I have a perplexing question for my 2001 F-150 5.4L SuperCrew with 114K miles on it hopeully someone can give me some advice on what to do. My pumpkin has what appears to be a stained fluid type leak from about 11:00 to 5:30 I've had it checked at my local garage for possible leaks and there does not appear to be any. I've never seen any staining on the driveway but it just appears as if it is wet with fluid on the exterior. I had my rear axle seals replaced once before so I thought maybe it was the rear diff seal that was leaking but when it was checked the fluid level was good. Any experience or thoughts on this would be welcomed. I was told by someone that these trucks have a pattern of blowing out the rear ends and would hate to think that this is a prelude to that.

Thanks for your input.

 

Possible that it is only seeping past teh gasket a bit. It will eventually seep into the surface metal a bit making it look like it is drooling out pretty bad, but it isn't.

 

I have the 'seep', too.

I changed my fluid for Mobil 1 fluid about 30k miles ago. I wondered if I screwed up the gasket as, even after thoroughly cleaning the outside of the cover, I have the same soaked appearance.

I just got under my truck two weeks ago to finally check it out, and it was full of fluid.
Strange, but that's the way it is.

 

This just has me tight wondering if something is going to blow up on me. but like you each time it has been checked it has been full so we'll have to trust that mechanic of mine that he knows more than me and go with it.

Thanks for the feedback guys. Would you guys reccomend that I go and have the fluid/gasket changed out once again? I don't mind doing it but that synthetic rear fluid is mucho $$. I'm just a freak over things like this if it looks bad it has to be bad sort of person.

 

Quite honestly, I recommend you learn to check it yourself. And I say this because it's really quite easy.

A standard 3/8" wratchet with an extension (but no socket) fits right in the square-hole-headed bolt. On a level surface, unscrew the bolt out.

Stick your pinky in there, slowly, and not too far, then pull it back out. The gear oil level should be right at the base of the bolt's hole. Sometimes the rear-end is overfilled a little, and in that case fluid will slowly run out as soon as you pull the bolt. Either way - you're sure that you're topped off.

If the oil level is a little below the hole - especially after so short a time since you had a new seal put on it, then yes, you may want to consider getting the pumpkin resealed.

The benefit of getting in there, yourself, if you're really worried about your rear-end's life expectency, is that you can clean the magnet at the end of the bolt. Don't do this with your bare hands - it's probably isn't good for ya. I use a couple of paper towels, folded up, and I wipe it a few times, then dig in the edges to clean out what I can. This magnet is the only filtration system for a rear-end, and I'd say it's very probable most owners don't ever clean 'em, and that can lead to a rear end failure.

Do this twice, or three times, over a period of a few months, and if the fluid level really isn't going down, despite the wet looking cover, you're golden. Like I wrote before, I needed to check it myself just to be sure - I even had a new bottle of gear oil at the ready, expecting to put some fluid in. The oil level was right at the base of the threads, though, so it would have been a waste.

Best,

 

On my 96 ranger i had a wet pumpkin so i changed thr gasket. As i alwayse do, i cleaned the pan real good for inspection. i found four tiny pinholes where it had rusted through just a thought

 

Damn, RIck, thanks for the reminder. My truck was a Pennsylvania truck, so of course I have rust problems out the wazoo (like, oh, brake lines blowing, all doors rusting through, etc.) - but I never thought about rust eating through the dang cover.

When I had mine off, I did clean it pretty well, but - just like on my '93 F-150's gas tank - sometimes the porous rust can't be seen.