i have a 65 olds dynamic 88 conv. i put a new seal in the rear end this summer. i just recently changed the rear shocks. i had the rear end jack up a little for the shock switch out. ever since doing this the rear end is leaking out the front where the yoke bolts on something crazy. i dont know what caused this all the sudden. its a new seal. any suggestions what might have caused it. im planning on taking it apart thursday, but any ideas on a reason. thanks chris

 

The only possible connection is that when you jacked up the car, the resulting angle on the driveshaft caused the yoke to damage the seal. It's possible that the yoke was not completely tight on the pinion or that the pinion bearings are shot and that's what allowed the yoke to move and damage the seal.

 

i wondered about the angle. i did not replace the bearings when i put in the new seal the last time. it seemed to be okay. i will check it all again in the morning, when i tear it all apart. thanks joe. chris

 

joe , i dont know if you got my pm or not. took the yoke off today and the seal looked good. the oil is coming up and over the seal not around it. you can push the bearing on the other side of the seal back and forth. when you do it tends to let more oil out. a buddy and i were talking. should the bearing be loose like that where you can push it back and forth or is it suppose to be pressed in so it doesnt more. seems the oil is getting past the bearing and over the seal. thanks chris

 

The bearings are pressed onto the pinion gear.
Also note there are a certain number of shims that hold your gear aligned properly.
If you forget one, or have the wrong thickness of shims, you have to remove and have re press them again.

 

g i can see if i look in it or set myself? thanks for the hejoe, i have had the yoke off when i put the new seal in last year. at that time i had the bearing out and looked at it. i slipped it back in and put the new seal back in. i have not had any trouble until i changed out the shock absorbers recently. there is the nut that holds the yoke on. i took that off and slipped the yoke off the shaft. im talking about the front pinion bearing. i can push in on that bearing and it allows more oil to spill out until the bearing slids back against the oil seal. then the oil goes to a slight stream. according to my manual the picture shows a it in the following order. pinion nut, washer, slinger, oil seal, front pinion bearing, collapsable spacer then rear pinion bearing and on and on. when i put the stuff back together and just put the nut on and tightened it. i did not torque it. is the bearing suppose to move back and forth? i dont see anything in the manual about pressing the bearing in or needing shims or anything. the only thing is the collapsable spacer, but it is on the other side of the bearing. is the crush sleeve somethinlp chris

 

j-chicago, when i replaced the oil seal last year. the bearing was loose then. i pulled it out and looked at it to see if it needed replaced. i put it back in and put the new oil seal in. i put the yoke back on and tightened the nut back on with a wrench. i did not torque it. my chassis manual shows the rear end break down in the following order pinion nut,washer,slinger, oil seal, front pinion bearing (which is one im having questions about), collapsable spacer the rear pinion bearing. i dont see anything about shims. is this something that is a given. if i buy a new bearing does it come with shims? is this something i can fix myself or do i have to take it to a shop? thanks chris

 

joe, j-chicago, i think i got problem fixed. turns out i did not have the bearing pushed back against the crush sleeve. i took it all back apart. put in a new seal and made sure the bearing was back against the crush sleeve and tightened all down good and tight. seems to have fixed problem. thanks again chris