Strange material on rear end cover during first oil change..Sandy gritty material?

[Bug Out]

Just now changing out the oil front and rear axles on my 16' 3500 4dr cummins/Aisin etc. I have 10,000 miles on it and noticed when the oil was coming out, I rubbed some between my fingers just to see how it felt, slick, sludgy etc..It felt a little course between my fingers like fine grit was in the oil....

I take the pan off and look at the inside and theres gritty material, similar to sand/dirt on the pan,where the oil level and down was..Did not save a sample before it went into the oil change bucket so its contaminated..Also found a small white looking, granular looking rockish piece in the bottom of the axle housing.... It was hard between the fingers..Did not take a pic...

I have never come across this before in the 6 previous Dodge/RAM trucks rear axle oil changes..


Anybody ever come across this before??

I dont beat or run my truck hard. I have towed my 17K 5th wheel maybe a total of 1000 miles so far...


TIA for any help or insight.

Ed

 

[Bug Out]

I just pulled the front pan and same thing. got pics this time..

Is there any way to get debris in the axle housing by driving in rain etc? The rear axle vent tube is up by the frame, front axle up by the engine....?

 

[Bug Out]

I think I found out where water/dirt may have gotten in the front axle. Did not see this rust indications on the rear.View attachment 98676View attachment 98677 You can see where water made it into the gasket. As for the sand/dirt, who knows...

 

[Bob4x4]

That looks like it was on top of the gasket and fell in when the cover was removed...........

 

[Bob4x4]

It is a good practice to clean the surrounding area before opening up any lubricated assy.

 

[Newsa]

That looks like it was on top of the gasket and fell in when the cover was removed...........

My thoughts exactly looking at the particles on the bottom of the casing. They would have been mixed up in the lubricant if they were from anything inside.

 

[Bug Out]

Just so you know, it was cleaned and the dirt on the pan was caked on..I had to physically rub it off the pan to get it off. There was dirt particles on the housing metal just inside the pan that was caked on too. You can see that in the pic..

 

[jhenderson]

If the oil didn't leak out, the sand didn't leak in.

 

[Bug Out]

I figured out when this could have occurred but still don't know how it entered the axles...About 8 months ago, I was going to a ranch in the desert and the gravel road I usually drive on, unbeknown to me doubled as a wash for heavy rain. It was pouring rain a couple miles away, and about 3/4's of the way to the ranch, I got caught on the road with 6-8" of rain water running down the road. Drove thru it for 1/2 mile then back to dry road...Never any oil, water leaks etc..Is there any way it could have got inside? Both vent hoses are frame height or higher and secure..??????????????? You can see rust spots on the inside of the axle pumkin next to the little pebbles.

 

[Bob4x4]

If this debris was inside while it was driven it would not be sitting on the side it would have been in the fluid.It would also have done damage to gears and bearings.

 

[CMB]

I just changed mine and found the same thing. After the brief panic I realized that these trucks use a rubber gasket inn lieu of "permatex". One would think this is a good idea-reusable gasket but not really. The trade off is that the area between the cover and mating surface not contacting the gasket will rust and collect mud and sand. The permatx typically covered more of the mating surface. When the cover is removed, no matter how well you clean some of it falls in. Now your left with cleaning the surface after covering the gears with towels and rags. I put red line assembly lube on the mating surface after cleaning hoping to avoid future rust and to lube the Mag Hytec o ring. Clean it the best you can and keep it of the gears.

Cheers,

 

[Jared Herzog]

I do not think 6-8" would do it. We had flash floods here a while back. People were drowning and i was in a bad spot. So i had to go through water that was to the door handles. And rolling up the hood. The back of the truck floated up and hit a bridge blockade. I got out and figured water was in everything so an entire fluid change happened. Not one drop of water. It was my 14 2500 and sat a bit higher than my 3500. Anyway, i do 6-8" on ranches in creeks very frequently. I do not think that is how you got contamination. But who knows.

 

[SnoKing]

Cummins12V98 found "stuff" inside his 2015 at first fluid change. When we changed mine it was spic and span! SNOKING

 

[4 wheelssmoking]

Has any one considered it could be casting sand remnants from the manufacturing process?

 

[sag2]

Has any one considered it could be casting sand remnants from the manufacturing process?

Answered in posts 4, 10, and 11. It is a non issue.

 

[CMB]

Remnants from the casting process, that's a scary thought but highly unlikely. It was defiantly from the case/cover mating surface outside the gasket. While cleaning the cover I found more material exactly the same as the stuff I found inside the rear. The picture above look the same as what I found. I panicked for a minute too but after looking further and cutting a piece of the grit open it was dry on the inside. If this stuff was inside prior to me opening it up it would be completely saturated with gear oil. Again it was dry inside.

Now if I can just find a way to keep myself from accidentally catching the rags with the pep pad and die grinder I would be doing good. I must have wrapped that towel around that 2"pad 5 or 6 times. And yes I was being super careful. Must be a vacuum vortex created by 30,000RPM. gotta love it.

Cheers,

 

[Jared Herzog]

Could this be one reason to just use a pump to pump out old fluid and pump in new? I had to do an early change and did the pump method. I will pull the cover and inspect the teeth just before warranty is up. I would imagine if i had an issue i would be more likely to either feel it while driving or be alerted to a possible issue with UOA. This is the first HD truck that has specifically called for cover removal that I have had. My plan is to swap fluid every 30,000 in the rear and front and call it done.

 

[kthaxton]

I'd still prefer removing the cover because I like to see what's going on inside, remove any buildup on the magnet (Do these axles have magnets?....I've only been in mine once and have forgotten!) and flush everything a bit with engine oil. Any crud that falls while removing the cover can easily be cleaned off as long as you pay attention and are thorough.

 

[jhenderson]

The magnet is on the plug

 

[Cummins12V98]

I had nothing that looked like that.