When to change the TXB

[reb78]

How severe do you think a leak has to be before you change the transfer box? I'm pretty certain mine is leaking from the intermediate shaft o ring in the front casing. The leak does not seem higher than this so i dont think it is the seal that sits around the gearbox mainshaft. There is a tell tale smear of oil down from the intermediate shaft area and although i have stuffed a load of hylomar sealant up there, it doesnt seem to have stopped the leak at all. It doesnt seem to leak a great deal at the moment - in fact there isnt really enough to cause much of a mark on the drive when it is parked up. Will it suddenly go and dump all of the oil or is this something that will very gradually get worse without a sudden failure?

Is it possible that it is leaking from elswhere (any suggestions??) other than the input seal or the o ring? It cant be the output seals as the leak is too high for either of them.

[Top90]

For me, if it drips on the floor I need to sort it out.

[western]

you can replace the intermediate shaft seals, would be cheaper than a new TB.

[reb78]

This box has done about 160K (i know it will likely do a lot more). The main gearbox has been reconned and when i changed that I kind of said to myself that next time the transfer box comes off i would replace it with an ashcroft re-con. I did think about doing the seals, but the problem often sounds like it is wear in the casing around the shaft as well as the seal. I was just checking if a leak from elsewhere is likely before i bite the bullet. Does the gasket around the housing the front prop output comes out of ever leak?

To confuse things i think the main box is leaking a tiny amount of ATF from around the reverse plunger housing. Might whip that off too and seal it up with some hylomar.

I'm usually the same - if it drips then fix it except in my case i worry about it for a bit first! I dither around whenever it comes to spending money!