BX front axle oil leaks

[kubby]

Just wondering if anyone else has had problems with a BX model leaking oil from the front king pin joint. Mine started seeping on one side at 225 hrs. Just had it repaired on warranty but it still leaks. I have heard of a couple of others having this problem. Anyone know if there is a service bulletin on this?

Thanks,

Bill

 

[Av8r3400]

Some folks have switched to a "gear lube" type oil in the front rather than the realatively thin Super MDT hydraulic oil called out in the book. I would think a good quality synthedic gear lube would be fine in that application, and not be as apt to leak past the O-rings in the knuckle.

BTW: At 85 hours on mine with heavy FEL use, I still have no leaks there. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[16valex]

Mine too is leaking, haven't got a chance to bring it in yet

Alex

 

[kubby]

Talked to my dealer today and he said it was a pressure problem caused by lack of a vent in the axle. That could not be it though, at least not the whole problem, because it was seeping when I went to pick it up after the repair. I washed it off and it leaked more without even being run. I heard from an ex-Kubota mechanic that this is a common problem on the BX tractors. Hopefully Kubota will come up with a redesigned seal or something.
Bill

 

[jim_wilson]

My BX23 front axle leaks in two places - at the pivot point in the middle and on the pivot seal (kingpin?) on the right hand side wheel. It leaks so bad that I have to add fluid into it every few days and it will leave a big puddle on the ground. The tractor is getting hauled up to the dealer tomorrow to get these leaks fixed, plus fix the broken air cleaner mount, the hazards don't work, and get a 300 hour service.

 

[kubby]

Jim,

I'd be interested in what your dealer has to say, and what they do about your leaks. Also whether their repair is successful. It does seem that this is a common problem with the BX series, so it would be nice to discover the real cause.
-Bill

 

[jeffmazz]

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/showflat.php/Cat/0/Board/owning/Number/543072/page/69/view/collapsed/sb/5/o//fpart/1

View this link. Venting the axle has worked for many on this forum. I haven't had any problems with mine and it has been worked hard in 4wd in 90-100 degree weather this summer. No leaks.

Regards,

Jeff

 

[jim_wilson]

The tractor is loaded in the trailer and ready to drop off tomorrow morning. I don't expect to find out anything until next week but I will post back when I hear anything.

 

[Junkman]

Jeff....... when posting a link, just a short explanation to go with the link is sufficient.
When you post the long web address in both fields, it skews the rest of the thread so
people have to keep moving the text from right to left and back again to read it. I have
enough trouble trying to read the text when it isn't moving. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
thanks Junkman

 

[kubby]

Jeff,

Thanks for the link to your thread on venting. I have vented mine and will see what happens. Sop far it seems to be slightly slower but still seeping.

I have to believe though, that the seal design is bad. Pressure may be an aggravating factor, but the transmission gets much motter than the front axle and doesn't seep a bit. Also, my left side leaks but the right side is totally clean. If pressure was the only problem, there would be leakage on both sides. In addition, the leakage comes only from one point on the pivot joint, not all the way around. And why did I not get any leakage at all for the first 200 hrs, all hard usage, then it started to leak? There has to be a design problem here.

-Bill

 

[jeffmazz]

Thanks for pointing that out Junkman. It won't happen again.

Jeff

 

[jeffmazz]

Kubby,
I don't doubt there could be a design flaw in the front axle. One thing about axle oil seals though, once they start leaking they usually don't stop until they are replaced. If there is pressure build up in the axle the oil can work its way out of one or more seals. If the pressure unseats or flips the lip of the seal it will leak forever or until it is replaced. Again I'm not saying we don't have a design issue here. I would replace the leaking seals, use regular or synthetic gear oil instead of UDT, and keep the axle vented.

Keep in mind also, like everything else in life some things are good and some things are not. Some transmissions, for example, last 200,000 miles and some of the same type don't make it 30,000 miles. The same goes for oil seals and everything else for that matter.

Regards,
Jeff

 

[ericbx1500]

In my bx1500 manual it shows that the RH and LH case have a breather plug in them /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[kubby]

What they refer to as "breather plugs" are solid bolts that need to be removed when refilling the oil. They allow air to vent the outer housings so the oil can get in. There's no venting unless they're removed.
-Bill

 

[jim_wilson]

Well I finally got my BX23 back from the dealer last night. It turns out that the pivot seal was not the problem. The shop supervisor initially told me that they had replaced the seal because they thought that it was the problem - and the axle still leaked. So they took a closer look at it and found that the housing itself had a hairline crack in it. He also said that he checked with Kubota on their dealer tech line and talked with people at Kubota and they claimed to have never seen this happen before. When I asked him if there was anything that I could have done to cause something like this he said that short of driving it off a 2nd story it was unlikely to be anything that I did - most likely cause was an inclusion in the casting which caused the crack. He also said they sell hundreds of BX's and this was the first time he had seen this happen. So the good news is that it is fixed and under warranty.

For some of the other people out there it might be worth taking a closer look at your front axle leaks to see where the fluid is really coming from. I have seen it mentioned that some people got their leaks to stop when they installed gear oil instead of hydraulic fluid. These are cases I would be suspicious of - gear oil would probably be thick enough not to leak thru a fine crack. Just because Kubota has never seen this before does not mean it isn't out there - it just means the dealers are missing it.