Rear Axle Seal leaking...

[3ple8]

unfortunately, since this economy went down, i got laid off by chrysler as an apprentice mechanic...

i have a 03 explorer sport trac 4wd, and i've noticed when i did my shocks that my passenger side axle seal is leaking diff fluid... i checked the diff fluid level and it seems to be full, question i have is since i'm just gonna go back to school and i really don't have enough money right now to fix it, is there any major damage it can do to my diff if i don't change it right away? i mean, i still have to drive my truck pretty much the whole weekdays since i still have a part time job (thank god)...

sorry if my words are kind of all over... just had a big ass exam to write...

thanks so much guys...

p.s. i'm probably going to have my loan by the end of august so If i can I'll just fix it, any suggestions on exactly how? I do have a haynes repair manual... and it gave me an idea on what exactly i should do, but any easier way of doing it would be nice.

 

[John_Rock]

You will be fine as long as your fluid level is good. Axle seals shouldn't cost too much. It's always a good idea to get a manual like Haynes. They don't cost that much either.

Autozone also has an online do it yourself repair website.
http://www.alldatadiy.com/index.html
1 Year Subscription for First Vehicle is $26.95
http://www.alldatadiy.com/buy/

I had a friend that owned a repair shop and he used the Alldata software for his business.

 

[srknova74]

You have disc brakes in back so the seal "seeping" shouldn't cause any major issues. If you had drums the gear oil leaking into the drum would cause poor braking and faster wear of the brake components. Check the fluid level at oil change intervals to make sure it's full. Axle seals are very easy and cheap as long as a bad seal hasn't worn a grove into the axle itself. If it has and the grove is not substantial, you can carefully take it out with some emory cloth. If the grove is bad bad, the axle should be replaced as the new seal will leak too. That's about all the help I have 4 ya.

 

[3ple8]

thanks guys, i do have disc brakes in the back so it's one relief. like i said i checked the fluid level and it seemed full still, i'll be able to fix it by the end of august since my loan will come then...

thanks for all ur help guys.

 

[samer]

i need help guys. i need to change my rear axle but i need info on it before i start digging in any body can help