This is the first time I have taken a car to a mechanic in my 12 years of owning cars, besides alignment, tires, etc. I do all the engine work and maintenance and had even bought the seal to fix this, but I just don't have the time anymore. Full time job and 2 kids under 3 yrs old seems to eat up all my spare time lol

Rob

 

I also have a pinion seal leak on my 97 ram 2500, would it be best to replace the pinion bearings, shim, and spacer while im doing the seal or does that add a lot of difficulty to the job?

 

If you can just do the seal..... and everything else is ok, just do the seal.

 

no, no, no, a thousand times no.
as said, count the threads and mark the nut in relation to the shaft. spin it off with an impact wrench. change the seal. spin it back on to the same place or maybe one smidgen more.

if you want to do it right, measure the rotational torque before and after using a 1/4 inch beam style inch-pound torque wrench. don't measure the breakover torque to get it turning. measure the sustained rotational torque in the correct direction. tighten the pinion nut to within spec.



i got a new one on ebay pretty cheap.
here's a dealer ad.
http://www.tooltopia.com/kd-tools-29...aign=nextag_r1

 

I had a mechanic come over to check everything out and he told me you have to use a seal installer tool or it is pointless to even replace the seal, is this true or are there alternatives to getting the new seal in properly? and thanks for the info.

 

I use a large, deep-well socket as a seal driver.

 

I call that BS. True, with correct tools installation is easy and you get it right, but pointless, no. I just replaced pinion seal couple of weeks ago, and I used hammer and drift punch to seat it. Not the best method, but being careful and working around the seal little at the time, it's doable.

Before I took the pinion nut off, I made marks to nut and pinion, and measured nut depth with caliper, so it was easy to torque it back with impact. Though D70 has shims so it's not so crucial to get it just right like with crush sleeved pinions.