1964-1974 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
It's a sign that the rubber seals around the axles have deteriorated and are allowing leaks. Common problem.
If the transaxle is out of the car, it's very easy to fix:
0) Order new side seals from West of Sweden (see classifieds.) They're not expensive.
1) Drain transaxle fluid.
2) Remove stub axle from each side by putting a crowbar behind the universal-joint cup, resting against the transmission case (use a block of wood if needed to provide a pivot point) and then smacking the free end of the crowbar smartly; the axle will pop out. (Make sure it won't land on the car, your toe, etc.)
3) Pry out old seal with a screwdriver.
4) Fill lips of new seal with grease, per instructions. Place seal against side of transmission case and tap into place, using a piece of 2x2 lumber as a drift. (You could use a special seal driver, but the 2x2 worked for me.)
4a - optional) If the side seals are bad, the input shaft seal probably isn't far behind, so you might as well replace it too. You'll need a hook-type seal puller to get this one out, and unless you want to split the transaxle and extract the input shaft (not difficult) you WILL need some kind of seal driver to get the new one in -- you need something that will slip over the input shaft and let you tap in the seal without damaging the shaft.
5) Refill, reinstall, and enjoy many more thousands of leak-free miles.
As I said, it's a snap if the transaxle is out of the car! If it isn't... well, that's a lot tougher. I've heard that it's just barely possible to get the stub axles out with the transaxle in place -- you have to unclamp and peel back the rubber boots over the inner U-joints, then unbolt the lower ball joints (DANGER - NOT the upper ball joints; they're under spring pressure and can fly out and kill you!!! The lower ones are safe to unbolt) and then swing out the suspension upright to pull the outer drive shaft out of the U-joint, and then MAYBE there will be JUST enough room to pry out the stub axle, remove the old seal, and fit in the new one. As I said, I've HEARD that's possible. To me, it looks as if it would be easier to just yank the honker out of the car so you can do the job comfortably on your workbench!
posted by 68.227.170...
, Fri, 19 May 2006 14:23:27
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