Anyone else had a pinion seal go out on their new F150? Mine only has 13k miles and the pinion seal went out. Is that normal or a big deal? Should I be concerned of it going out again? I use my truck as a truck but I don't abuse it at all and I am **** about maintenance. What is the liklihood of it leaking again?

Thanks for the input.

 

I have under 8000 miles on my 2001 F150 Supercrew and while it was up on the lift the mechanic noticed the rear pinion seal was leaking so he fixed it. From what I understand, given current materials, the only way for a pinion seal to leak on such a new vehicle is for it to be installed wrong. While obviously not happy with the poor initial quality issue, I am happy with the mechanic for noticing it since I hadn't noticed it.


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Jono
2001 F150 Lariat Supercrew 4x4. ARE Z Cap, Yakima racks.

 

Thats kinda what I was thinking too. Thanks for the reply Jono. I guess time will tell.

 

I had mine replaced twice when I had the stock gears and differential cover, and still leaked after the second replacement. When I had the 4.10's installed I learned that one possible cause of perpetual pinion puking is trash such as the metal shavings or filings from gear wear floating around in the gear oil. When I did the gears I installed a Mag-Hytec differential cover at the same time. It has a magnetic drain plug and dipstick. I'm not absolutely positive the trash in the oil was the culprit, but my pinion seal hasn't leaked since.
www.mag-hytec.com

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98 F-150 XLT 4X4 ORP Super Cab Short Bed, 4.6, Auto, 4.10's, Mag-Hytec diff. cover, Magnacharger supercharger, Superchip, Gibson single cat-back, 80/100w German head lamps, Warn HS9500i winch with semi hidden mount, Wrangler dual battery kit with red & yellow top Optima batteries, 285/75R16 Goodyear MT/R's, 16x8 Center Line Hell Cats. Needs one more door.
http://hometown.aol.com/ninetyeightfword

 

Thanks for the info 98fword. I have actually been pondering that Mag-Hytec cover with magnetic drain plug. Kinda hard to fork out the money at Christmas time though. Kid has to have Playstation 2 and a Fuseball table! ha ha!

I will consider it more now though. Maybe after the Christmas shocks have subsided.

 

Mine has a leak also. I was told by a dealer(not mine)that the leakage was normal! The time the level was checked,which was about 2000 miles before the dealer told me this,it was a pint
and a half low. Why are dealers allowed to tell us that things like that are normal?
He also said that the differential would have to physically fail before Ford would pick up the repair charges. Should I drain
the fluid and powerbrake it a dozen or so times so I can get it fixed? It just broke 50,000 miles and I have a 6/75 ext. warranty on the truck,,,,,98

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98 F-150 4.6 Litre XLT2wd Ext. cab
Yokahama AVS/ST's
prarie tan/tan int.
K/N gen.II fipk
custom dual exh/gibson rectangle tips/rear exiting.
color matched snuglid
Superchip!!!
Westin nerfs blk .powdercoat
Clear front corners
Euro style tail lights
Cobra 75WXST cb w/weather alert
[b]Kenwood cd w/Radio Shack speakers,don't laugh it sounds pretty good]
Viper 500HF Security system.
On the way/wheels,tires,air dam, etc..etc.......
doin the monochromatic boogie
on the front end.Billet grilles on order Still want to lift it,YESSS!
Come see my new picturesat www.my-f150.com

officialtomwaits.com
reverendhortonheat.com

WOW,what a cool site!

FENDER GUITARS ROCK!!!

 

Man, that really blows!

 

Mine went out on my 97 when it had low miles on it... they replaced the seal. Then the diff cover developed a leak. Replaced the seal. Then, they had to replace the driveshaft and pinion in a futile attempt to fix the clunk. When they reinstalled the pinion, the apparently didn't set the backlash on the gears correct, and torched the pinion bearing, which started spinning on the shaft....So, finally, they replaced the pinion gear, ring gear, bearings, seals, and just for good measure, the clutch pack too. What a pain!

Now,as for 98Screamer... don't let them tell you a leak is normal. a leaky diff cover WILL lead to failure, and just the fact that it's leaking indicates a failure of either the gasket or the cover, BOTH of which are warrantable items. They tried telling me that about my diff cover the first time I complained. When I explained that to the service manager, he seemed a little more willing to help. :-) If all else fails loosen the cover a little bit (just a little bit) and let it leak out completely, drive it til it blows the gears out through the cover, and then take it to them on a flat-bed and say, "SEE?! Told'ja So!" :-) Leaks of ANY type are NOT normal. If somebody tells me that, I tell them where to shove it!
-Joe-


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98 Explorer (Lemon Law Case in Progress)

'00 F-150, X-cab, 4x4, Lariat, Off-road, Trailer Tow, Holandia Sunroof, built 11/99 picked up 10/00!Clear Corners, Manik Stainless Steel 1-piece brush guard, Custom CB wiring, Uniden PC76-XLW CB radio with K-40 Magna-Mount antenna (for now), 1 set of 165 watt KC Daylighters (for now... more on the way) Custom switch mounting plate and overhead console.
List of planned mods: Clear tails, color matched trailer hitch with stainless steel ball, torsion bar tweak, bug deflector, spray in liner, and a tonneau of some sort...

93 Probe GT teal, OE rims painted to match, bone stock drivetrain.

 

I meant mine was leaking at the driveshaft side,but thanks for the suggestion,LOL. I've got evidence of the leakage all over the place. Down the bottom of the diff.,on the u-joints,extending about three inches onto the main body of the driveshaft,and slung onto the bottom of the bed......The guy that told me it was normal did not even look at it,,,,he just said it was normal
without any inspection,,,,what a dumb***k!
That's what really pissed me off about it.....I'm hoping it will fail soon,so it can be fixed,sheez.... My dealer in Houston is top notch,they should help me out,,,,,98

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98 F-150 4.6 Litre XLT2wd Ext. cab
Yokahama AVS/ST's
prarie tan/tan int.
K/N gen.II fipk
custom dual exh/gibson rectangle tips/rear exiting.
color matched snuglid
Superchip!!!
Westin nerfs blk .powdercoat
Clear front corners
Euro style tail lights
Cobra 75WXST cb w/weather alert
[b]Kenwood cd w/Radio Shack speakers,don't laugh it sounds pretty good]
Viper 500HF Security system.
On the way/wheels,tires,air dam, etc..etc.......
doin the monochromatic boogie
on the front end.Billet grilles on order Still want to lift it,YESSS!
Come see my new picturesat www.my-f150.com

officialtomwaits.com
reverendhortonheat.com

WOW,what a cool site!

FENDER GUITARS ROCK!!!

 

Crawling around under truck yesterday and find the pinion seal is leaking as well on my 2000 4x4. Just turned 10000 miles. What a pain in the *** to try and get it into the shop around Christmas time!

Keith



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2000 Lariat 4x4 Supercab
Black Clearcoat
Flowmaster 50 series SUV using original tailpipe
K&N Filter
CamLocker Aluminum Toolbox
Tinted Windows
Vent Visors

A.R.E. 'Z' series bed cap

1999 HD Softtail Custom
Cobalt Blue
Lowered and Chromed to max.

1995 Long Haired Chihuahua (Best security system on the market)

Check it out at:
http://www.harleyrider.webprovider.com/index.htm

 

Shoot! Now I gotta go look... I don't even have 800 miles on it yet, but you're gonna get me all paranoid! Now I gotta go crawl under it just to see.... :-)

-Joe-

 

I've had mine replaced too! At about 7000 miles I noticed it leaking and took it to the dealer and had it fixed. The dealer said it wasn't uncommon but gave no reason why.

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2001 Supercrew, XLT, 5.4, 4x4, Bright Red w/Dark Grey Interior, 3.55 LS, 60/40 Seats, Sliding Rear Window, Tow Pkg, Skid Plates, 6 Disc Changer, Line-X Bedliner, K & N Air Filter, Trenz Billet Grill, Weld F-1 Renegade Wheels, Bridgestone AT 285x75x16 Tires.
-------------------------
Possibly....Airaid, Gibson SS Exhaust, Superchip and Stereo Upgrade......

 

Never confuse the term "normal" with that of "desireable" or "within [design] specification".

While tread separation in certain Firestone tires on certain-brand and model trucks has been alleged to be all too "normal", most people do not consider their performance to be "desireable" or "within [design] specification".

Seal complaints/repairs rank very high in the Top-20 frequency-of-occurrence list for warranty claims for at least one axle manufacturer for which I'm fairly familiar.

There are several explanations for seal leakage -- and there are at least three levels of leakage.

They're designed and intended to not sling, drip, leak, or weep -- and YOUR level of tolerance for those conditions should be the determining factor as to whether what may, in fact, be very "normal" is to be considered "acceptable".

Ask your truck manufacturer to show you it's written specification to it's axle supplier regarding what is "acceptable" seal performance -- and then ask your vehicle manufacturer why it's customer should be expected to tolerate something less.

Note: The seal is only half of the sealing mechanism -- the yoke (or shaft, depending upon component) is the other half.

Machining attributes of the yoke, or even the hardness (or lack thereof) of that mating metal, can not only be a contributor -- but can even be the cause of seal-related complaints.

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Y2K™ 7700 4x4
Jim - N8JG@Hotmail.com

Toreador Red, Keyless XLT SC SB 5.4L E4x4 4wDisc/ABS, 3.73LS, Skid, HD 7700# Towing, LT-245's on Chrome, Tube-Steps, Captain's, 6CD, Tonneau, named: "Nick"

 

I just discovered mine was leaking... less than 7000 miles on it! NUTS! Now I HAVE to go deal with the numb'nuts that screwed up my 97 TWICE trying to fix that d@mn pinion seal... frutz! SpOoT!!! NaRfn! mutter, mutter, grumble, FORD PIECE OF... mutter, mutter....