My 00 has 208,900 miles on it. Last month I had all wheel bearings and all new bearing seals replaced along with other stuff. The shop owner figured I had one bad front bearing and one bad rear bearing so we replaced them all. A week later the driver side rear axle seal had a slight leak that I only noticed because I went to adjust the stat wheels and when I pulled the drum off there was gear lube in the drum. It is not leaking on the ground and there is none on the wheel. The shop replaced the seal again last Thursday free of charge and unfortunately I just checked it and it has a slow weeping leak. Before they replaced the axle seal the second time I check the breather and it functions fine.

From my research, should they only have to adjust the fitment of the retainer to the seal? Should I get a new retainer? Would the new wheel bearing have to be repacked with grease since oil worked it's way through?

This is annoying.....

You need to do a grease check (or use a sharpie and mark the retainer) and spin the axle. Finding out where the seal is riding is probably the most important thing. From there you could feel the seal and see if anything was tapped in incorrectly (damaged) causing the retainer to not ride on the seal properly.

Read the Dr Coffe thread and watch Timmy's video on how to flip the retainer ring to give the seal more contact on the ring. You definitely need to repack the bearing, hard to tell if it's bad already.
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Ok I'll give those videos a watch. I would be really frustrated if a new bearing was bad.

Is there a chance that the oil seal is reusable?

This video was on a 85 Toyota truck but it's a pretty good 13 minute video on the process and it was pretty good.

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Also, check to be sure the differential breather is functional. A clogged breather will allow pressure to increase as the diff warms up and force lube past the seal.

PV=nRT

There has got to be a problem with the retainer ring. Is there a groove in it? I doubt it's a bad brand new bearing, or two bad or improperly installed seals. I always polish sealing surfaces on rotating parts and lube the seals when installing new seals. If it still leaks it needs to be sleeved, replaced, reversed, or repositioned.

@Riceye

Yes I did check the breather and it's functioning correctly. I removed it, cleaned it with kerosene and blew air through it. I could blow air through it but I could not suck air through it. Thanks for bringing it up though.

I've read most of the DR Coffe thread and I'm 100% convinced that it's another case of my new seal riding on or near the bevel. I'll go into the shop Tuesday and explain to them what I've researched and show them the pics in DR Coffee's thread. I now have a much better idea of what's going on. I'm mechanically inclined but I've never done this work myself so the visuals in that thread really help.

So far the passenger side is dry but I'll remove the ABS sensor and make sure. We might have just gotten lucky with that side. I can't wait to get this figured out so I can get new shoes and brake hardware installed.

I don't know what seal they used the second time but I'll probably order two retainers and two seals from Camelback or my local dealer. My guess is they got the seal from NAPA but I don't know who manufactured it. All seals replaced the first time were Toyota OEM.

If you want, give the mechanics a link to our video showcasing the Dr. Coffee Method. Maybe they'll learn something and stop sending people down the road with a botched repair. This repair continues to have one of the highest failure rates for professional repair shops and machine shops. If I were you, I'd demand they give you new wheel bearings and do the grease test right in front of you so you know it's good before they bolt the axles up.



For anyone that's interested in doing this job on their own, watch Part 2 because we showcase a much better tool than we used in Part 1. The guy Duane who makes the new tool is a good guy and he charges a very fair amount for something that is very well-built and engineered.

Yeah, I still need to watch your videos, which are excellent by the way. When they did the wheel bearings I also had them do the lower ball joints, install Toyota reman cv shafts, and the ECGC bushing. I supplied all parts and I got them from Camelback. I sent him the link to your bushing video before they worked on it and he said it went in smooth. This seal issue is the last thing we have to get figured out which I'm confident we will now with what I've learned tonight.

I figure I'll go talk to them first. I like this garage, they do good work and they have a good reputation. I have a hard time demanding anything when they probably weren't aware of the seal/retainer issue just like myself or even the local Toyota dealer isn't aware of it. Last week he adjusted my alignment and redid the seal free of charge when he probably didn't have to considering I supplied the parts. I'll go in there with the wealth of knowledge I gained from your videos and reading all 20 pages of DR Coffe's thread and I'm sure we'll get it figured out. I don't want to go in with an attitude when in my opinion, it's not all their fault.

I've put on less than 2000 miles since they installed the wheel bearings. What are the chances that the bearing is bad since having the leak? So far I don't feel or hear odd noises. It sounds like maybe it can be cleaned and repacked? On a positive note it's amazing how much quieter it rides with the new bearings and overall it feels much better after having all the work done. Last Fall/winter I installed an Eibach Pro Truck lift kit, new swaybar bushings, rack/pinion bushings, new radiator, hoses, thermostat, radiator cap, and belts. The previous owner replaced all fuel injectors when one went bad. This thing should last me a long time 😁

I had the leak on both sides at 170k-some miles and just repacked the old bearings. It has been fine and I am nearing 182k.

I did not do the retainer flip though but when I do next time (if) then I will install new bearings.

The bearing's side seal can be lifted with a pick to repack. I used a small syringe I scored at walmart to pump it full of synthetic wheel bearing grease.

This is not the recommended procedure but I just did it to get by since I can't put too much $$ into this old fart at this time.