I pulled the differential cover on the RV today. I could tell it had been leaking out the bottom of the cover at some point in the past & the fluid was low.
There was quite a bit of metal on the fill plug.
How does this wear look to you?
Do you think we'll be ok for our ~3000 miles of driving this summer if I fill it up & make sure it isn't leaking? Or should I call the local drivetrain shop & have them go through it.
It's a 2004 E450 with ~41k on it, but it sat for a long time.
I would call that an unconcerning amount of stuff. If you didn't have a magnet, you'd never notice that.
Plus, it's not worn out enough to notice where it's coming from, so give it another 50k to make sure.
Lube it up and if doesn't whine it'll outlast this short trip. I see nothing unusual there at all.
That's fine. I don't see anything that concerns me. I assume it's not making any weird noises.
In reply to APEowner :
It's been whining, which is what led me to open it up. I'm not sure if there's a "normal" amount of whine for a DRW Dana 80 axle, but it noticeable from about 20-40mph. Below that & I don't hear it, above it & it's drowned out by all the other noise.
In a D70/80, the most likely whine is the pinion bearings.
Drive it. Fix it later. I waited about three years to do the whining pinion in my 10.25" Ford. When you start getting shiny, glitter-sized flakes, then you know it's ready to explode.
In reply to Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) :
Thanks Curtis!
The amount of bits on the magnet look perfectly normal, and the wear minimal.
You can tell from that fill plug that the rear end has never been opened before. Lube it and send it.
In reply to Captdownshift (Forum Supporter) :
I'm not so sure, the absolute mess of an rtv job & relatively fresh fluid that came out makes me think otherwise?
Apparently there should have been a gasket under the diff cover, so I'm picking one up tomorrow. I'm sure RTV could work ok by its self, but I'd definitely make a total mess with it. So I'll just use a thin layer to hold the gasket in place, since trying to get the cover into place in such a tight area without making a mess of a fresh bead of rtv will be impossible for me.
Another vote for it be fine. Wear looks great, no pits visible to indicate that it is through any hardening.
As long as you can grab the pinion and CAN'T wobble it up and down, and likewise can't move the carrier side to side, fresh fluid and good to go.
First pic looks like a metallic butthole. Aite I'm out! Lol
In reply to yupididit :
Well, it IS the plug for a rear end...
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
Every person has their fetish and I think we now know yupididit's.
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
Thanks! I checked the carrier & it didn't move. I'll have to climb under from in front of the wheels & check the pinion.
Stampie said:In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
Every person has their fetish and I think we now know yupididit's.
I didn't taste it, but considering the smell I'd guess the two are similar, with this one possibly being slightly more metallic.
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