i have a question regarding the rear axle on my 85 mazda rx7. i have no knowledge of rear ends. and i was not the one doing the work but now i have learned my lesson on not to trust neone.
no one can give me an answer. i had a guy who claimed to know rear ends work on my leaking axle seal. he said that this particular seal was the one that needed to be remove. he took a gasket scraper to remove it from the housing. then when he went to put in the new seal it wouldnt fit. he left me with the **** unfixed. and now possibly with a bad housing. i took the axle to orielys and they informed me that i need to take the bearing off to get to the bad axle seal. now knowing this, i have a feeling that he just screwed me over
so my question is.. is the houssing now ruined and if not what will i need to do to fix it?

 

there is a seal on the housing itself. its an oil seal and it prevents oil from the differential from escaping around the axle bearing. it is removed with a seal puller and easialy reinstalled with a seal driver. if the housing is gouged badly then the seal may not seal properly and form a leak. there are two sizes of seals, small and large. the small seals were used from 79-83 and the larger seals were used from 84-85. the same applies to the axle (rear wheel) bearings and locking collars. can you post a pic of the damage?

the rear axle (rear wheel) bearings cannot be removed without first removing the locking rings. its best to have both pressed off and then back on.

 

Couple of things to add.

I have had issues with getting new seals to fit into axle housings from time to time. The Mazda seals fit better than the aftermarket replacement seals. But even with Mazda seals, I have ruined a few of them trying to install them, it happens. Your mechanic may need to try again or find a better mechanic.

If the axle housing is gouged you may be able to get it to seal with a little silicon. It would be worth a try before you condem the axle housing

Pressing the locking collar and bearing off an axle ruins them. Replace with new parts only.

As far as finding someone to work on these rear axles, it should be easy. The axle bearings and seals work just like what Ford used on 8 and 9" rear ends. There is nothing special about this.

 

I was about to post a thread about this, sort of. I am replacing my third member and i want to change my bearings and seals. How do i get the e-brake cables out of them plates to get the axles out all the way?

 

either take it back to the original mechanic or let him know he ****'d up and will be getting the bill.

 

mechanic is getting the bill. and vj22 there is a clip in the line near the backing plate that needs to be removed. then the line simply pulls through the sleve

 

^^there you're talking about the parking nrake cable..you may need to get some pliers on the outer metal portion and give it a half a turn in each direction to looesn it up. when you reinstall, make sure you clean and grease the metal portion that slides into the sleeve.

 

thank you!

 

thanks for the help guys.