Diff leaking after seal replaced??
 

So a couple weeks ago I noticed that my diff is leaking at one of the side seals where the diff meets the halfshaft. I took the half shaft out and replaced the seal. I put it all back together and now it is leaking worse wtf??? I have a torsen rear from a 96' M edition with the 1.8 half shafts and diff. The seal looked the same as the one I took out. I did not replace the C-clip on the halfshaft as it looked fine. Anything I can check? Any suggestions? I plan on taking the halfshaft back out tommorrow or Saturday. Thanks.

welcome to the club....im in the same boat...replaced the seals twice, used two different stubshafts and circlips, and it still leaks....dunno what im doing wrong.

Is it possible to use permatex around the seal to help it seal better if so I am going to try that.

Hey brain problem solved. I took the halfshaft out again and did some investigating. I pulled the old seal and placed it on the halfshaft off the car just to see how it fit. I discovered that the seal had been pushed into the bore too far and was not engaging fully into the halfshaft. I wiped the bore clean and gently tapped the new seal in place without oiling the outside of the seal. I made sure the seal was just flush with the outside edge of the bore. I then put permatex around the outside of the seal, oiled the inside of the seal really good and put the halfshaft in. So far no leaks. Hope this helps.

hmmm....let me know after a week of driving or so...

Sorry for bringing a thread form the dead, but I'm having this problem now was there a fix for this?

seems this was the fix read try and, report back.

uhg i need to get around to changing mine. I was using a screw driver to pop my axle out when i was installing the torsen and managed to tear the seal a little bit. Its been leaking ever since. ill fix it soon enough.

Better not let it go too long, ~1 quart capacity isnt very much if you have any substantial leaking.

I never replaced an axle seal on Miatas, done a bunch on Ford vehicles though. Is it a flange type seal? Or just a round oil seal? I love those flanged oil seals because you can't go too far in as its flush when the lip seats against the housing.

Another one for the newbies, make sure you inspect the bore of the seals for nicks, gougues and debris before installation. Might save you some hassle..

Bump. Did the leak get fixed??

I have been fighting with my seal for a few weeks now and can't think of anything else to try.

I've replaced the seal twice, and tried installing the seal out flush with the bore, still leaks.

I can't think of anything else, it's still leaking!

Replaced both of mine last August and still sealing fine, went with the Napa premium ones.

Mine were fine, changed diff fluid and now one is leaking??? Never touched it, never removed axle nothing just changed fluid.

WTF?

PS: on my 2000 torsen in my 2000, only 90K

Yeah, isome last forever, some don't. You just got lucky lol

I have had mine in and out a couple of times. I use 1500 grit wet/dry sandpaper (left over from painting the car) on the half shafts where they go into the diff, just to remove anything that could be irregular. It also polishes the steel. I never had a leak, knock on wood.

+1

Making sure the axle is clean was a huge deal.

Sorry, but time for a necro bump! I think I have some new information on this.

I replaced my open diff with an RX-7 unit, along with both axles seals. The new seals had a metal rim around the outside, I think to keep road grime out of the seal. Old seals did not. The RX-7 diff was leaking, and I didn't like the way it behaved. Swapped my open diff back in and it was still leaking. Did a little digging, and I noticed the stub axle had a metal lip on it as well.

With the seal and axle on the workbench, I realized the two metal lips were touching with the seal BARELY on the axle's seal surface. Well off the slightly worn groove from the original seals. This interference was also preventing the axles from locking into the diff, being easily removed with just my hand. I just used some tin snips to trim half the lip off the seal, and now the axle locks in like it should, hopefully sealing.

I'm buttoning everything up tomorrow and driving it to class, I'll report back as to whether or not this solved the issue. This is all on the easily accessible passenger side, the driver's side above the muffler didn't appear to be leaking. If this solves my problem I'll most likely do the same to the driver's side, and this time I'll try to get some pictures.

Anyone else experience this?

Again, sorry for the necro-post.

my issue was using an rx7 diff out of a 84-85, that had a solid rear axle, and no grove for the circlip in the axle to fit into and hold it in place.

I was referring to the people having issues with oem diffs leaking with new seals. Such as the OP, 7 years ago.

i know. im just talking about myself, because that's all i care about.