2001 Forester

[boris]

Dealer told me that rear differential cover was wet. It's 2001 Forester with
95K miles? How serious could it be?

Thanks,
Boris

 

[Todd H.]

Dealer told me that rear differential cover was wet. It's 2001
Forester with 95K miles? How serious could it be?

Wet with what?

 

[1 Lucky Texan]

Dealer told me that rear differential cover was wet. It's 2001 Forester with
95K miles? How serious could it be?

Thanks,
Boris

If that's ALL they said, get a different mechanic.

 

[Illuminated]

Hi

To have a dealer talk that kind of B.S. is very serious indeed, taking your
car somewhere else would be a good next step.

Marcus

 

[boris]

Wet with what?

Thanks to everyone that responded. I called the shop today - asked for
details. They told me there's an oil leak somewhere in (or around) the rear
differential. They told me to make an appointment for free evaluation.

Boris

 

[S]

Hi Boris!

Dealer told me that rear differential cover was wet. It's 2001 Forester with
95K miles? How serious could it be?

Thanks,
Boris

The rear differential will frequently "weep" gear lube. This manifests
as a dirty/oily coating on the diff, particularly around the input and
output shaft(s), and is not necessarily of immediate concern, tho you
_will_ want to keep an eye on the fluid level. Or simply drain and
refill the diff periodically.

If the diff case is literally wet with fluid, the leak has become
serious, and should be corrected.

Most likely culprits are the seals, but could be the cover gasket or
drain/fill plugs as well. Clean the diff well with solvent and watch
to see where the fluid is coming from.

The output seals are (IIRC) in carriers bolted to the diff case
externally, and are relatively easily replaced. Anything else will
probably involve removing the diff for bench work. Might be
quicker/easier in the long run to get a junkyard replacement, as
installing an intact rear differential is relatively trivial.

ByeBye! S.

Steve Jernigan KG0MB
Laboratory Manager
Microelectronics Research
University of Colorado
(719) 262-3101

 

[XR650L_Dave]

Thanks to everyone that responded. I called the shop today - asked for
details. They told me there's an oil leak somewhere in (or around) the rear
differential. They told me to make an appointment for free evaluation.

Boris

Be cautious, the dealers are hungry and some are not as honest as they
should be.


Dave

 

[boris]

Be cautious, the dealers are hungry and some are not as honest as they
should be.

Dave
Thanks for warning me. But it was my initiative: I called them and asked for
details - only then did they tell me to make an appointment in a month (I
just had an oil change several days ago).

Boris

 

[boris]

Hi Boris!



The rear differential will frequently "weep" gear lube. This manifests
as a dirty/oily coating on the diff, particularly around the input and
output shaft(s), and is not necessarily of immediate concern, tho you
_will_ want to keep an eye on the fluid level. Or simply drain and
refill the diff periodically.

If the diff case is literally wet with fluid, the leak has become
serious, and should be corrected.

Most likely culprits are the seals, but could be the cover gasket or
drain/fill plugs as well. Clean the diff well with solvent and watch
to see where the fluid is coming from.

The output seals are (IIRC) in carriers bolted to the diff case
externally, and are relatively easily replaced. Anything else will
probably involve removing the diff for bench work. Might be
quicker/easier in the long run to get a junkyard replacement, as
installing an intact rear differential is relatively trivial.

ByeBye! S.

Steve Jernigan KG0MB
Laboratory Manager
Microelectronics Research
University of Colorado
(719) 262-3101

Steve,

Thanks a lot for the info - it's good to know my options.

Boris

 

[bugalugs]

Be cautious, the dealers are hungry and some are not as honest as they
should be.

Dave

Thanks for warning me. But it was my initiative: I called them and asked
for details - only then did they tell me to make an appointment in a
month (I just had an oil change several days ago).

Boris

Sloppy workmanship.

Greasemonkey puts his finger in the diff to check the oil level, wipes
his finger on the dif and replaces the plug. Then reports the oil on the
dif and is going to charge you for an inspection.

Be very wary Will Robinson :>)