During my T56 swap, I swapped a 3.42 rear end from a 99 Z28 into my 93. Once I put fluid in the diff, I noticed a strange oil leak. I snapped a pic and made a note of where the fluid appears to be leaking from. Has anyone experienced this type of leak? Is there an inner seal as well as an outer seal on this axle?

 

No picture showing - copied and pasted link, got this:

 

Thanks Fred! I moved the pic to Cardomain and it should be working now!

 

Are there actual drips, or just an oil "stain" at those points? A stain it OK. A drip isn't.

There's no seal at those locations.

 

The leak is definitely a drip and not just a residue. That joint looks like a friction weld. Should I seal that with RTV before putting oil in the diff, or should the weld seal that?

 

Don't know what to say. Never saw one actually leak in that location.

 

Yeah, I would probably get someone to weld it, at least the bottom half

 

Wouldn't applying the heat required to weld it possibly warp the axle tubes? Just thinking out loud.

 

Is go in short beads, inch on one side, inch on the other side, let it cool, repeat, shouldn't effect the straightness of the axle

 

Dave89IROC, have you ever seen a leak like this?

 

RTV should stop the leaking, but I'd be a bit worried about WHY it's leaking. Maybe flexing too much there, abused by previous owner and now weakened? Welding sounds best.

 

Not a drip, but seapage I have seen