Oil Leak In Dana 44 Front Axle Hjousing In 1979 B

mgawat · Sep 26, 2004

Gang,
I've run into a strange problem with my 1979 Btonco. I have 80x-90 oil dripping out of the bottom of my dana 44 front axle where the right axle tube enters the differential housing. Has Anybody else run into this, and if so, what's the fix (welding?) This truck has not been beat on (I've had it 20 years) and I just discovered it after power blasting the bottom side for frame off restoration purposes. I really Don't feel like swapping our front ends especially when this one runs fine.

4xfan78 · Sep 27, 2004

If its coming out from the point where the tube joins the pumpkin then the only thing you could do is weld it or replace it. I have not heard of this happening before on a d44 but anything is possible.

Broncoholics · Sep 27, 2004

Welding is a good idea. I've spun an axle tube before and used a very large pipe wrench to twist it back into position. I welded it in the plug hole located on the front. You will see where the tube enters the housing next to the diff cover. You might have to weld all the way around to seal it but this might make it weak by heating it up. You could leave the top unwelded since the oil shouldn't get that high up. Just drain the oil 2 days prior and clean really good. If any oil is present inside the tube or around the area it will not weld good and probably leak again. Also measure the tube with another D44, it could be pulling out of the housing and you just have to smack it back in and weld it so it doesn't pull out again. These things can happen to any rig.

mgawat · Sep 27, 2004

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Thanks for all your help. I welded all around the tube today and retacked all the weld holes. We are thinking the most likely cause was corrosion causing just a big enough space for the oil to leak out. Anyway, we'll find out with time how successful our efforts were.