dr.zoidberg

Hello to everyone in xj land. I was putting new front brakes on my xj today when i saw that the front driver side axle seal was starting to leak. I hopped on you tube to get an idea how hard it would be to fix. Was hoping someone on here thats done this repair could chime in with any tips or pointers on how to replace them. Are special tools needed? Whats the easiest way to drive them out and back in? Im a good mechanic...i just get nervous when i have to start removing carrier assemblies as ive never done it before and i know if something gets screwed up....i could completely toast my front axle.

BlueRidgeMark

I have no clue myself, but I'll bet you could get some help from Bleepin' Jeep.

https://www.youtube.com/results?sear...eep+axle+seals

PatHenry

I just did axle seals on my 95 and it should be similar on the 97. I had never done them before.

I ordered Spicer seals from either Amazon or Rockauto, I can't remember which, but I always feel you can't go wrong with the OEM part and they are Made in the U.S.A.

Removing and re-installing the carrier was a lot easier than I expected. Once you have have the bearing caps off it really is just a bit of upward pressure with a pry-bar (in my case I used a BFS (Big f'n screwdriver) which worked well) and then carefully lifted it out and set it on some cardboard.

The bearings and races (and possibly shims) on the ends do want to slip off, so make sure that they don't come off as you take it out and when you set the gears to the side.
I used a piece of cardboard labeled - top, bottom, drivers, pass, and stuck the bolts through to hold the bearing caps in their original locations.

Take a good look at (and/or a picture of) the old seals and how deep they sit. It will be easy to see this looking into the diff housing.

The old seals were easy enough to pop out with a broom handle. I had a 32 or 33mm socket I had since it fit nicely in the axle tube and just a few whacks with a hammer and they came right out. I was surprised at the condition of the old seals, they appeared to be in very good shape. All the videos and write-ups seemed to indicate that the seals would be mangled. However, when I compared them to the new seals it was clear that the thick lip had worn away (evenly) on the old seals just a bit and hence the leaking I was getting.

I used a 36mm axle socket to drive the new seals in and had an assistant to help. I coated the new seals (both the rubber and the outer metal) with gear oil and then held the seal and socket in the diff housing. It took a couple times to get the seal to go in straight, but starting with the drivers side, my assistant tapped the broom handle gently to start the seal in. Once it was going in straight, a few more stronger whacks with the hammer and the seal seated nicely in the axle.
On the passengers side, I used a set of socket extensions (with a little gear oil on them) to tap in the seal.

The carrier went right back in - the hardest part was having to hold the bearings on both sides as lined it up - which wasn't all that hard.

It went just as easily in real-life for me as it looks in the videos.

00t444e

^^ this ^^ one note though, the races will come off of the carrier but if the bearings are sliding off then you need new carrier bearings, the carrier bearings are a press fit and should never slide on and off, unless they are setup bearings that you use to set up your differential when changing gears.

PatHenry

Considering your issue is the leaky seals (and not an issue with the gears or bearings), the likely situation is that you just want to keep the carrier stuff exactly as it was coming out. It's really not hard - just hold it against the side. I set my carrier on end with the heavy side down and took care not to knock the stuff on the top off. Being extra paranoid, I slid the axles back in before putting the cover back on the diff so I could make sure everything lined up and what-not, but it really is pretty obvious (even for someone who hadn't removed a carrier before - like myself) when everything's in correctly.

In short - seriously, you'll be fine, nothing to worry about. If -I- can do it successfully - you can do it.

00t444e

Yes, but my point was when you take the carrier out the carrier bearings shouldn't be loose enough to slide right off of the carrier, they should be on there tight.