New axle seals leaking...

Hi All!
I just finished replacing both my Rear axle seals and wheel bearings etc a week ago. Today I noticed diff oil on the wheel and was on the shoes when I took the drums off.

When I put in the seal I used a seal press kit to press it in and measured all around to make sure it was seated in there flush. I used all new OEM parts. I even changed the breather valve on the diff.

Any thoughts as to why it would be leaking?

Thanks,
Harrison

 

...just some random thoughts

OEM meaning - Toyota factory original seals ?

did you lube the seal with a little oil prior to pressing in ?
that'll help when pressing it in.
Possibly the pressing in method tore your new seal ?

Installed facing the proper direction ?

I used a large socket and tapped in a seal on my friends Rr axle
and it has never leaked to date.

It it possible the pressing compressed the seal too much
and caused damage to it ?

You made sure there was no debris or old seal fragments remaining ?
and cleaned the seal's seating surface prior to pressing in the new seal ?

 

All Toyota. Lubed it. Correct direction. Could possibly have damaged the seal through multiple attempts to seat it straight...

 

that would be my only assumption if everything else was done correctly.

 

Dumb question here, but are you certain its gear oil leaking out, and not brake fluid?

 

Sub'd for answers, having similar issues.

 

Here was my fix on a 89 Toyota V6 that has basically the same rear end. A previous 'mechanic' destroyed the sealing ability of the bearing retained to axle press fit.
http://www.yotatech.com/f116/replacing-rear-axle-wheel-bearing-seals-toyota-8-rear-axle-292614/

 

The axles are big and heavy; getting them all the way into the housing without touching the seals requires some care. Resting the axle on the seal's lip (while you shift your hand position, for example), can get you a leak. Ask me how I know.

 

^ X2 ...as I've experienced the same

 

where is it leaking from? the axle or the housing?

 

i just fix my about a month ago after 2 seals that i replace i think this one is working finally. oem seal should work just fine .

 

-Yes it's diff oil, installed new wheel cylinders and brake lines.
-No diff mod, but new breather
-As far as where, I'm not sure. It's on the drums and leaking onto the wheels...
-I called the shop that pressed my bearings and sent them a video of the wobble when I took the axle shaft out today and they said that the wobble was normal.
- I replaced the seal today and drove around, no leaks yet

-* the shop said to put grease around the edge of the new seal, I tried that (used diff oil last time), so, I'll see if that makes a difference.

 

Here is the old seal

 

Here is the video of the wobble I saw today when changing the seal.

 

Also, random question, see the stripes on the axle shaft in this pic, is that normal? The driver's side does not have these stripes

 

Ok, a few things. 1-if diff oil leaked out of the drums, replace the drums and shoes. Same happened to me and a "mechanic" said it would be fine. Oil turned my shoes to gum. 2-there's a possibility the diff oil washed out the grease in your wheel bearing. You may wanna pull it out and replace it while you're in there

 

Went i replace my seal i didn't have to change brakes ahoes or drums . just clean them very well with parts cleaner and ur good to go .

 

No. If any contaminant gets on brake pads or shoes, they are junk. When you apply brakes with a contaminant on it, it soaks into the pad and you can never get it out. The diff oil literally turned my shoes to mush. I could wipe it off the liner with my finger. That was after the mechanic said "oh, it'll be fine, we'll clean it with some brake cleaner."

 

I can't really see the wobble (side to side)...
Maybe you mean play when the axle shaft is moving in and out ?

I would think the bearing has a little play in it normally...
but that play should not be excessive.
And the seal shouldn't fail unless the bearing has become faulty
or there were a bent axle shaft.

I'm not sure what that tiger stripe color pattern is tho'
Don't remember seeing that on mine.
Possibly this is not the original factory axle shaft ?

A bent axle shaft could exacerbate wear or damage to both bearing and seal.
Tho' your bearing doesn't look like it's ever become too hot from wear.

Possibly a bent axle was replaced at some point and the seal wasn't replaced then ?

As long as the axle shaft/hub weight is not allowed to rest on the seal
during install... damage to the seal should not occur.

If a bearing is going bad you should hear a rumble emitting from the axle housing.
Or if the bearing were bad... the axle shaft wouldn't turn smoothly
and a gritty feel would be noticed I'd think.

If the new seal isn't leaking as of yet
I'd roll it and keep an eye out incase it occurs again.

If it did... I might suspect a bent axle shaft.

 

There are tons of posts on seal/bearing installs with ABS type rears, including all e-lockers. There are an equal number of ways the job can fail.
The two main issues related to repeated leaks are placement of the inner retainer and seal damage at install. If you had to "correct" for the seal getting cocked it is likely damaged, there are other considerations also. The inner retainer must be located at just the right spot on the shaft. This gets complicated by the fact that the OE seal has been upgraded. The new seal is very susceptible to damage (the metal part) when generic drivers are used and the new seal rides further inboard than the original.

Search this topic and read all you can.
Here's a few of the top of my head.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...f-a-build-thread.261534/page-72#post-12659235

And from this post on.