I'm pissed and confused...

[Insanejughead]

Tonight, and after spending five hours on it, I figured out why my rear differential was leaking bad enough that it runs itself dry rather quickly.



The 8.8" that came in my ranger has always had problems with leaking, but it has progressively gotten worse over the years. At first, I started noticing fluid getting past the seals and covering my brake hardware; but after a while, the diff cover started getting wet; finally, the entire bottom half of my diff cover gasket is soaked on the outside and there is a film (that drips in places) of gear lube all over my rear undercarriage, tailgate, and rollpan.



Tonight, I went all out on checking stuff. I was almost horrified to find out that my diff was ALMOST completely dry. Earlier today, as it started making noise, I realized that I need to drive slow (15mph) as I went around my hometown.



Everything went fine until I went to check the vent tube. The rubber line was good, but I couldn't probe anything down into the axle housing to touch the axle shaft. I took several different tools to start trying to work out whatever crud may have been stuck in the vent orifice, but nothing made any progress (nail set, nail, screwdriver, drill bit by hand, self-cutting wood screw, allen wrenches). So, I took the vent orifice off, and that's when I discovered...


THERE WASN'T A HOLE GOING THROUGH IT!

For some reason, it was solid metal in the middle! Well, at least clamping it in the vise and attacking it with two different sized drill bits made it how it should've been.


However, I can't understand why the vent plug was solid?


Has anyone else had problems with their differential and thought to give the vent plug a thorough check, only to find this out?

 

[Sasquatch_Ryda]

Had that lots at work, its usually just solid rust built up.

 

[shane96ranger]

Hmmmm, I think I'd better look at the vent on my F150.

Hadn't thought of checking to see if it was blocked. Thanks for posting this!

 

[Insanejughead]

Had that lots at work, its usually just solid rust built up.

That is what I thought it was until my drill bit took out nothing but large slivers of silvery and shiny metal.

Hmmmm, I think I'd better look at the vent on my F150.

Hadn't thought of checking to see if it was blocked. Thanks for posting this!

For me it was simply one of those things that I knew I had to check, but just didn't.

You're welcome for the reminder.

 

[Insanejughead]

By the way, none of my gear teeth were damaged. There were some marks starting to show on the teeth, but they were very hard to notice.


After the vent clearing procedure and fluid replacement, it made the same whistling noise during the first quarter mile, but disappeared after that. I drove 75 miles to Springfield today and had absolutely no noise from my diff.


I'm ordering a steel cover to replace my fiberglass one (it boggles me why any auto maker EVER put anything other than steel on a differential...) Plastics and aluminum crack; at least with steel it can bend and still retain the fluid.