Front Axle Leak

I froze mine, slipped right in and seated to proper depth with the cv. Verified with depth mic. Way easier than drivers.

 

Good call, forgot that I did that as well on my final attempt. Also put a little gear oil around the seal. Worked much better

 

Where is the breather usually located? Just so I know what I am looking for and where to look.

 

Top of the diff.

 

The part that @Area51Runner circled is where the breather line exits the diff. I'm assuming you haven't looked at a diff from that perspective, so for reference... that picture is oriented such that the right (passenger) output is at the top, the left (driver) output is at the bottom, and the input (from the t-case) is to the right.

From the diff, there's a hose that runs into the engine bay to get the breather up higher (farther away from any water you might drive through). The breather itself is on the end of that hose. On my 2.7L, the breather attaches to the inside of the driver wheel well. I'm not sure if the 3.4L uses the same location, but I'd guess it does.

Here's another view of the whole thing, with the breather hose attached (picture grabbed from an eBay listing).



The cap on top of the breather should move freely. If it doesn't, you need to clean or replace the breather.

 

Same location on the 3.4.

 

Yep, same exact diff.

 

Yes indeed, that seal is very finicky on depth. I pooched it on the first try and had to do it again using a large PVC cap as a seal driver. The new seal has been in there for 4 years and is still dry. And as previously posted, will have ECGS install their bushing in my 7.5" clamshell when they rebuild it this summer.

EDIT: OP, this would be a good opportunity to extend your breather for high water crossings/floods.

 

Spendy is right!

I have to assume there are cheaper options. Does it need to be fancy anodized aluminum?

 

Few more bucks and you can just SAS