Front wheel grease (1 Viewer)

[Ol-Blue]

Hello all,

My rig is progressively dripping more grease here from behind the wheel. So much so that it is dripping from the tires and even to the driveway. Is this considered normal or what is causing this? Was it just overly greased?

 

[php74]

Knuckle rebuild time, tons of threads. Good luck!

 

[franklin40]

yeah probably inner axle seals are leaking and that’s diff oil mixing with knuckle grease causing that soup. cruiser outfitters has rebuild kits and all the stuff you’ll need. get marlin axle seals while you’re in there. not a hard job just messy and time consuming. many other vendors here on mud that sell them too so pick who you like. also loads of threads here that’ll walk you through it

 

[1911]

What they said, exactly.

 

[Ol-Blue]

Alright, sounds like a knuckle rebuild then. What kind of urgency should I have towards this?

 

[73FJ40]

The gear oil from your front differential is leaking out through a seal on the axle inside the axle housing, mixing with the grease in your knuckle. The wiper seal on your knuckle can keep dirt out, but not gear oil in.

Depending on how much has leaked out, your differential could be low on gear oil and your knuckle low on grease.

If you decide to check the differential for level, always try to remove the fill plug first, because if you pull the drain plug and the fill plug doesn't budge, you won't be able to refill it, any easy way in any event.

 

[4Cruisers]

If you decide to check the differential for level, always try to remove the fill plug first, because if you pull the drain plug and the fill plug doesn't budge, you won't be able to refill it, any easy way in any event.

I recently flat towed my '71 FJ40 from Nevada to New Mexico for a build. Shortly after we hit the road my wife and I noticed a slight metallic sound. I pulled into an O'Reilly Auto Parts store in Las Vegas to get what I needed to check the gear oil level in the differentials. Luckily I had my DeWalt cordless impact driver with me. I had remembered from a post here on MUD that a 15/16" 6-point socket works great on the 24mm fill plugs (and drain plugs) - 15/16" is 99.2% of 24mm, so a more snug fit but will still fit the head of the plug. Had both plugs off in a matter of minutes, even though it had been at least 17 years since they had been removed last.

 

[reddog90]

Yes, knuckle time. Tons of threads on here and @OTRAMM has great youtube videos on it. I just did mine and refreshed all my steering linkage, center arm, hubs, and brakes at the same time.

 

[ceylonfj40nut]

If you use a 24mm or the 15/16” recommend grinding the tip surface down so that the 6 point bite is flat. Some sockets are a little curved on the inside tip which does not bite the bolt well. Can strip. Works all the time when ground flat. A 24mm sst

 

[4Cruisers]

If you use a 24mm or the 15/16” recommend grinding the tip surface down so that the 6 point bite is flat. Some sockets are a little curved on the inside tip which does not bite the bolt well. Can strip. Works all the time when ground flat. A 24mm sst

I did that to my 15/16" socket and it does help. It especially helps for the small deep socket used for the Toyota carburetor power valve.

 

[kcisland]

Ol-Blue

This is the seal everyone is talking about above. It keeps the gear oil in the differential/axle from leaking into the knuckle which is full of grease. Once the two mix it get's liquefied to the point it leaks out of the felt in the back.

 

[4Cruisers]

Do it right the first time and buy Marlin Crawler's heavy-duty Eco-Seals for the front axle.

 

[bcsteel]

If you do it yourself, it’s really easy to do. Plan for a mess. Lots of rags, shop gloves and I usually put down a piece of plywood so the shop floor or driveway stays clean.

 

[Ol-Blue]

Ol-Blue

This is the seal everyone is talking about above. It keeps the gear oil in the differential/axle from leaking into the knuckle which is full of grease. Once the two mix it get's liquefied to the point it leaks out of the felt in the back.

View attachment 1933140

View attachment 1933143

Thanks for the pic, very helpful and these look super clean by the way.

Do it right the first time and buy Marlin Crawler's heavy-duty Eco-Seals for the front axle.

Why not use Toyota seals? Curious for thoughts on this topic.

 

[4Cruisers]

Thanks for the pic, very helpful and these look super clean by the way.



Why not use Toyota seals? Curious for thoughts on this topic.

From what I understand the lip on the Marlin Crawler seals is offset from the spot on the axle shaft where the OEM seals ride, so a fresh wear surface with no grooves. There may be other advantages as well.

 

[reddog90]

Exploring the Technology of the EcoSeal Inner Axle Seal | Marlin Crawler, Inc.

We are extremely proud to offer the best Toyota inner axle seal on the planet. Highly endorsed by numerous organizations, the Marlin Crawler EcoSeal has proven to...

www.marlincrawler.com

 

[middlecalf]

Good tech stuff on Marlin inner axle seals @reddog90. This would be an issue for my rigs I guess: "Applications include all 1979-1985 Toyota Hilux 8" front axles, and all 1969-1/1990 Land Cruiser front axles including FJ40, FJ45, FJ55, FJ60, and FJ62. " Maybe my '63 and '65 don't have these seals. (If not obvious I'm axle ignorant)

 

[3_puppies]

Good tech stuff on Marlin inner axle seals @reddog90. This would be an issue for my rigs I guess: "Applications include all 1979-1985 Toyota Hilux 8" front axles, and all 1969-1/1990 Land Cruiser front axles including FJ40, FJ45, FJ55, FJ60, and FJ62. " Maybe my '63 and '65 don't have these seals. (If not obvious I'm axle ignorant)

no seal on the early ball and claw axles, just a bushing.

 

[bruhbruhburt]

Is this normal? Or do i need to rebuild the knuckle like the guy above?

 

[iwashmycar]

Is this normal? Or do i need to rebuild the knuckle like the guy above?
View attachment 3583382View attachment 3583383

Looks like you are in the same boat there, yep.