when i bought by d2 used 3 months ago i was told by mechanic i had a bad hub. while the hub did not have any wiggle, grinding, etc... i still replaced it with a used one from roverland along with new oring. i have drove d2 about 200 miles since that repair and had no leaks til yesterday when after driving about 10 miles, 6 of which at 65mph there is a large amount on inside of wheel.

prior to taking my hub installation apart wondering if it could be this breather tube. seems odd that 2 hubs and i have the same problem.

i have read lots of posts here where a clogged tube will cause leaks. is that usually a few drops or can you have a significant leak from this? like 1/4 cup after 10 miles

also, i posted about hub leaks last night and was told that a hub can leak from both the oring and internally. i called roverland to ask about returning my hub and they said hubs can only leak from the oring and there is no place for the to oil to go inside the hub itself. this contradicts what i read elsewhere. thoughts?? can this leak from a location other than oring?

thanks!!

 

Here is my experience with sealed hubs like that on a DII, my experience has been with other brands of cars but a hub is a hub.
They never leak, they are filled with a full synthetic oil, usually a 20w-50 and then sealed at the factory, they never leak.
If there is trauma to the hub, like sliding sideways and striking a curb with the rim then the weight of the car can cause a leak, but usually this type of impact renders the car undriveable and the hub is destroyed.

Here is my experience with clogged axle breathers, the diff builds up pressure and the weak spot will leak.
For me it was the pinion seal on the front of my rear diff.
Replaced the axle breather and leak stopped.
Now the seal is still not very good, it does not leak oil but when I wade water gets in.

SO, with a DII the "O" ring could leak if the axle breather was clogged since the "O" ring is the weak point.
Remove your breather and blow through it with your mouth, there should be no resistance.
On a DI the axle breather is steel and the breather hole inside it will rust and block the air from escaping.
I bought a brand new one the first time, the second time I took mine apart and cleaned it with a wire brush and drilled out the hole, next time I will replace it again.
You also need to make sure you breather tube is not clogged.
Water line for a ice maker for your fridge fits perfect and is $5 for 1,000' from The Home Depot.

Use zip ties to fasten the new breather line up high, run it up from the axle and up to the bottom of the body, leave plenty of slack and do not make the ties to tight, it needs to move with the axle.

 

Will the water line from home depot work just as well for a d1 and if not where could i get replacements for the front and rear

 

thank you so much for the very informative reply!
i am also thinking since it still leaks on 2nd hub even more reason to wonder about the breather. i will check this out tomorrow.
-matt

 

DITTO TO SPIKE. This summer I had a front seal leak on the rear diff, as I took out the fill plug to check the fluid level I heard the pressure escape out the fill plug hole, a rather loud "pop", and yes as it turns out the breather tube fitting was rusted solid.

 

The D2 hub can develop an internal grease leak, they can also leak gear oil if the $1.29 o-ring is shot.
What exactly are you leaking, if gear oil, then go to Atlantic British and order the o-ring, that will stop it once and for all, or till it leaks again.
As for breather tubes, yes, if plugged, they can on high speed drives, build up pressure and vent through a bad o-ring. Usually don't need to raise your vent tube unless you are getting real crazy on water crossings.

 

Yes, DI's and DII's use the same axle breather.
And remember, that there is also a breather on your front axle too.

 

here is where i am on this...

I pulled wheel, caliper, disc off to see what I have.
It does look like an internal leak of the hub. The grease is grey, and I have Royal Purple in the Rear Diff.

I called RoverLand parts and he got a replacement right out to me.

As far as breather goes, I struggled to pull the tube out of the axle. The plastic housing that keeps tube in the axle came out in a bunch of pieces.
Any thoughts on replacing this? I figure I will just get something at hardware store that fill fit the tubing and epoxy back in place. Is there anything else to it besides the plastic piece?

below is a pic of this hub with all the grease that came out.
It truly looks like the oring is fine.