Rear hub seal change

[Andy Rose]

Hi all, my van has quite an oil leak from the drivers side rear hub.. I seek advice please. I have read all of the previous postings and now feel in need of advice .. The leak shows itself as dripping from the bottom of the backing plate. The rear of the tyre is covered in it, but the brakes seem fine. I'm guessing the rear oil seal is the culprit with the gasket between the hub and the half shaft being dry.. Can I ask 1, is it a difficult job to pull the hub off and remove the seal? 2, should I replace the bearing? 3, do I grease the bearing? 4, how tight do I do the hub retaining nut up. Many thanks. It's just with all of this talk of axles moving in and out I don't want to create a problem ..

[bmcecosse]

Rear hub comes off easily - undo the nut (I use a chisel but there will be a howl of anguish from the usual suspects...) and pull the hub off. If it doesn't come off by hand - bolt the wheel back on and use that to wiggle it off. Pluck out the seal - and tap in a new one ! Check the rear axle breather is not blocked -or the axle overfilled!

[autolycus]

Hoooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwllll

One hates to disappoint.

Kevin

[Andy Rose]

Thanks Roy&Kevin Good tip about bolting the wheel back on to pull the hub off. How is the best way to check the breather ? It looks fine, but may be painted over.

[les]

If you insist-----Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat !

[bmcecosse]

Note that the nut is a left hand thread on the left side of the car. Thanks lads for not disappointing me......it really does just need one good thump with a chisel and a wee heavy hammer to get the nut moving - and same again to tighten it up. And it's hidden by the half shaft - so where's the harm..... Can only suggest to carefully remove the breather and wash it out with paraffin.

[les]

I think you'll find Michelangelo painted the base of his artwork even though it was 'hidden'---Why? ---Because he knew it was there!

[Andy Rose]

Perhaps it was the need to give it some persuasion with a hammer and chisel to do it up that led to some people having a none secure rear hub. They just weren't getting it bedded down. I will approach the task with a light heart and heavy hammer. Thanks again

[Andy Rose]

Hi guys, does anyone out there have any experience with a product called Speedi-Seal. It has been recommended to me to repair the wear in the axle before I fit a new hub seal. The axle may have a groove worn in it. I would like to know if anyone knows the axle diameter that the seal at the back of the hub sits on please..Is the axle the same as a MG Midget??

[bmcecosse]

It's similar to the Spridget axle in general design - but slightly wider. I presume you are talking about a thin sleeve that fits snuggly over the axle shaft. It may be possible to position the seal slightly outboard - so the lip is running on a different section of the casing. Do you KNOW there is a wear groove?

[Andy Rose]

Hi Roy, yes thanks for that. It is the thin sleeve over the axle.. I dont know if the axle is worn, but from the size of the leak I am preparing for the worst case scenario. Once I pull it apart I will be able to measure up , but the Midget axle is 1 3/4" and that seal is available from my local bearing man. I didn't realize that there was room to move the position of the seal in the hub. That sounds like a good solution and would save the purchase of an expensive sleeve.. I am starting the work tomorrow our time, so soon all will be revealed

[bmcecosse]

You may be able to move the seal a small amount - enough to avoid any groove. But generally a new seal with nice flexible lip will sort the problem. Any oil escaping there should then run out the little drain hole at the rear of the backplate...does it???

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

There was an extensive, heated discussion about rear hub oil leaks some time ago. It's fairly comprehensive if you can get to the end of it.

[Andy Rose]

Hi Roy and Jowett Javelin, Yes, the little drain hole is where all of the oil is escaping, so the design is very clever..I did spend ages going through all of the posts re the Hub Seal and came away quite worried as to my ability to tackle the job without making it worse. At the moment my linings are dry, just the back of the wheel and tyres are very oily. Given Roy's remarks, I am confident that I will get it all sorted without drama.. Thanks and I will report back. Cheers

[Andy Rose]

Hi all, back from a day of discovery. When I pulled the brake drum off I found that the drain hole was NOT working and the whole braking system was coated with oil and sludge. It looked very reminiscent of the Exxon Valdez and if one thing was for certain, there was NO braking going on this side of the rear at all..It was a friction free zone..Not all bad news though, having been soaked in oil for some time, the hub was very easy to remove and dismantle. As soon as I had the hub off the source of the leak was very obvious. The oil seal had become a two part affair, with the lip seal no longer rotating with the hub but sitting happily on the axel and just going along for the ride. The axel was quite smooth, with no groove worn in it and as such I did not need to fork out for a fancy sleeve or any other repair. I fitted a new seal, but kept the old bearing as it seems in perfect order. I cleaned and repacked it with grease. I used a new paper seal and O ring on the Hub to Half shaft joint and made sure all of the mating surfaces were smooth and clean. The poor brake linings were beyond recovery so a new set went on..All back together and a quick 20 mile run to test and all seems well

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

A good job done then!

[bmcecosse]

Great success! Well done...now better check the other side !