water in axle + gear box leaking

[insanemudder]

past weekend i did some hardcore muddin, somehow stalled my automatic twice but i hit a huge puddle and i think some water got in somewhere maybe into the axle and now i hear humming and vibrations from underneath the suv, i dont know what it is from, and i would use other forums on the site but a big pop up says im not allowed to post on it or somethin so thats my concern, i ways thinking of either waiting till inspection to have it looked at and deal with the noise and vibration for now or wait till january when me and my friend put a 4 in suspension and 3 in body on it :roll:

and my gear box is leaking, inspection will cost some money and i guess i might have to wait for a couple more months fot the lift if i get the inspection guys to look / fix it

 

[IZwack]

.. i hear humming and vibrations from underneath the suv, i dont know what it is from

well thats the first step - knowing where its coming from. vibrations can be caused by anything from a bent driveshaft, to a bent wheel. the humming could be anything too - from a pinion bearing, transmission, basically anything that moves can hum including tires (and even people!). anyways, maybe get the tires up in the air and get them spinning under its own power while you get under the vehicle and pinpoint the hum.

ur differential should have a breather tube at the top and that breather tube is usually strung across the cross member that is located directly on top of the rear axle. you would need to basically submerge probably most of the rear tire in order to get water to the breather tube.

you can check whether or not you have water in the differential by simply opening it. obviously ull need to replace the oil and ull also need some RTV to seal it up in the end.

i ways thinking of either waiting till inspection to have it looked at and deal with the noise and vibration for now or wait till january

i wouldnt wait till january especially cauz u dont know whats making the vibration and noise. i mean, knock on wood, it could lead to an accident or leave u stranded somewhere (example: broken u-joint). if you know exactly what it is thats making the vibration/noise, and it wasn't that severe, then maybe ur okay running it for a month or two.

my gear box is leaking, inspection will cost some money and i guess i might have to wait for a couple more months fot the lift if i get the inspection guys to look / fix it

whats a gearbox? r u using this term like how europeans use it to refer to the transmission? or are u talking about the transfer case?

so i think ur next and first move is to find out exactly where the hum/vibration is coming from

 

[cold sport 01]

After about a year of serious off roading I to began hearing a vibration on my lifted 01 explorer sport. Since anything mechanical never gets better by it self it got worse and in my case the u-joints in the front drive line were the culprits. I simply marked the drive line to maintain balance took the culprit to a machine shop and the repair was about $100. Get under your truck place the emergency brake on place the tranny in neutral and see if when you grab your drive line it shakes if so problem solved.also change diff fluids, trans case fluid,and tranny fluid because cold water causes hot metal to contract sucking in water through all seals turning your fluids to mud.

 

[Aussie Explorer]

Mate, if you have water in the Axle and gearbox drain the old fluid out and put new stuff in. Driving around with water running in it will only cause problems and that leads to more $$ being spent.

 

[insanemudder]

thanks much guys ill get that done, the reason i thought i got water in the breather is because im always in water and just so happens that i stalled out in water and it was sittin so im not sure if it got in there or not, but its very possible that the u joints went bad or started to go bad before i went offroading and perhaps it just got worse when i slid into the huge rock, well thanks much and ill try all these ideas out

 

[insanemudder]

when i check my u joints should i check both of them? the noise is coming from the front of my sport but since im not running it in 4 wheel drive why would there be noise in the front, does the front u joint rotate and move even when in 2 wheel drive? please explain so i understand.

 

[insanemudder]

i think its possible that since i go through alot of water that one of my wheel bearings in the front went bad and its making that noise and vibrations, any ideas?

 

[IZwack]

does the front u joint rotate and move even when in 2 wheel drive? please explain so i understand.

yes, everything in the front of your 01 explorer sport rotates as long as ur moving - even though the front axle insnt being powered, it still rolls because of the moving ground underneath it.

i think its possible that since i go through alot of water that one of my wheel bearings in the front went bad and its making that noise and vibrations, any ideas?

yes it is possible, try searching the message board - the topic of water getting into the 2nd generation explorer's wheel bearings has been discussed many many times.