Crazy Leak from the Rear end overnight

haven't identified the source yet. trac bar installed last month and no issues or signs of weeping since then... i just saw a puddle under the truck this morning. possibly a weld point for the traction bar bracket. possibly the pumpkin, but i don't think so. this is not weeping, this is letting go overnight...



TL;DR;?
rear weld-on bracket of the Budbuilt traction bar tore open a hole at the top of the bracket on the axle housing.
more here: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...ear-end-overnight.548948/page-3#post-17833790

 

Seems to be where you mounted the trac bar, is it welded on or a clamp type mount?

Looks close to the brake line too, is it rear end oil or brake fluid, taste it

 

^^^

You may have pinched a break line, it looks like it’s leaking above the diff.

 

Wow , Another reason I don’t buy used and this is a great example of why Toyota voids warranties when hacks modify vehicles. Perfect example.

 

That brake line looks wet, definitely check it. Could be rubbing from that sway mount.

Also if it were diff oil you would notice that it smells like sulfury ASS. Gear oil smells gross as hell so if it has a foul odor to it, it's your diff. If there's no odor to speak of probably brake fluid.

Not to derail but where did you get a trac bar for a 3rd gen?

 

Look closer at my picture with the blue square, it doesn't look like the hard line is clamped over at all. It's close enough to rub which IMHO should have been a "no, screw this" moment but I'm almost certain he hasn't clamped over it.

 

Gear oil in these trucks is full synthetic from the factory... doesn't smell all that much. Now if you take it to the dealer they are going to put in 75w90 non-synthetic.... and that shit smells.

Why the traction bar??

Why dont you just upgrade your suspension if the truck is rolling in turns on highway?

Looks like brake fluid to me.. even synthetic gear oil will have a slight odor, brake fluid not so much.

Looks like possible brake line failure. Check your brake fluid res..

 

My money is that it is brake fluid. check your brake fluid reservoir.

 

Oh god @St.Germain this is scary to see... really sorry to see this, but it looks like you've got the typical third gen diff seepage. Highest point where I can see oil is the 4th diff bolt up. This is a big bummer though, I have been keeping an eye on my shit ever since these diff seepage posts started popping up but I haven't seen anything yet. Hope you can get it remedied quickly, I would go in to the dealership and explain why the traction bar is there and that you understand the point of it and you should be able to get it fixed just fine. I have had warranty work done on my truck without issue and you know how modded mine is

 

Money on brake fluid.... kinda even looks red in the puddle too. Maybe the trac bar installer accidentally put a boo-boo on the brake line.

 

If it's been on a month and no issues.... where did you drive yesterday? Any off roading or unusual bumps?
My bet is on brake fluid also.

 

My bet is brake fluid. Puddle would be much more viscous if diff fluid. Why? Don't know, unless something moved a bit and touching brake line.

 

Muffler bearing. Tap on the radiator and see if the blinker flashes.

 

thanks for most of the replies so far.

1. no taste to the fluid except maybe a slightly grainy taste. no odor and no color except maybe a little gray.
2. no the brake lines aren't clamped. or pinched or any of that.
3. does not at all appear to be weeping... no evidence of oil at the seal.
4. brake reservoir full to max.

so, i took a closer look and have a possibility. take a look at these...





you can see thick wads of grease on the trac bar bracket. what are the chances that my long miles on the road yesterday in our current hot weather got enough heat going that some of that melted and ran downward?this is kinda what it looks like, and that's path for flow or so it appears... until it contacts the brake line and can easily travel along it from wind and lateral motion forces. can that grease liquify like that? I'll call Tandem Off-road in the morning. they did my install. it's a weld on as i mentioned. it's a possibility that the weld patch behind the bracket is a leak but the fluid would need to travel upward from there and that's less likely.

i have not off-roaded, but it's now fairly hot here and I've been doing plenty of highway miles.

for the record i put Amsoil in the diff about 15k miles ago and have watched yet seen no signs of weeping.

 

to add to that idea... not so sure since the fluid today, on a cold truck that hasn't run since last night, is totally fluid and not thickening. seems to be diff fluid. dealer tomorrow AM.

 

clean it up and check for seeps after awhile?

 

i will do that before running it to the dealer tomorrow, and I'll check once to their lot. i don't want to risk miles on a drying diff.

 

Open the diff and stick you finger in there see if it's low

 

It looks to be coming from behind the bracket since it's clearly wetter there as opposed to the diff itself.

 

i agree