Rear End Milkshake - Powertrax Trouble or Water Crossing???

thedeatons · **Joined:** Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:31 am **Posts:** 30

Hey guys... I've been hearing a weird whirring noise coming from the rear end lately, and I decided to see if the diff fluid was low.... When I pulled my finger out it looked like an Orea cookie milkshake... I have a Powertrax installed, correctly I might add, and am concerned about that. Have any of you Powertrax owners had a milkshake problem? The only water crossing I have done was a small one in Sacramento on a recent trip. It is possible that water was at the vent level and entered the rear differential. If that happened, would it make the fluid look like this? Any ideas?!?!??!PLEASE HELP!!! NOT SURE IF I SHOULD DRIVE IT LIKE THIS!!!

skrracing · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 10:06 pm

Milkshake diff fluid= water int he housing for dang sure. Just get it cleaned out fast and chaneg the fluid and you should be good to go. It can come in through the seals or the breather...Just get it done and don't keep driving it like that becasue the bearings will eat themselves up fast. later..Clint

thedeatons · **Joined:** Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:31 am **Posts:** 30

Great.... Well... I've been driving on it for about a week now... at least my wife has... sheesh.... Looks like she's not leaving the house tomorrow..... It's like serious sludge in their.... Can someone give me information on the best way to extend the breather, I understand the concept, but I do not know which inner diameter rubber hose to use, and where to have it vent when I am done... Thanks..

Jeepjeepster · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 11:59 pm

Was the water that deep? The breather goes up and over the gas tank. Could of been a hole in the tube, that happens some times.

Skyjump136 · **Joined:** Tue Jul 05, 2005 6:50 pm **Posts:** 1633

It can come in through the axle seals as well. Extending the breather may not help at all. Its always best to change your diff fluid whenever you go through deep water.

thedeatons · **Joined:** Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:31 am **Posts:** 30

It really wasn't that deep, which is what troubles me... I've been in water over the grill before, before the Powertrax install, and when I drained the old oil, it was fine... This is crazy, that is why I was wondering if it might be a Powertrax symptom. Does anyone have any advice on how to clean all the old crap out?

thedeatons · **Joined:** Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:31 am **Posts:** 30

This is going to eventually cost a fortune... I may as well buy stock in Redline... Were you guys referring to the wheel bearings going bad by the way? Should I yank the wheels and rotors and check them?

Skyjump136 · **Joined:** Tue Jul 05, 2005 6:50 pm **Posts:** 1633

There are bearings pressed on to the differential itself. The powertrax wouldn't have anything to do with allowing water in. I'd guess you have a bad seal if you didn't spend much time in deep water. How many miles do you have on the Jeep?

thedeatons · **Joined:** Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:31 am **Posts:** 30

I have ~25k on the Jeep... At about 18k miles it got a new rear axle, complete, from the dealer, and installed at the dealer. Reason: the axle shafts were leaking beside the rear diff housing (pumpkin). They said it required a complete assembly, as the axle housing is pressed in.... Moral of the story: nothing should be leaking... When I installed the Powertrax I used The Right Stuff on the diff cover, and no fluid has been seen seeping ou tof any part of the rear end/axle housing...

camss69 · **Joined:** Mon Oct 31, 2005 6:51 pm **Posts:** 8

If you pull the rear plug out of the diff are you supposed to replace it? It doesn't seem that tight of fit.

I was behind him when he went through the water, the water wasn't touching the rear bumper if I recall, maybe right up to the bumper. The vent hose runs to the top of the fuel tank right? The bottom of the fuel tank is at the bottom of the bumper right? So how deep is the vent in reference to the outside of the vehicle, above the rear bumper, touching the spare, anyone know about how high it is?

I checked my diff tonight and it was clear, if it's milkshake it's obvious right? I stuck my finger in and the fluid on it was clear is that checking it enough?

The water was maybe 30 yards in still water and I would guesstimate just up to the rear bumper. Is there anything else we should be checking?

Eddo · **Joined:** Thu Jul 07, 2005 7:01 pm **Posts:** 1214

Well, I just love water crossing and done more than my fair share. I just love trails with lots of them. I can't even count the number of deep crossings I have done. My KJ thinks it a boat sometimes.

I've extended all my breathers. The stock breather are really pretty darn low. The rear axle and the tranny are pretty darn low. The front diff is not bad and the t-case one is fine. Yes the tranny one can be extended, and is actually was not that hard, just need to find the right angle. I usually check all my fluids after a run with deep water crossings, and haven't had a problem yet.

the1jferg · **Posted:** Wed Dec 21, 2005 11:30 am

Hose clamp some Gortex over the end of the breathers???

Eddo · **Joined:** Thu Jul 07, 2005 7:01 pm **Posts:** 1214

the1jferg wrote:

Hose clamp some Gortex over the end of the breathers???

Probably work better than nothing, but I believe the whole purpose of the breather is to equalize the pressure so that water dosen't get sucked into through the seals. So if you are rapidly cooling the axle, then the air gets denser and needs more air to equalize the pressure. However, I'm not sure how much air you would need to trap w/ the gortex to be effective.

the1jferg · **Posted:** Wed Dec 21, 2005 11:50 am

It would not work anyway because the pours would clog with fluid and dirt.

thedeatons · **Joined:** Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:31 am **Posts:** 30

Please refer to my differential cover question for more help guys... thanks so far!! James

KJ04 · **Posted:** Wed Dec 21, 2005 7:49 pm

Examine the breather hose for a split. The plug should be alright, I've never heard anyone complain about a bad one.

Rear End Milkshake - Powertrax Trouble or Water Crossing???

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