My 2005 Dodge Ram 2500 Diesel has a little over 100k miles. Overall and "good old truck", but a recent inspection reveals front and rear differential seals need replacing. Leaks were spotted by a local head mechanic when he rotated my tires. My question is what caused this to happen and was it preventable?I don't want a repeat of this issue, as I don't have any extra hundreds kicking around, like most folks these days. :?Thanks in advance -

boston blacky wrote:My 2005 Dodge Ram 2500 Diesel has a little over 100k miles. Overall and "good old truck", but a recent inspection reveals front and rear differential seals need replacing. Leaks were spotted by a local head mechanic when he rotated my tires. My question is what caused this to happen and was it preventable?I don't want a repeat of this issue, as I don't have any extra hundreds kicking around, like most folks these days. :?Thanks in advance -Which seals are you referring to? Diff cover gasket or the actual seal where the drive shaft is? If it's not leaving a spot on the floor I wouldn't worry about it. That's their job when they rotate tires. They will sell you anything they can.

Pinion seals are a common failure. Even after replacing them they may still leak again eventually. If they are not slinging oil i would leave them alone.

Was it dusty fluid? Or clean looking greese?My aunt had a "Hole in the boot" of her front wheel drive car. Funny how it had no dust on it when she took a close look at it, like it had just "Happened" after she drove in there. Never went back to that rip off place, and had it fixed someplace else. If you don't have drips in your driveway from the seals, stop going to that place for service. If the next place says the same thing, have them check the fluid level. There is a couple of gallons of rear axle fluid, so unless you really see a lot of it dripping, it will be good for another 4,000 miles. Of course if there is a 4" puddle under your truck, you have something to worry about sooner than later. By now, any oil sprayed on the truck will look dusty (from your driving home). You can wash that off with a garden hose, and then if the dusty fluid comes back, you might have a problem. If it stays clean, you have a greedy mechanic. Sad to say that though. Most are hard working guys who pay there bills and make ends meet. Fred.

boston blacky wrote:...I don't want a repeat of this issue, as I don't have any extra hundreds kicking around, like most folks these days. :?Thanks in advance -Has this happened before?

Thanks all for your quick response(s). It has not happened before, what I mean is I do not what it to happen again - somewhere in the future. Also, does anyone know if this would show on error Codes For 2003+ 3rd Gen Dodge Trucks which - I believe - gives a complete list of diagnostic trouble codes?Finally, no one said what may cause this to happen. BB

What is the cause and was it preventable?? | Good Sam Community

Perrysburg_Dodg
Explorer
Oct 28, 2013
06Fargo wrote:
Perrysburg Dodgeboy wrote:
06Fargo wrote:
So I am having a look see under the Dodge and there is transfer case lube sprinkled on the underside of the cab etc. Hmmm - "output shaft seal leak!" I announce to no one. Closer examination and I have a :h moment. The seal is bone dry. The oil is coming from the center of the yoke. :h. "huh?" I said to no one.

And naturally I took it apart, and thoroughly cleaned the yoke ($300 for a new one! qwak qwak qwak etc) and repaired it with JB Weld. It lasted about 3000 miles and started leaking again so I could replace the yoke and another U-joint. Now it doesn't spray oil everywhere.

Instead of JB Weld you should have had it tig welded. never heard of a yoke leaking before.

Don

Apparently the internal splines on the yoke are machined with both ends open and then a plug is pressed into the yoke end.

Tig welder - of course! Why didn't I think of that - I've been scheming a reason to go buy one ... dang it!

Yea I would love to have one also, just running out of room to store my toys now. Momma asked me today "do you really needed three tool boxes in the garage?" Women just don't get it do they?! :B

Don
noteven
Explorer III
Oct 27, 2013
Perrysburg Dodgeboy wrote:
06Fargo wrote:
So I am having a look see under the Dodge and there is transfer case lube sprinkled on the underside of the cab etc. Hmmm - "output shaft seal leak!" I announce to no one. Closer examination and I have a :h moment. The seal is bone dry. The oil is coming from the center of the yoke. :h. "huh?" I said to no one.

And naturally I took it apart, and thoroughly cleaned the yoke ($300 for a new one! qwak qwak qwak etc) and repaired it with JB Weld. It lasted about 3000 miles and started leaking again so I could replace the yoke and another U-joint. Now it doesn't spray oil everywhere.

Instead of JB Weld you should have had it tig welded. never heard of a yoke leaking before.

Don

Apparently the internal splines on the yoke are machined with both ends open and then a plug is pressed into the yoke end.

Tig welder - of course! Why didn't I think of that - I've been scheming a reason to go buy one ... dang it!
Perrysburg_Dodg
Explorer
Oct 27, 2013
06Fargo wrote:
So I am having a look see under the Dodge and there is transfer case lube sprinkled on the underside of the cab etc. Hmmm - "output shaft seal leak!" I announce to no one. Closer examination and I have a :h moment. The seal is bone dry. The oil is coming from the center of the yoke. :h. "huh?" I said to no one.

And naturally I took it apart, and thoroughly cleaned the yoke ($300 for a new one! qwak qwak qwak etc) and repaired it with JB Weld. It lasted about 3000 miles and started leaking again so I could replace the yoke and another U-joint. Now it doesn't spray oil everywhere.

Instead of JB Weld you should have had it tig welded. never heard of a yoke leaking before.

Don
noteven
Explorer III
Oct 26, 2013
So I am having a look see under the Dodge and there is transfer case lube sprinkled on the underside of the cab etc. Hmmm - "output shaft seal leak!" I announce to no one. Closer examination and I have a :h moment. The seal is bone dry. The oil is coming from the center of the yoke. :h. "huh?" I said to no one.

And naturally I took it apart, and thoroughly cleaned the yoke ($300 for a new one! qwak qwak qwak etc) and repaired it with JB Weld. It lasted about 3000 miles and started leaking again so I could replace the yoke and another U-joint. Now it doesn't spray oil everywhere.
boston_blacky
Explorer
Oct 26, 2013
The seal has been replaced. It took a little over 1 hr. to replace it and according the mechanic who did the work only .4 litres or .7 pints of differential fluid was lost. Thanks to all who added their comments, suggestions and recommendations. :D
C_Schomer
Explorer
Oct 12, 2013
IMO, dodge runs the oil level too low. My 97 had problems and dodge warranteed the seals and then I started running the level up to the axle tubes + a little more and never had a seal problem again. Same on my 03. The rolling tq. was down to the minimum already when I got it at 25k miles. Feel for play in the pinion brgs. It's already too late if they have play and tightening the nut more won't fix it. Craig
Wes_Tausend
Explorer
Oct 12, 2013
...

There is a great likely-hood that the seal, or seals, are just fine. If you drive the truck, the leak will probably dry back up. CAUTION: This little understood, real phenomenon could be mistaken for an innocent mechanic tampering for a scam repair sale when it amazingly "cures itself".

Often times when a vehicle is not driven frequently, the dry seal lips tend to stick to the mating metal seal surface. When the vehicle is finally moved, a slight tear occurs, and a single one or two drops of gear oil may appear. Many times the drops don't even hit the ground, and are not caught at home. But the slight droplet is quite visible when the vehicle is on a lift. Sometimes they even drip a few spots on the driveway, then quit again as the seal surfaces re-mate. Sometimes, after long storage, the lips are too damaged from sticking and do eventually need replacement. It's blamed on "dried-out seals" but note they do not leak until moved. They are not really dried-out, but rather sticking
.
Our tow vehicles suffer more from non-motion sometimes than wear. Even a week of inactivity starts things to stick. Other seals that sometimes tend to leak for the exact opposite (too loose) condition are brake/slave cylinders and/or mastercylinders, including clutches. In these cases, the piston "cups" tend to relax, get too loose, and allow some fluid seepage into the boots. As soon as the hydraulics are used again, the cups usually resume the correct shape from pressure.

Hydraulic jack seals do the same "relaxation" thing when stored without tension from pressure. Believe it or not, storing jacks under slight pressure actually extends the useful seal life. Same with raised truck hoists, besides draining rain away from collecting in the box. I have an autolift that develops a leak if left resting on the safety stops. I therefore let it rest under pressure against the seal. I have an infrequently-used engine hoist that needs to be stored under slight lift or the cylinder starts to leak down.

Wes
...
mkirsch
Nomad II
Oct 10, 2013
The cause is normal wear and tear. All pinion seals fail sooner or later.

The replacements may not last quite as long as the originals, depending on how much the "rub" surface on the yoke is worn. I don't think there's a replaceable wear sleeve on typical yokes.
Huntindog
Explorer
Oct 10, 2013
ScottG wrote:
You can do as Don describes but do your homework first so you know exactly what your doing.
The nut needs to be marked before removal and then re-installed by screwing it in the EXACT same number of turns and then lining up the markings you made during disassemble. If this isn't done correctly the bearing preload will be altered and it will fail.
Here is a great write-up of the process: Diff seal replacement

Scott
Not all axles are the same. Some have a crush sleeve, and some don't. Make sure you know what procedure is recommended for your axle.
Huntindog
Explorer
Oct 10, 2013
Golden_HVAC wrote:
There is a couple of gallons of rear axle fluid,

Fred.

I have changed a lot of differentials fluid and have never seen one that held a couple of gallons.
Most are around 3 quarts.

But pinion seals tend to leak fluid slowly. Due to the fact tat the fluid level at rest is usually below that of the seal. Fluid normally only contacts the seal when the gears are rotating and splash it up there.
So many pinion seal leaks can be managed a long time by simply topping it off at oil change time.

Google is my friend.
Depending on what axle it has the capacity will range from 7 to 10.2 pints.

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What is the cause and was it preventable??

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