Are special tools necessary?

[Guest tagree01]

Hey guys. I have yellow fluid dripping from my rear end (insert joke here). I got a shop manual and it lists about 300 "special tools" for working on this car (D14), including a special one for removing the pinion oil seal (I think that is where it is leaking). How necessary are these special tools? Is this a difficult job?

[bob_amos]

It's going to depend on how deep you will need to go. To replace the pinion seal you really don't need much of anything real special. Just an impact to remove and reinstall the nut and some kind of seal remover to get the old seal out. A properly ground screwdriver has worked for me for many year on this proceedure. It is best to have a proper seal installer to assure a straight insertion of the new seal, but I have seen and done it with just a small hammer and a metal block working my way around the edges evenly. Now I know that many will start jumping in with pinion bearing loads and such, but trust me, in over 41 years of working on these beasts I have had no troubles with pinion bearing loads causing premature failure if done properly. But then, I do have the feel for just how tight everything should be. This really is an easy job if everything else is fine. Just remember that there is a reason for the leakage. If it is due to the seal just drying up and letting go then you are okay. But if the pinion bearing has loosened up or something worse had developed inside all the seals in the world will not help.

[Young Ed]

You will probably find that there is a groove worn on the pinion. Dad and I tried a little experiment of not tapping the new seal quite all the way in to see if that would make the seal ride in the non grooved area. I haven't been back under to see if it really worked though. Also we've had a few of these apart when I was over and never worried about preload etc.

[randroid]

Tagree,

Now that the other gents have made it sound relatively simple, please allow me to nudge my way to the head of the line and insert a cloud within your silver lining:

The yellow viscous fluid is probably emussified lube oil, meaning it's full of water. (Oil and water will mix under the right temperature and pressure, and it's usually yellow and never has good lubricating properties.) If you can get the rear of the banjo off (I can't tell from the photo) you should do a visual inspection of stuff like bearings and gears to check for rust. At the very least you might want to flush the interior with a good solvent (kerosene?) to remove emulsified residue, with the added bonus of also cleaning the crud settled on the bottom.

Just a thought.

-Randy

[TodFitch]

You will probably find that there is a groove worn on the pinion. Dad and I tried a little experiment of not tapping the new seal quite all the way in to see if that would make the seal ride in the non grooved area. I haven't been back under to see if it really worked though. Also we've had a few of these apart when I was over and never worried about preload etc.

Mine had quite a groove worn it it but the new seal seems to be doing okay anyway. I suspect you could get a speed sleeve pressed over the shaft if it is too badly worn to seal well.

[Guest tagree01]

Thanks guys.

I checked the supplier list on the companion site and couldn't find a supplier for pinion seals. Any suggestions? Steele didn't have it.

Last question: If I pull the banjo off (I'd like to see what it looks like inside), am I going to need a new gasket?

Thanks.

[Young Ed]

I don't believe any of the factory rearends have a removable cover. You'd have to pull the axles and then pull the diff unit to have a look in there. And yes you would need a new gasket for the diff.

[DutchEdwin]

Thanks guys.

I checked the supplier list on the companion site and couldn't find a supplier for pinion seals. Any suggestions? Steele didn't have it.

Last question: If I pull the banjo off (I'd like to see what it looks like inside), am I going to need a new gasket?

Thanks.

Perhaps this site? http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductList.aspx?PartType=382&PTSet=A&SearchFor=Differential+Pinion+Seal or Napa. It has mine. Not sure about your car.

I did mine pinion seal years ago with a NOS leather seal. Not a thing I would recommend to do. It is still leaking a little bit. Not as much as it was. There was no groove on the shaft. Must be the leather type.

Edwin.

[Norm's Coupe]

Hate to be a "Nay Sayer" on the subject of leaks. However, as a kid growing up with cars of the 40's through the 50's at least, they all seemed to leak when new. If it's just a small leak I think it's just something we have to live with, or go on Prozak.

[Guest tagree01]

I certainly have no problem with leaks either, the question is how much is too much? I guess it is leaking maybe a quart per year.

[Norm's Coupe]

I don't have leaks that leak that much, just a few drops. Just enough to mess up the floor if I don't keep something under there. I don't worry about that so much. Never had to add any type of oil to anything on it. However, I remember as a kid every time you saw a car getting a lube job, they would check the rearend also. Seems like every time I saw that they were adding fluid to the rearends. Seems like we always had spots in the driveway where the car was usually parked back then. Mother use to always be telling us, "Don't get into that oil on the driveway and track it into my clean house." I can still here her tone of voice saying those words today and I'm going on 63 now. She's 85 years old now and everyday she goes out and sweeps the dust off the driveway, because someone may come and track it into the house.

[Guest rockabillybassman]

Andy B is listing the pinion seal. Got to get one myself. www.oldmoparts.com

[Plymouthy Adams]

Part number 18880 crosses to Chicago Rawhide part number 183105TL and its specific dimensions are at this link:

http://www.dichtomatik.us/Interchange/ourpart.aspx?id=71051

[Don Coatney]

I certainly have no problem with leaks either, the question is how much is too much? I guess it is leaking maybe a quart per year.

One quart per year? Cost of 1 quart is around two bucks. Cost of the seal and labor to install it around fourty bucks. Do the math.

[Young Ed]

I'd still want to take a look at that. Your fluid leaking shouldn't be yellow. Its got rusty water in it or it was filled with something other then 80w90. If the leak is really not that bad drain and refill. Might want to drive a little and then drain and refill again.

[BobT-47P15]

I bought a new pinion seal during the past year.....I think I got it at a regular auto parts store, probably O'Reilly. Have forgotten the details now. Had it installed by a mechanic not far from where I live. Seems to be working OK. So, check your friendly parts house first. You can still buy certain pieces from those places....they may have to order it from their warehouse, but that only takes a couple days to be delivered.

Any time I go into NAPA, O'Reilly, or Auto Zone here they are friendly and helpful about looking up old parts. They will often pull out an old book to search for things. I try to talk with guys who have been there for a while.