2019 front differential seal leaking

IIIOIISTER said:

Appointment booked for next week.

In the meantime, took off the skid plate underneath the oil pan, hit the plastic grey seal behind the diff with a good amount of brake cleaner.

I know hope is not a course of action, but HOPEFULLY the leak was caused by some dirt trapped between the seal and the metal surface.

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just an observation- but in those pics the diff over lookalike a shit casting that shouldn’t have made it to the assembly line. Could have something to do w/ the leak

Badgertits said:

just an observation- but in those pics the diff over lookalike a shit casting that shouldn’t have made it to the assembly line. Could have something to do w/ the leak

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Quality control is definitely not Ford’s forte...

IIIOIISTER said:

Quality control is definitely not Ford’s forte...

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Ram and GM ain't any better.

NASSTY said:

Ram and GM ain't any better.

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Neither is Ferrari or Audi.

Gotta throw it out there, maybe take a look at the breather tube, is there a possible kink in the hose, or some tape on the nipple of the axle that manufacturing hasnt completely removed? I wonder if a pressure build u is forcing that sea out. The Gen 1 has the same front diff, and this is a non issue to my knowledge

Just discovered I have this leak as well on my 2019.

Has anybody tried to replace this seal DIY?

I have a 2020 & just had 2nd oil change @ 9500 miles & shop said they thought my front pinion seal was leaking as well!

I don’t have any fluid leaking onto my driveway or anything really noticeable on the skid plate, looks more like it’s weeping than leaking, I do use 4A & 4H fairly regularly....4A anytime it’s raining heavy

I also undercoated my whole truck w/ amsoil HDMP & may inadvertently doused that area causing the tech to mistake for pinion seal leak- but it was hard for me to tell since it was such a small amount

upon scouring internet seems like this is a VERY common issue & also seems like not something to be super concerned w/ to get fixed immediately so long as it’s not pissing fluid on the ground

My other issue is it seems like Ford service techs in particular are pretty bad, worse than my experiences w/ GM & Honda/Acura for sure.....it almost seems like you’re asking for headaches & more problems every time you go to the dealer

if anyone has a good recommendation for service dept @ Ford dealers in MA or RI im
All ears lol

Funny because I discovered this leak while undercoating with HDMP.

Maybe it's the northeast....because I've had nothing but bad experiences with my dealership.

I'm gonna tackle it myself. The seal was $14. I picked up two bottles of gear lube, and the parts guy at the dealership told me it takes 1.6 quarts plus a bottle of friction modifier.

Anybody know the torque specs for the driveshaft bolts?

Bee said:

Funny because I discovered this leak while undercoating with HDMP.

Maybe it's the northeast....because I've had nothing but bad experiences with my dealership.

I'm gonna tackle it myself. The seal was $14. I picked up two bottles of gear lube, and the parts guy at the dealership told me it takes 1.6 quarts plus a bottle of friction modifier.

Anybody know the torque specs for the driveshaft bolts?

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Are you aware that the pinion nut sets the pinion bearing preload? You cannot just loosen and retighten it; the turning torque needs to be measured before disassembly, and then set to 5 in-lb higher than the initial reading upon re-assembly. This requires a beam style torque wrench and a drive pinion flange holding tool or strong impact wrench. The crush sleeve internal to the differential is compressed further during this procedure; if doing it without an impact, it requires a long breaker bar. I wouldn't consider this a DIY unless you are very familiar with axle service procedures.

Badgertits said:

I have a 2020 & just had 2nd oil change @ 9500 miles & shop said they thought my front pinion seal was leaking as well!

I don’t have any fluid leaking onto my driveway or anything really noticeable on the skid plate, looks more like it’s weeping than leaking, I do use 4A & 4H fairly regularly....4A anytime it’s raining heavy

I also undercoated my whole truck w/ amsoil HDMP & may inadvertently doused that area causing the tech to mistake for pinion seal leak- but it was hard for me to tell since it was such a small amount

upon scouring internet seems like this is a VERY common issue & also seems like not something to be super concerned w/ to get fixed immediately so long as it’s not pissing fluid on the ground

My other issue is it seems like Ford service techs in particular are pretty bad, worse than my experiences w/ GM & Honda/Acura for sure.....it almost seems like you’re asking for headaches & more problems every time you go to the dealer

if anyone has a good recommendation for service dept @ Ford dealers in MA or RI im
All ears lol

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Before doing anything I would recommend cleaning the surface with brake cleaner and keeping an eye on it. Pinion seals are dynamic seals; if the axle was even slightly overfilled during assembly, some of the gear lubricant will may have worked it's way past the pinion seal.