Rear axle replacement for 1992 L300?
Posted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 10:18 am
Hello D-world
My van developped a leak in the rear differential (?) very recently. I hoped it's just some seal leaking, but had my mechanic (who has done some work on the van before, but is in no way a Delica specialist) look at it. They said that in their opinion, the rear axle is rusting through, and thus differential (?) fluid is leaking through rust holes, and should be replaced.
3 questions, if anybody would be so kind as to answer them/ direct me to appropriate websites:
- for somebody who has no idea what these parts are (=me), is there a way to look at it myself without pulling things apart to figure out if I really need to replace the whole axle, or if it's just a seal leak? By now I know a lot about engines but have absolutely no idea about the car body (and names for the various parts), and don't know where to start / what key words to google. I find the rear axle document on this site (L300 technicals) really hard to understand.
- if I find i need to replace the whole axle thing - where would I source one? What's the price range? The mec says it should be easy for them to install "new" one (a few hrs labour max), but I need to order the parts. Is this a common thing, that the axle is rusting through and needs to be replaced?
- how do I top up the fluid that's leaking? He said I need to watch for fluid levels, but I really dont know which ones and how![Sad :-(](./images/smilies/icon_sad.gif)
I'm also trying to sell the van due to not needing it anymore - due to new job I needed to get a small, fuel efficient commuter, so in case I don't fix it myself it would be good to know what to tell a prospective buyer.
Thank you so much!!!
My van developped a leak in the rear differential (?) very recently. I hoped it's just some seal leaking, but had my mechanic (who has done some work on the van before, but is in no way a Delica specialist) look at it. They said that in their opinion, the rear axle is rusting through, and thus differential (?) fluid is leaking through rust holes, and should be replaced.
3 questions, if anybody would be so kind as to answer them/ direct me to appropriate websites:
- for somebody who has no idea what these parts are (=me), is there a way to look at it myself without pulling things apart to figure out if I really need to replace the whole axle, or if it's just a seal leak? By now I know a lot about engines but have absolutely no idea about the car body (and names for the various parts), and don't know where to start / what key words to google. I find the rear axle document on this site (L300 technicals) really hard to understand.
- if I find i need to replace the whole axle thing - where would I source one? What's the price range? The mec says it should be easy for them to install "new" one (a few hrs labour max), but I need to order the parts. Is this a common thing, that the axle is rusting through and needs to be replaced?
- how do I top up the fluid that's leaking? He said I need to watch for fluid levels, but I really dont know which ones and how
![Sad :-(](./images/smilies/icon_sad.gif)
I'm also trying to sell the van due to not needing it anymore - due to new job I needed to get a small, fuel efficient commuter, so in case I don't fix it myself it would be good to know what to tell a prospective buyer.
Thank you so much!!!