Reassembled transfer case, have new ATF leak

[BlacknBlue_XJ]

So the Jeep has been sitting for a couple months so I could replace a seal in the front output shaft of the t-case. A couple weekends ago I finally got the free time I needed to get it rebuilt. I got everything together but it was too late to get new drain plugs so it sat for a couple more weekends. The Jeep hasn't run/moved since.

Despite the t-case being completely empty and having a fresh RTV seal, I have a small puddle of ATF on the floor. It seems to be dripping down from the transmission pan and from somewhere onto the crossmember.

After a quick google search, I'm assuming that I screwed up a seal between the t-case and transmission when I put the shaft back in. I'm also assuming I'll have to take the transfer case out completely to replace them, and that it will take me several hours to do so by myself, which means god knows when I'll be able to enjoy this thing again.

Thought I'd check here before I do anything else.

 

[Hypoid]

So the Jeep has been sitting for a couple months so I could replace a seal in the front output shaft of the t-case. A couple weekends ago I finally got the free time I needed to get it rebuilt. I got everything together but it was too late to get new drain plugs so it sat for a couple more weekends. The Jeep hasn't run/moved since.

Despite the t-case being completely empty and having a fresh RTV seal, I have a small puddle of ATF on the floor. It seems to be dripping down from the transmission pan and from somewhere onto the crossmember.

After a quick google search, I'm assuming that I screwed up a seal between the t-case and transmission when I put the shaft back in. I'm also assuming I'll have to take the transfer case out completely to replace them, and that it will take me several hours to do so by myself, which means god knows when I'll be able to enjoy this thing again.

Thought I'd check here before I do anything else.

Find where it's coming from. Going by what you typed, ATF could be leaking from the dip stick tube and running along the pan.

 

[BlacknBlue_XJ]

I looked all over and couldn't find a source. I just filled it up and ran around the block a few times t make sure everything works. I wiped it down before I parked it so hopefully I'll be able to see where it's coming from.

 

[BlacknBlue_XJ]

Took a quick look when I got in this morning and it has a few drips coming from the crossmember with no fluid forming drops on the pan (yet.) I didn't get under it to look for a source; I'll check this afternoon. The fluid looks more used than the brand-spankin-new ATF I put in the case, so I'm pretty sure it's coming from the trans.

I didn't remove the t-case and was nowhere near the dipstick tube, so I'm afraid it's the rear seal on the trans.

 

[Hypoid]

Took a quick look when I got in this morning and it has a few drips coming from the crossmember with no fluid forming drops on the pan (yet.) I didn't get under it to look for a source; I'll check this afternoon. The fluid looks more used than the brand-spankin-new ATF I put in the case, so I'm pretty sure it's coming from the trans.

I didn't remove the t-case and was nowhere near the dipstick tube, so I'm afraid it's the rear seal on the trans.

It sounds like you need to keep the transmission topped up, so you can determine the rate of loss...

 

[BlacknBlue_XJ]

Well it's definitely leaking. The puddles are slowly growing. I know it's from the transmission as the fresh fluid from the case is slowly dripping from my bad RTV job and it looks much cleaner.

Any tech days coming up? Taking the transfer case doesn't seem like something I should do by myself under there.

 

[dan1977p]

Well it's definitely leaking. The puddles are slowly growing. I know it's from the transmission as the fresh fluid from the case is slowly dripping from my bad RTV job and it looks much cleaner.

Any tech days coming up? Taking the transfer case doesn't seem like something I should do by myself under there.

If you have access to a transmission jack or motorcycle jack, it's actually super easy to pull just the transfer case. If you can bench press more than 100#, you could do it without the jack, though I wouldn't recommend it. Small mistake may mean crushed skull and all...

 

[BlacknBlue_XJ]

I don't have access to either jack, unfortunately. I can bench press 100 lbs on a steel bar, but I don't know how well I'd do with a greasy chunk of cast aluminum while I try to line things up.

While not perfect, I prefer my head stay the same shape it is now.

 

[old_man]

I had the seal in the rear of the AW4 where it hooked to the NP-231 start to leak after reinstalling the tcase. It appears that I buggered the seal during the reinstall. It took a while to find it, especially since both the tranny and tcase use ATF. I actually put some UV die in the tranny and was able to tell that it was the source of the leak.

 

[BlacknBlue_XJ]

Huge thanks to Tom for helping me yank the t-case. It took a few hours but we were able to get the seal swapped with relatively little trouble.

Buuut it's still leaking. Well, I'm hoping that what I'm seeing is residual fluid left over from the previous leak, but hope in one hand and what not... I'll do the cornstarch trick to see if it's coming from somewhere else.

At this point, it might be time to cut my losses and sell it. I'm not a big fan of going out into nature dripping fluids, and with a rattling motor that could be a flexplate or could be rod bearings, I'm not confident bringing the girlfriend or folks from out of town more than 100 miles away from home. Considering that I bought this to explore with, that makes it pretty useless. Someone with the time and knowhow might get something out of it.