Recently I noticed ATF fluid dripping and puddling underneath my 1993 Aerostar ext 4.0l with 116,000 miles. I crawled underneath and spayed brake cleaner on my tranfer case where it was dripping and low and behold, 2 stress cracks. I thought what the ^%$(*&^(*. I've never been 4 wheeling and always baby'd since it was new. I bought some jb quick weld and drained the case and cleaned it and applied the weld compound. Refilled with new Mercon ATF and so far no leaks or drips. But I was wondering do you think it will hold. I have read that if case goes dry it will probably get hot and seize up and throw you into a wheel lock and maybe an accident. Well another thing, What caused these cracks and anybody have similar? Cracked around bottom of the two bolts where the case has reinforced curves. It looks similar two hair lines but were getting bigger as the drips increased in volume. Well for now its holding but I have read no repair is possible on transfer case cracks. That JB quick weld is some tough stuff when dried but as any other it might fail and I thought of blue gasket sealer compund but silicone seemed kinda messy and may not adhere. Any other suggestions besides a $980 replacement transfer case. Gerald

 

Some guys are selling both front and rear halves of the TC on Ebay. You may want to check that out since they were reasonably priced the last time I looked. By the way, I think there was a recall on the Aerostar TC, you may want to check into that too.

Good luck

 

It's the front halve of the tc. I'll check e-bay and see if that might be the way to go. Do you know if the recall was because of stress cracks?

 

The recall # 97S83 was for 1992-97 AWD Aerostars. Basically during sustained high speed operation the rear bushing could "become displaced" which would allow the driveshaft to vibrate which could potentially cause cracks in the transfer case.
If your Aerostar has a steel rear driveshaft the recall probably hasn't been done. If it's aluminum it probably has been done.
If you take your serial number to your dealer they can tell you too.

 

Thanks for the recall info. I did have that aluminum shaft put on with that recall along with the ignition switch recall. It was at about 50,000 miles. Maybe those cracks started then and have been vibrating a little more. What you think of the J B Quick weld on those cracks?

 

Or maybe I should take it back to dealer and see if they cover replacing the tc because those cracks may have been caused by the previous steel drive shaft or maybe the new aluminum shaft was not installed or balanced properly. Either way it doesn't seem to be the safest bet to drive as is. I suppose if I watch it and shows no leaking, but its not very assuring. I hate to keep putting money back in. I just put in a new ac compressor and parts on a conversion this spring. I sure like this web site, plenty of hard to find aerostar solutions but sure is a lot of them.

 

It won't hurt to ask, but you may have a case, since they have already admitted a problem exists in the recall. Who knows, if they had checked thoroughly when they put in the aluminum shaft, those cracks may have started way back then, they just didn't go full bloom until now.

If you push it hard enough, you might be able to get them to compromise. The fact that you bought it new, and are the original owner, may carry some weight. Take it to the top if you have to.

As for JB Weld, time will tell. I used some stuff called Quicksteel on the brass radiator tank and outlet neck on the Eagle, to tide me over until I get it changed out. It doesn't leak, and that stuff is hard as metal. It comes in a roll, like a tootsie roll, and you break off a piece, knead it until it's all one color, and put it on the area you want to seal. I just made sure I cleaned everything first with acetone, and roughed it up a little with some emery cloth. It set up within an hour. It surprised me, I'm not much of a believer in "fix in a can" products.

Trouble is, all you've done is seal a leak, it won't stand up to the continued stress that caused the solid metal to crack in the first place.

 

Watch that front transfer case on eBay, one of them being offered has a big dent around the area where the front seal sits. It is disclosed but from the provided photo is looks as if there would be problems getting the seal to work properly.

 

Thanks AeroPA for the input of the JB Kwick Weld. That's what I suspected but I also had to hear it. Sometimes its good to get another view of the big picture. And as I continue with the recall I'll keep you posted. It's either that or get a new or used tc. Or try E-bay, thanks for that warning on that dented one on E-Bay Aerocolorado. I live in Colorado and seen alot of your knowledgable replies. I could try changing it out my self if it's not to difficult. I'm wondering if I'll need any special tools?

 

It's not hard to change out, just awkward to work on from under the van without a transmission jack. Were I to do it all again, I would certainly rent a low-boy jack and alleviate a lot of hassles. Tip: The entire wiring harness for the transfer case can be disconnected at the frame rail. You don't need to unfasten anything else on the transfer case that way.

 

gmstar2, I've picked up a lot of good tips reading aerocolorado's posts, he definitely will not steer you wrong.

 

Might want to check out what the dealer did during the recall for the transfer case. I was fortunate enough to have a dealer that felt it was cheaper for him to replace the ENTIRE transfer case rather than try and repair it. Some dealers did not replace the transfer case, but only the driveshaft.

 

I ended up trading it in on a 2004 Mercury Monterey Van. The leaks and cracks got worse. I wished I would have kept that van though. It hauled alot more than this Mercury and I think the Dealers just start that price out high on new ones so it seems like they give you alot for used trades. If I could find another Aerostar , I think I would buy it. But then I get to thinking it had 116,000 and had to replace AC twice, both front cv joints , the starter, and then the transfer case started leaking. I thought I could be making new Van payments with these repairs. But its not like the all wheel drive big truck like Aerostar van. I am still kicking myself for letting it go.