Is this a leaking driveshaft seal?
Discussion
After a recent drive I felt it sounded different. I could then see a few spots of oil on the floor and there was evidence of oil coating the underside, near the differential. The right drive driveshaft seems to be where it is originating - see photos. Is the driveshaft seal the likely culprit? If it is, my plan is to order the seal and have a local garage carry out the work? Any comment or advice welcome, especially from anyone that has had the same failure? Thanks, Darren
Relatively straightforward to do. Things to note are that the seal should not be pushed all the way in as it can fall off the driveshaft with extreme suspension travel. It should be placed in a similar position to the one taken out (but check that's not the problem). Oil seal failures tend to suggests other problems, so ask them to check for obvious bearing damage and/or contaminated oil.
Edited by DCL on Saturday 4th November 19:33
BertBert said:
I'm not sure why the oil seal would make it sound different though? I would have thought there was more going on for that.
Bert
I think you might be right Bert. The sound I heard while driving was occasionally 'tappety', and not finding any other defect other than the leaking differential, I concluded that to be the cause, and it could be just a coincidence.Bert
F355GTS said:
There is a breather on the diff just above the righthand side, I suspect that will be there source of the oil in that area
OK, I'll need to check that. Any thoughts on why oil may leak from the breather? There is evidence of a fair amount of oil around the differential - before tracing it back, I first noticed the oil dripping from the 'A' frame for the differential, where it bolts to the chassis.Gassing Station | Caterham | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff