My wife recently drove our sons '04 F250 back to Kansas City from Detroit. It has a lift kit and the big gnarley tires. I noticed the truck had developed a leak at the passenger side fron axle at the spindle. I found that the oil seal at the end of the axle housing appeared to be going bad and allowing gear oil to puddle under the truck. I have replaced rear axle seals/bearings on our 1995 E150 Conversion van w/245K but havent worked on a 4x4 as yet. I am not currently allowing the truck to be driven so I am intending to repair it this weekend. Anything I should look for like wheel bearing wear? Is the axle held in by a C-clip like the rear end of out van?...making removal of the differential cover necessary? Or is the outer axle held in-place by the bearing? I think there is a Haynes manual in the truck so I wont be completely blind. Any tips greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

First,, is it an ESOF or manual 4x4?

The outer axle seal you see (most rip and just tumble around the axle shaft) is just a dust seal to keep dirt/water/debris out of the axle tube.

The inner axle seal actually holds back the lube. The differential carrier needs to be removed and the seals press into the axle housing behind the carrier bearings.

The brakes and hub assembly need to be removed.. On the backside of the spindle, you'll see 4 nuts where the hub studs come through. The hub is a pinch/o ring fit, and sometimes hang a bit in the bore and may require a rock back'n forth motion with a bar or two to get them free. Once the hubs are removed, the axle is just a light press into the inner axle seal, no clips or retainers.. Sometimes the large hub seal sticks in it's bore, and requires a hard push/pry on the u joint or the seal to be driven out. Usually a bar against the u joint will pop them loose and out.. If the large seal is distorted, bent, dented, or yours given the high mileage, good practice to replace them during the axle reseal. Best to have them pressed on if replaced. They can be driven on (but requires a specific driver) but easy to damage them give the amount of force needed to install..

If you do one side, DO BOTH, so you don't have to repeat your work..

One problem you may run into is,, the inner axle seals press into the axle tube/housing. There isn't much room in the housing to work, and the seals must go in straight and at the correct depth. I have a press that inserts the seals to the correct depth and squares them to the bore. You could fab a driver and work through the axle tubes, or carefully try through the carrier opening.

Once the axle is out,, be sure to clean out the axle tube from dirt etc. otherwise when you insert the axle the splines can pick up debris or trash and push it into the axle/seal pinch area.. The axles seal 'pinch fit' against the inner axle seals ID. The way this seal works is,, the seals outer OD presses into the bore, the ID of the seal slips/pinches on the axle nose during install. All one unit, but the seal ID rotates with the axle..

When doing axle lube seals, if an ESOF, is a good time to replace the large hub seal for future or potential vacuum leaks at the seal/s. Also a good time to check spindle ball joints. They tend to like to wear the lowers more/most often..

 

It is an auto with button on dash for 4x4. I have the brake pads, caliper and the four nuts and one whole bolt out. One of the four backed out with the nut corroded in place. Only hitch was the lower caliper bolt snapped off. I think theres enough of the bolt to get ahold of to back it out and replace. Before I took the four bolts out I noticed I could move the whole axle around like it was axle bearing play. It has lots of slop and movement. Its gotten dark and I need to see about parts before the stores close so thats all I can get done today. Whats a good price/brand for bearings? Im limited to Autozone, Advance and Napa locally. Thanks for your detailed step by step!

 

Go with NAPA parts if thats all thats available..

The axle will normally will have some play, in/out up and down, their only supported at the front of the hub and at the end of the outer axle stub (near the u joint yoke).. There's a nylon thrust washer where the axle runs against the hub and the axle semi floats. Some thrust will crack, or wear, and should be checked. No problem reusing them if they check ok.

Take a look at the needle bearings at the end of the hub as well, and the running surface of the stub (outer axle) axle.. If the axle shows signs of excessive wear or a bearing failure, could be so, but not all that common. Adding some extra grease on the needle set and thrust during re assembly won't hurt either..

When you replace the smaller dust seal on the axle end (near the joint), don't lube the seals slip area where it installs onto the yoke. If you do, they tend to like to slide back off.

And again,, if the large hub seal is replaced, press them instead of a driver install. Their somewhat pricey and easy to damage.. More so if your not using a design driver..

I have a install tool that 'sets' and squares the axle and large seal to the correct dept in the spindles bore. When you get ready to pull the axle,, take a quick measurement of the distance the seal is inserted into the bore (against the black lip) measure against the flat area on the spindles face. Makes reassemly easier.

Going back together, 'lightly' lube the spindle bore and try and set the seal/axle back as close as possible to the measured range. Don't install too deep, and if a push is needed, try and use or fab a ring type driver (close to the bore size) to push against the rubber outer of the seal, not against the metal surfaces..

If they have any problems with the part numbers, let me know..