Mwilliamshs
Explorer
I've got an E-150 with a leaking rear axle shaft seal. This seal is probably leaking because of a worn rear wheel bearing allowing the axle to follow an elliptical path and damage the seal and due to the axle's design of using the axle shaft as the inner bearing race, that probably means a worn rear axle shaft. Conjecture at this point because I haven't pulled the differential cover, cross-shaft retaining bolt, cross-shaft, axle c-clip, wheel, drum, and axle to find out the extent of the damage. That's a lot of work and I'd rather not do it twice in a month.
So, what to do about it?
Option 1) Replace the axle shaft, bearing and seal. ~$125 Returns things to OE and might last ~30k miles (current) and might last 150k. Who knows. When it goes, it'll mean another $125 or more repair.
Option 2) Reuse the axle shaft with a "repair bearing" that combines the bearing and seal into a single unit and moves their contact areas to avoid prior damage. ~$30. These have a spotty track record of long-term successes and failures.
Option 3) I could go get a junkyard 8.8" axle. Only van axles will work due to their width being substantially greater than any other vehicle. E-150 vans used the same rear axle and brakes from 86 to 1/19/00 then got bigger drums. 97-2000 12.76" drum, 2000-2006 13.07" drum, 2006- disc. Disc brakes would be nice due to easier service. If it requires a bunch of part swapping like a master cylinder or if the brake lines are significantly different, I'm not doing it. Just replaced the frame-to-axle rubber hose and not looking to make this more than a 1 weekend project. No disc brake vans are available at my local junkyards right now but if one comes up they get $55 for a bare housing, $33 for shafts, etc so I think it'd add up to $150 or so. Not too bad if it's in good usable shape when received and doesn't need brakes, seals, etc but I'd be in the same shape I am now for bearings and seals so only the brakes would be an upgrade and I'm frankly happy with current brake performance. I've been over my GVWR several times and didn't feel at risk. That was before replacing my shocks and all rubber brake lines and now I have a set of rear brake shoes soaked in gear lube from this leaking axle so I expect things to only get better after this repair, even with the OE drums.
Option 4) I could go get a junkyard axle with a different bearing/seal design. Again, axle width plays a major role in selection but options available include the venerable 9", Dana 60, etc so upgrades possible here include both bearing/seal design, axle strength, brakes, etc. Major consideration is wheels. I already have 16" wheels, which are hard to find in the 5x5.5" pattern, so I don't see going to 8-lugs as a benefit in and of itself but swapping in an 8-lug rear axle would mean either carrying two spares (not gonna happen) or also swapping the necessary parts onto the front to run 8-lug stuff there too, AND buying wheels again. This would include a brake upgrade, but might require swapping master cylinders, lines, etc so...not a 1 weekend project. Another consideration is gearing. I have 3:08 in the rear now and really like it. I think someday when my daily gvw is around 6,500lbs and I'm climbing mountains in Central America I might wish I had 3:55s or even deeper gears but maybe not. I do not have OD so a ring and pinion in the ~3:1 range suits me great. This gearing range is uncommon in my experience in the D60 and similar axles. This all leads me to the idea of swapping in a 9" rear, which is available in the correct width and bolt pattern for my application in E-150 vans from 1975-1986. None currently in my local junkyards but I think it'd be easy to turn one up. There's a cheap van in the correct year range on my local craigslist right now I've requested more info on. A 9" uses an altogether different and IMO, better bearing/seal setup. They also use a drop-out 3rd member so swapping gears, differentials, etc is cheap and easy if you can find a use one already setup and since the 9" was made for so long and is so popular aftermarket, there's a TON of diffs, etc available for them.
Option 5) Upgrade my current axle to a better bearing/seal design. This is kind of a twist on Option 4. Several companies make "c-clip eliminators" for the 8.8" axle and they essential change the 8.8" over to the 9" arrangement. To do this you cut an inch or two off the end of the axle housing, where the bearings and seals currently reside, and replace them with a bolt-on housing that contains the 9" style bearing and seal. 9" axles use press-fit bearings and a "wedding ring" retainer that eliminate the need for a c-clip for axle shaft retaining. I've contacted a couple of the companies in the market and it seems my axle doesn't have a ready-made solution available because the greatest demand for these products are among the users of Explorer axles swapped into jeeps and such, and among the Mustang drag-race crowd, and neither of those applications use the same bearing as my van so the bolt-patterns and bracket clearances are all wrong. If a ready-made solution were available, it'd run about $150 based on the pricing of similar products.
Option 6) This is where you come in. What have I not considered?
So, what to do about it?
Option 1) Replace the axle shaft, bearing and seal. ~$125 Returns things to OE and might last ~30k miles (current) and might last 150k. Who knows. When it goes, it'll mean another $125 or more repair.
Option 2) Reuse the axle shaft with a "repair bearing" that combines the bearing and seal into a single unit and moves their contact areas to avoid prior damage. ~$30. These have a spotty track record of long-term successes and failures.
Option 3) I could go get a junkyard 8.8" axle. Only van axles will work due to their width being substantially greater than any other vehicle. E-150 vans used the same rear axle and brakes from 86 to 1/19/00 then got bigger drums. 97-2000 12.76" drum, 2000-2006 13.07" drum, 2006- disc. Disc brakes would be nice due to easier service. If it requires a bunch of part swapping like a master cylinder or if the brake lines are significantly different, I'm not doing it. Just replaced the frame-to-axle rubber hose and not looking to make this more than a 1 weekend project. No disc brake vans are available at my local junkyards right now but if one comes up they get $55 for a bare housing, $33 for shafts, etc so I think it'd add up to $150 or so. Not too bad if it's in good usable shape when received and doesn't need brakes, seals, etc but I'd be in the same shape I am now for bearings and seals so only the brakes would be an upgrade and I'm frankly happy with current brake performance. I've been over my GVWR several times and didn't feel at risk. That was before replacing my shocks and all rubber brake lines and now I have a set of rear brake shoes soaked in gear lube from this leaking axle so I expect things to only get better after this repair, even with the OE drums.
Option 4) I could go get a junkyard axle with a different bearing/seal design. Again, axle width plays a major role in selection but options available include the venerable 9", Dana 60, etc so upgrades possible here include both bearing/seal design, axle strength, brakes, etc. Major consideration is wheels. I already have 16" wheels, which are hard to find in the 5x5.5" pattern, so I don't see going to 8-lugs as a benefit in and of itself but swapping in an 8-lug rear axle would mean either carrying two spares (not gonna happen) or also swapping the necessary parts onto the front to run 8-lug stuff there too, AND buying wheels again. This would include a brake upgrade, but might require swapping master cylinders, lines, etc so...not a 1 weekend project. Another consideration is gearing. I have 3:08 in the rear now and really like it. I think someday when my daily gvw is around 6,500lbs and I'm climbing mountains in Central America I might wish I had 3:55s or even deeper gears but maybe not. I do not have OD so a ring and pinion in the ~3:1 range suits me great. This gearing range is uncommon in my experience in the D60 and similar axles. This all leads me to the idea of swapping in a 9" rear, which is available in the correct width and bolt pattern for my application in E-150 vans from 1975-1986. None currently in my local junkyards but I think it'd be easy to turn one up. There's a cheap van in the correct year range on my local craigslist right now I've requested more info on. A 9" uses an altogether different and IMO, better bearing/seal setup. They also use a drop-out 3rd member so swapping gears, differentials, etc is cheap and easy if you can find a use one already setup and since the 9" was made for so long and is so popular aftermarket, there's a TON of diffs, etc available for them.
Option 5) Upgrade my current axle to a better bearing/seal design. This is kind of a twist on Option 4. Several companies make "c-clip eliminators" for the 8.8" axle and they essential change the 8.8" over to the 9" arrangement. To do this you cut an inch or two off the end of the axle housing, where the bearings and seals currently reside, and replace them with a bolt-on housing that contains the 9" style bearing and seal. 9" axles use press-fit bearings and a "wedding ring" retainer that eliminate the need for a c-clip for axle shaft retaining. I've contacted a couple of the companies in the market and it seems my axle doesn't have a ready-made solution available because the greatest demand for these products are among the users of Explorer axles swapped into jeeps and such, and among the Mustang drag-race crowd, and neither of those applications use the same bearing as my van so the bolt-patterns and bracket clearances are all wrong. If a ready-made solution were available, it'd run about $150 based on the pricing of similar products.
Option 6) This is where you come in. What have I not considered?
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