So I am relatively new to this world (got my 1st jk about 2 months ago) I have been doing all sorts of research here and other places on what direction to go with my build and so forth, and just ordered like 4 grand in parts that I am begining to add on as time allows. Here is my question... So after I got my front LCA mounts welded on at 4wp (which is like a 2 hour drive from my place) the tech came out and told me that everything looked good with my rig. He gave me a couple tips on installing my new LCA's and that was that, but as I was walking away he said "oh hey man, I forgot to tell you, you've got just a little bit of fluid seeping out of your axle housing right where it meets the differential. It's no big deal or anything. Like you shouldn't even have to worry about fluid levels for a long long time, it is just something to be aware of." So of course after hearing that I was concerned. I asked him if there was any damage to the housing that would cause the leak and what my best course if action is to fix it. His response was "no damage at all, and honestly man, I wouldn't even worry about it. Like I said it is a small amount of fluid just barely coming out of there. The only way to fix it is to buy a whole new axle housing, and then you're talking about a minimum of $2500. That's also one of those parts that, if you're going to replace, you might as well build it out how you want it instead. Of spending that kind of money on stock. So really it's more like $5k." I told him where I was trying to put money into it currently, and asked him if all the stuff needed to take a back seat and if this should be my priority. His response was a solid "no!" And then proceeded to explain again that it was just a small leak ... So small that he hesitated to call it a leak even, it wasn't going to hurt anything, blah blah blah... So I figured I would remember to check fluid levels a little more often than I normally would and put it out of my mind.

Fast forward to yesterday, and I call up to 4wp to ask them if they had time to weld on my new steering stabilizer relocation bracket. (I got the JKS that CAN be bolted on, but they HIGHLY RECOMMEND welding it on unless it is only for mall crawling, basically) the salesman says yeah sure, schedules my time, and then says he will call me back after talking to the shop manager cause the book is telling him that it will take a couple of hours of shop time when this should be like a 30 minute job. He calls me back right before they close to.tell me that he is very sorry, but they cannot work on my rig again until I have my front axle housing replaced... I was obviously like"WTF man!? You guys are the ones who said it was no big deal." To which his response was "yeah I know, but it's a liability thing. If we do anything to your front end and then that axle comes apart, you could screw us." I was totally blown away by this. How did we go from "no big deal" to "if that axle comes apart"!? Is that something I really need to be worried about?? And I just spent all this money on parts that are, while definitely cool and entertaining, not essential to the functioning of the vehicle. And of course, most of them are NOT returnable. I'd there anything that I can do to fix this issue without having to get a whole new housing?? I have heard a little bit about axle sleeves? But I don't even understand the concept really... Is this an option maybe? Are there some kind of seals that I can get in there and replace? I'm fairly mechanically inclined. And nothing really scares me to try.... But I have never really done axle work before. I swapped out an engine and transmission in my pickup a few years back having 0 experience with such a feat, but I got it done, and done correctly. Any advice would be greatly greatly appreciated!! Thanks everyone!

Sorry that was so long winded... I kind of ran away with myself

 

As with all small leaks, check the fluid level, clean off all residue, and keep an eye on it for a while.
See if it continues to seep.

 

I absolutely will keep my eye on it. Do you know if sleeves would have the potential to plug up that joint where the housing meets the diff? Thanks for taking the time to reply!

 

I don't believe a sleeve will stop a leak at that joint.

 

To be clear, you are talking about where the tube is pressed into the pumpkin right? Sleeves are not going to fix that issue and aren't really worth it from a strengthening perspective either. The leak really is NBD. I'd clean it up good and apply some rtv around that seam. The bigger issue is them not working on it due to that leak. That is pretty silly IMO, but I can also see them not wanting even a sliver of a liability concern. I'd search out some independent welders who can slap a bead on your bracket for cheap, and in no time (prob 15 minutes start to finish). You don't need to go to a 4WD shop for that. What I would do is clean the paint off the tube and the bracket where the weld will be (you need clean metal) and install the bracket bolted on. Then go get a couple beads slapped on it as reinforcement. You just need to clean those areas before hand cuz once it is installed you're not going to get the paint ground off where needed.


If you ever have to pull that carrier for some reason (regear or inner axle seal replacement) get a little rtv there where the tube seam is on the inside.

 

What surprises me is that they are able to weld brackets but they can’t weld a small bead around the axle tube and the diff housing to seal it? That’s an easy job and likely won’t require any disassembly of the axle to do so.

 

its tought to get a good seal weld on an axle tube that has gear oil in it. You get a dirty weld that is contaminated with oil and is very hard to get sealed. 4WD parts suck and I would look for a local welder.

What model is your JKU?

What are these $4k worth of parts that you have ordered?

 

Clean it up, pre heat with a torch and I would think the flame will burn off any residue?