Transfer case seal leak

[fmj]

The rear seal on my transfer case extension is leaking. There was a thread on this a short time ago and now I can't find it. I have a couple of questions. How hard is it to get the seal out once the shaft has been removed? Can it just be pried out carefully and replaced with a seal insert tool? To remove the drive shaft I assume I just remove the rear u-joint bolts, drop the shaft and pull out the spline from the transfer case? I'll make sure I mark the shaft so it goes in exactly as it came out in case there is a balance issue. Is there anything special I need to know? The repair manual looks easy enough. I ordered a new seal from dealer today, as he was out of stock. I hope that isn't an indication of I'll be doing this every 40K. I must be hard on these seals as every 4X4 I've owned get a few of these things. This seal leaks thru the small hole at the bottom, but not enough to drip on the driveway. I figured I better replace it while it not 120 degrees out in the middle of nowhere. Any help will be appreciated.

 

[Trinary]

38,000 miles and mine leaks too. Going to have the dealer do mine when the look at the troublesome 6 speed... .

 

[Challenger-II]

Mine '99 leaked too. First they replaced just the tail seal and 1 year later, it was back. This time, they replaced the whole extension that bolts to the case and the tail seal. So far so good

 

[Todd T]

Mine started leaking around 40,000



the seal is easy just pry it out and (rubber) hamer in the new one.



I dont think there is any reason to try to align the driveshaft back to the originl splines. it is balanced on its own. not as a whole assembly (IE: T-case and shaft)



yes, just pull the four bolts out of the u joint and slide the shaft backwards. I jacked the rear up and just turned the bolts to face down and held it with a bar to break them looose. used a 1/4" drive socket and 3/8" extension and ratchet.



replace any lost fluid with either dextron plus 3 or plus 4. through the hex cap on the back of the T case.

 

[fmj]

Todd T, thanks for the info. It looked fairly straight forward, but I just wanted to get it from someone who had done it before. Thanks again.

 

[SS]

You DO want to mark the driveshaft for reinstallation at the axle end. I think the factory installs them with the high imbalance side on the driveshaft opposite of the high runout side of the yoke (or something like that. ) There may still be paint marks on the two parts. As Todd said, not much to worry about at the splined end. If you don't move the truck/trans should get it back within a spline or two anyways. Good luck.

 

[BK]

mine leaked after about 6 months from new. They replaced just the seal, didnt last a day. next time they replaced the seal and the driveshaft.

the fsm recommends inspecting the finish and possibly replacing that shaft that plugs into the output of the transfer case.



after they replaced the seal and drive shaft it was perfect till just recently... leaking just a little bit. before it was making a big mess tons of fluid. Lost about 1quart due to it.

I'm gonna make an appointment for them todo it again while I'm still under warrenty.

 

[C.]

I replaced my seal a few months ago. I removed the rear extension. Then removed the seal. To reinstall the seal I used a plastic cup and a drill press to press it in. If you remove the rear extension then get some gasket maker. Refilling the fluid can be difficult. I found a hose attachment that threaded onto the ATF bottles at NAPA. Seemed to work good once I got used to it.



Good Luck

 

[fmj]

I just picked up the seal today from the dealer. I won't get to replace it until some time next week as I'm going to a car show this weekend. I'm going to try to just pull the drive shaft and replace the seal. Like I said previously, I've never had a 4X4 that this didn't let go. It happened to my Power Wagon, Toyota, and GMC. In fact the GMC had three of them replaced at about 40K each. Thanks for the inputs.

 

[fmj]

Well I replaced the seal yesterday and it was easy, except..... The removal of the drive shaft ( marked it both front and back to make sure it went in exactly same) and seal was easy. Problem was the dealer ordered the wrong seal. There are two different ones. The 231 takes a smaller one P/N 476258. Since I have a 241 that should have been no problem. They ordered the smaller one and of course by the time I discovered it everything was apart and dripping. According to the dealer the 241 can take either the large or small depending on date of manufacture. The larger seal P/N is 507896AA (replaces 4741920). If any of you are going to replace this seal measure the end diameter of your extension housing and take that measurement with you to the dealer. Look at the new seal and measure the outside diameter of the metal part of new seal. This will assure you of correct size as the metal fits flat against the extension housing. Hope this saves someone some frustration and time.

 

[Texas Diesel]

If you have a NV-241HD there is a plug on the top of the transfer case extension that covers an access port. There is a revised part because the original one will colapse. It leaks from the top of the extension housing and appears to be a output seal leaking, I've had both replaced.

 

[Big Don]

Guys,



My '99 had the same leak. The seal at the dealer was @ $28. 00. Local autoparts store had a NATIONAL brand seal for $13. 00. I bought it and compared to the OE seal. The OE is exactly like it. Only difference is the OE has the little tiny Chrysler emblem in the steel can of the seal. Just a tohught to save yall some money.



What is the difference in the 241 and 241 HD???My 99 has the 241HD and it has a rubber plug on top of it that appears to be a vent or something and it appears to have been leaking. The 241 in my '00 3/4 ton does not appear to have this plug in the top???? Maybe I just overlooked it cause it was not wet around it like my 99. Can anyone clarify the differences???



thanks

Don

 

[Texas Diesel]

Briefly, the HD has a wider chain, bigger oil capacity, and larger bearings. Dont know why the HD has a rubber plug and the LD does not. I know there is a circlip under the plug.





Q: Is there a difference, other than the PTO port, between the NV241D and the NV241DHD transfer case?

· The NV241DHD has a PTO drive gear and an extra bearing in the input shaft.

· The NV241DHD has a wider drive chain and sprocket set.

· The NV241DHD has a torque rating of 1400 lb-ft vs. a rating of 1028 ft-lb for the NV241D

http://dodgeram.org/tech/dsl/FAQ/diesel_faq.htm

 

[fmj]

TD, so far the plug is dry. I can't find it in the DC repair manual, so if you have to replace it how do you get to the c clip? Is it internal? Also does the LD version of the 241 have a PTO? I thought that only the HD version had a plate for the PTO. The repair manual for 2000/2001 only lists the 241 as an HD. Not sure why that is.

 

[Texas Diesel]

The c clip is internal, dont know anymore about it other than they do fail. As far as I know you are right, only the HD's have a PTO plate but my manual has the 241LD and HD in it.

 

[fmj]

TD, you were right the manual list both. I need to learn to read the whole sentence. The 241LD is in the 231HD section. The 241HD is seperate section. This is probably why the dealer thinks that there are two sizes for the 241HD seal. I would bet that one of them (smaller) is for the 241LD, and the larger is for the 241HD. Thanks for the correction.