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ATF dripping from front drive shaft?

malignd1

malignd1

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Hey there, back again seeking more info. Noticed on my 90' k5 that front shaft going down to pumpkin has what appears to be atf dripping from where the shaft begins sizing down. Can't tell if there is some sort of seal there or if its running along shaft on underside to that point. Very small drip but is leaving a mark on my driveway nonetheless and its driving me nuts so i figured id look for a repair here but havn't been able to pinpoint any threads with similar problem and now am asking the "pros". Is there a seal on that shaft where i am describing that can be replaced or is it going to require entire shaft replacement to fix the drip? It's not as bad during winter but summer is very noticeable even in 2wd or if i've been tearing up the powder in 4wd.
2) Also, I noticed grease accumulating on front passenger side ball joint just inside the wheel there and also a small oil spot developing just underneath the ball joint. Does this mean a seal inside the front axle may need to be replaced and if so how big of a job would it be and are there any special tools that may be required to complete it? Where would the grease be accumulating from? Over lubing by PO, maybe?:whistle:
 
malignd1 said:
Hey there, back again seeking more info. Noticed on my 90' k5 that front shaft going down to pumpkin has what appears to be atf dripping from where the shaft begins sizing down. Can't tell if there is some sort of seal there or if its running along shaft on underside to that point.
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Probably dripping from your transmission or T-case adapter, as there's no ATF in your driveshaft itself. The 241 T-Case has a flange on the front output, and it's unlikely that you're leaking there because the oil wouldn't be able to get from the output onto your driveshaft.

Also, I noticed grease accumulating on front passenger side ball joint just inside the wheel there and also a small oil spot developing just underneath the ball joint. Does this mean a seal inside the front axle may need to be replaced and if so how big of a job would it be and are there any special tools that may be required to complete it? Where would the grease be accumulating from? Over lubing by PO, maybe?:whistle:
Click to expand...

Are you talking about upper or lower ball joint? If you have a bad axle seal, it's a major job on the front end. You'd have to pull your gears out, replace the seal and reset your gears with a variety of specialty tools and experience.
 
I believe its the lower ball joint. Its all around where the grease fitting is on the outside. It has just built up around there but is not doing the same on the driver side.
 
Had a leak similar to your trans issue, thought it was my tranny seal on the shaft side. replaced the seal and it still was leaking. I cleaned it again watched for a leak and there it was again around the seal. cleaned it up replaced it again. still was leaking. I finally noticed it was the return lines dripping where i couldnt see them the first two times down the case, then onto the seal and down onto the shaft. friggin leaks will drive you insane!
 
My 241 was leaking bad, pulled it out changed seals and still was leaking ATF......found out that the breather line fitting was busted, had to drill and tap new bigger one in. That stopped the leak. Just something to check too....:laugh:
 
Mine leaked from the dipstick seal and dripped onto the driveshaft in the same place as yours.
 
thanks for the help. I'm gonna go wash down the underside today and take another look trying to pinpoint it. I guess this might tie in with the other tranny problem where it sprays fluid onto exhaust pipe when undr high pressure causing plumes of white smoke to pour out from under. Funny thing is I have called transmission shops and have actually been told that it is a problem that is normal and i will have a hard time getting it to stop. I say hogwash though. Should not find any tranny spraying. Hopefully it's just one leak but if not, guess ill just look into buying a new tranny!
 
been a while since ive been here. okay so I sprayed down underside until clean, and drove it again kinda hard till i got the wonderful aroma of burning atf then pulled over to check it out. Fluid is being forced out the side of the pan on the passenger side.

I located the breather tube and cant see or feel that its blocked but it is only a nipple on the top side of tranny so really no good access other that lowering the tranny out. Really not looking forward to having to do so.

On another note, I currently have the truck on jackstands to replace the ball joint that is caked with grease due to the fact there is play in the wheel. I want to replace the axle seals on the front while im at it but when i called napa to check availability i was told by the gentleman that he isn't finding anything regarding inner axle seals.
Is this the correct terminology for this or am i not as smart as i think i are?...prolly not but hey, ill be one of the first to admit it!

Im not a mechanic but can take stuff apart and put it back together.....sort of. I bought the truck for a summer wheelin' toy and snowbank destroyer! And because i wanted something that i could learn to fix myself and had a lot of access to aftermarket parts that weren't going to burn through my life savings to replace. I knew I was going to end up rebuilding and restoring it a little at a time but it will never be a carshow winner, unless of course there is a catagory for not pretty but runs good!

Thanks in advance:saweet: and...Any help greatly appreciated.
 
Inner axle seals are inside your pumpkin and would require pulling the gearset out to replace. Are you wanting to replace a seal to protect against gear oil coming out, or to protect against grease coming out of the hub?

Depending on if your truck isn't too new, you can remove the transmission tunnel and use a cherry picker to drop a line around the t-case adapter to make for easy removal of the trans/t-case.
 
looking to stop the oil from dripping from end of axle where ball joint is on the front of the truck. somehow its running out the end of the axle and dripping onto the ground. not alot but is creating a spot on the ground, usually when weather is warm. Has to be oil since grease is not fluid right? or am i way off base and over my head? I was thinking that I can pull hub and remove internal and replace seals. At least thats the impression i got from a friend that said it would b feasable. Now im looking for the best info i can get since it i still am relatively new to the whole mechanical repairs. :dunno:
 
Unfortunately on a front axle the axle seals are pressed into the housing from inside the pumpkin. As such, you'd have to pull your carrier out to do it, which would mean you end up having to reset your gears. Setting gears is typically well beyond the average driveway mechanic, and expensive to have done at a shop. BUT! You might find another CK5er local who has experience doing it and would help you. I know there's quite a few in Colorado.

If the leak isn't problematic, and your parking spot isn't that important for cleanliness, you should probably just ignore it. :(
 
colbystephens said:
Unfortunately on a front axle the axle seals are pressed into the housing from inside the pumpkin. As such, you'd have to pull your carrier out to do it, which would mean you end up having to reset your gears. Setting gears is typically well beyond the average driveway mechanic, and expensive to have done at a shop. BUT! You might find another CK5er local who has experience doing it and would help you. I know there's quite a few in Colorado.

If the leak isn't problematic, and your parking spot isn't that important for cleanliness, you should probably just ignore it. :(
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You do not have to reset gears if all you do is pull them out and put them back in, you just need to make sure you keep the shims the way they were.
But you need to remove to do the seals that is true.
As for the breather, I don't think you have a problem there, the problem most likely is in the pan gasket where you see the leak, if it was tight and the tranny pressurized fluid would come out of the dip stick tube.
Remove the cover, change the filter and put a new gasket on, shouldn;t be too hard for your skills.
Just don't overtorque that gasket.
 
Thanks for the input guys! imiceman, that is the impression i got from a friend. for the seals but i don't wanna effit up too bad, and don't wanna have to keep filling pumpkin either. If it above my abilities, what do u think an average charge would be to take it to a shop and have it done?

withe the tranny, i did replace filter and gasket in august last year due to the problema but after doing so, im still having the same problem with fluid spraying out of pan gasket an onto the exhaust pipe, but only happens when forced to downshift at higher speeds. Maybe i should just stop treating it like a it can handle higher speeds, and just drive it till it gives.? Just trying to better the odds of myself not getting stranded somewhere on a backwoods trail.

Guess ill hold off on the seals but im off to do the balljoint now. Let you know how it goes.
Thanks again for all your knowledge!
 
Well, since you don't have to reset the gears, you should be able to do it fairly easily. The hardest part will be correctly pounding the new seals in place. It would be to your advantage to do this before you reassemble your hubs, as you'll have to have the axle shafts out for the task.

Here's a random image of a 10 bolt rear differential I found.
130272-500-0.jpg


You pull the bearing caps, which is what you see with the 2 bolts on the left side of the ring gear, and the far right inside the pumpkin. Make sure you mark them so that they go back on the same side they came off of. Then pull the carrier (the whole unit with the spider gears and ring gear attached). DO NOT remove the bolts from the ring gear, just the two on each bearing cap. As you pull the carrier, there are shims on either side of it that are like extremely thin, large diameter washers. Keep track of those, exactly the way they are in there now, and make sure to put them back exactly as they came out. Then you pull the inner axle seals out of the housing where the axle shafts go through, and pound new ones in. You'll have to get creative on pounding the new ones in straight, so as not to damage them. You'll need a good torque wrench to properly torque the bearing cap bolts.

You can do it! :wink1:
 
unless your carrier bearings are worn out they will most likely stay on the carrier and keep the shims in place.i used a broomstick down the axle tube to push out the seals.to get them in use a socket the size of the outer part of the seal and slowly pound the new seal back into place.make sure you get the double lipped seal.it will seal better and also be easier to get the axle shafts back in.
 
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