1985 250ES BR Gear Oil......

[motordude]

Can I get away with using 80W-90 or do I need to stick with the 80W as the manual states.

[atc007]

That would be fine.. Although,,it does get a bit chilly up there,,,80 is thinner... You're fine either way.. But summer time would be a better time to be thickening it.

[dougspcs]

Change every year...

80, 80w90, 90 all good..

At the 1st sign of problem like water in the oil(milky appearance), get the differential fixed. Too expensive to let go!

The ones that exist now are all there will every be in the world..take care of it!!

[motordude]

Sounds good guys. I was the one that just replaced the pinion seal. Everything came out great and she is back in action. Its such a great feeling to know that most of the driveline has been gone through, checked out, cleaned and lubed. Like new again, thanks to 3WW and its members. Thanks for all the help, I owe you a beer..............if you are ever in New Hampshire :beer

[tri again]

yeah. x3 for sure.
They say 'hypoid' is the key, altho lots of new gearboxes with ring and pinion gears use actual engine oil.

Hypoid is some sort of slippery factor because those gears tend to slide against each other
by design.

As you know, it's only 3 POINT 3 ounces so changing it is cheeeeeep.
I usually leave my front tire on the tailgate of the truck,
drain it out the fill hole, drop the trike on the ground and refill after any watery rides.

Now you've got me wondering if that oil actually 'makes' it out to the axle seals a foot away?

Seems like barely enough to cover the inside of the tube.
Since you've been in there, are there seals right close to the gears that sorta contains it right in that area?

..and if so, wonder why it is so easy for water to get in.


Guess I should look at a parts diagram one of these days.

[dougspcs]

It isn't designed to go down the axle tubes and lube the outer bearings like a car..

The diff has seals on either side if the crown stubs to contain the oil in the diff housing..the 3.3 oz of oil is just for the diff housing. The outer axle bearings are sealed bearings with their own lube packed in them.

The pinion seal is the weak spot in most failures..if the rubber flex from the transmission to the axle tube isn't sealed perfectly then water and dirt flow down the tube and sit on top of the pinion seal. Eventually corrosion forms and the seal breaks down. Once the water has a way into the pinion seal..game over!

Truth is I found on my SX(same diff design, different gear ratio)..the stub seals failed also and oil began leaking down the axle tube to the outer bearings. The oil began to break down the rubber seal on the sealed bearings. So I could see the break down of the differential causing these bearings to fail prematurely..therefore I replaced them also when I did my diff rebuild.

Save me going back in next year for axle bearings!!

Motordude..your diff is gonna last forever. I wish mine looked that clean coming apart!

[motordude]

Doug just explained it perfectly. I also used honda bond on all mating surfaces except on the right axle bearing hub, this has o-rings to seal it from any water intrusion.