Oil leak from rear axle

[coyb1878]

Hello all
Had my head under the back end just now and noticed a drip of oil hanging from the bottom of the brake drum. I then noticed the inside of the wheel caked in black sludge so its obviously been dripping down there for some time. Its oil... diff oil it must be.

Ive cleaned it all up now so I can judge better how fast its leaking.

Any tips for where I should start please?

I guess I should limit driving the thing until its fixed.

Ta!

[stevemarl]

Its oil... diff oil it must be.

Are you certain it`s not brake fluid, leaking wheel cylinder is quite common (& easy).
Other than that it will be the oil seal in the halfshaft bearing. Needs a press to push new one on.

[coyb1878]

Thanks for the reply. I suppose it could be brake fluid. I just went for another look since I cleaned the area... its dripping even though the car hasn't moved at all . It feels "oily". Dumb question but is it obvious from a drip the difference between brake fluid & diff oil?

[stevemarl]

Brake fluid is much thinner if that helps? Best way is to take drum off, if cylinder`s leaking it will be obvious.

[Andrew 2.8i]

Hi Glenn,
Diff oil stinks, so you should be able to identify it quite easily.

Top tip here. If you do replace the rear wheel bearing make sure you buy replacements that have a proper oil seal on them. I know from experience that there are plenty of Ebay sellers selling bearings that aren't suitable. Buy from Martin, CCI or Burton Power.
If they don't have the oil seal, oil will find it's way out around the outside of the bearing and cover your shoes (brake shoes, not blue suede shoes!) in oil.

If your brake shoes and drums have been contaminated by brake fluid or oil leakage they will probably need replacing.

There's a bit of wheel bearing info on Tickover's site:
http://www.tickover.co.uk/news_bearings.htm

And a little bit on this thread:
viewtopic.php?f=13&t=45757&hilit=rear+wheel+bearing

Andrew.

[nigecapri]

Chock opposite wheel back & front, jack up leaky side, wheel off, let the handbrake off then take drum off - five minutes.
If it's the wheel cylinder leaking then buy a pair of new ones plus shoes if they're oily & click photo below for more info.
If it's leaking oil from the axle seal then best buy a seal kit & drive it to a garage to get them to sort it. Should easily do it inside an hour so get quotes from various places. Don't use a quick-fit type place!