause this? I have a very thick (not stock) diff cover. And 4.88 gears. Would that do it?

The first thing I think of is the diff being over full. Second is some severe foaming of the gear lube or water mixed in causing it to act like the first.

Lincoln is probably spot on. Remove the Fill/check plug and check the level of fluid. If fluid runs out when you remove the plug, it was over filled or has water contamination.

How new is the gearset? New gears run HOT. A front axle gear set usually runs so little, and only at low speeds, that it can take a long time to break in.

Where is your vent location? Stock or moved? If it's anywhere near where the ring gear slings oil, it will push fluid out as it warms.

CRASH

On thing I forgot and your cover tips me off. Is your axle a low or high pinion? The covers are different.

The low pinion cover has the hole just about even with the bottom of the axle tubes. The high pinion has the hole based between the middle and the top of the tube.

On my high pinion axle with the stock cover I can still get it to spew a little lube at highway speeds when it's filled completely full. It seems best about 1/4" down from the hole. It doesn't do it until it's hot and running with the hubs locked in doesn't cause it.

It is a high pinion. I am going to check it today. Thanks.