First off I want to say Hi and I love the forum. Wish I would have come accross it before today.

Anyway I have a 1998 Ram 1500 4x4 with the 318. I took it to the shop to get a price on new u-joints for the front end and a seal replacement. Well turns out I also need a track bar and they don't do seals. With a quote at around $550 not counting the seal. I'm not sure I want to fork over the cash. So if I can work it in I think I'm going to do it. I just had a couple of questions first. So I hope you all can help.

How hard is it to replace the seal? It's the drivers side that is leaking. I thought it was at the end of the axle but from what I understand its just a dust seal on the end and the actual seal is in the pig. This sound right?

The shop also mentioned that the track bar was bad and that the stock ones are junk. They were going to put on a heavy-duty one that will hold up better. I was wondering if you could reccommend a good track bar at a resonable price. Napa had one for about $160 (I think thats what it was.)

Thanks for your time and your help. Tony

 

In order to replace the left front axle seal you will need to remove both axles and the carrier from the differential housing. The left front seal is accessed from inside the case, and the right front seal is accessed from inside the shift fork housing. If you can swing a hammer with your left hand, you are set to go for the driver's side seal using a suitable seal driver. For the passenger's side seal, you will need a special tool like this: http://wahlstrommachine.com/SPECTOOL.pdf

Regarding the track bar, Napa carries 2 lines of suspension parts, Master Ride and Napa Chassis. The Master Ride parts are noticeably cheaper and lighter. I'm a fan of Napa Chassis premium parts and have had excellent success with them. You get what you pay for.

 

Resurrecting old threads to advertise your wares?