Not Again! 4320 Axle Leak

ChrisJD4320 · Aug 2, 2007

Yep. I moved the tractor tonight and on the floor was a nice puddle of axle fluid under the right front tire. The dealer fixed the same leak at 50 hours. Now I'm at 100 hrs and It's leaking again. What is up with the leaky front end? Is this common? I'm sure the dealer will fix again but will they get it right? I hope this isnt an every 50 hr thing.

dsgsr · Aug 3, 2007

Driving in deep MUD will break the seals and make them leak. I suppose driving in anything that would cover the seals may make them leak.

David

joecdeere · Aug 4, 2007

We fill ours with 85-90 wt gear oil instead of the hy-guard the book says to use, none have returned after this.

AKfish · Aug 4, 2007

Given that this particular seal has failed before --- I'd ask the shop foreman to have the floor guys really give the axle surface a thorough check. You might have a scored or out of round axle that's eating up the seal after a few hours.

Heck, the seal's not even lasting to the next oil and filter change...

I'm running Mobil 1 synthetic 80-90w and it's probably even thinner than the lo-vis JD hy-guard. And (knock on forehead) I've got dry wheels!

Good luck with a long-term fix!

AKfish

chickenman · Aug 4, 2007

remove the wheel and wash out the joint between the axel flange and axel housing and take a heavy piece of twine such as baleing twin or carpenters string and work around the gap, that may dislodge whatever may be holding the seal open

the front seals arn't hard to replace if they are anything like what is on my 4310, ive done 2.

DAN IN OHIO · Aug 5, 2007

Chris, Your situation sounds just like my 2520, now in the repair shop for the fourth time.. Hope you have better luck getting it fixed.

ChrisJD4320 · Aug 6, 2007

The dealer is working on my wheel seal today. I also am having them check the battery. I noticed the top of the Strongbox battery was wet and the bolts/metal are fuzzy from battery electrolyte. From reading on TBN it seems this is a common issue for alot of JD tractor owners.

Zinno87 · Aug 6, 2007

I just ran into the same issue with my 4320. There's oil on the inside of the front-right hub and corrosion below the battery and on top of the pivot bracket for the front axle. The dealer mentioned that he's seen quite a few front axle seal leaks and that most turn out to be from paint on the flanges that compress the gaskets. Then on top of all that, I had a coolant leak a few weeks ago. I tightened up the hose clamps twice and no problems yet, hopefully it stays that way.

Too many leaks for a tractor with 60 hours.

Killer_B · Aug 6, 2007

dsgsr said:
Driving in deep MUD will break the seals and make them leak. I suppose driving in anything that would cover the seals may make them leak.

David

So you should take care to keep your tractor out of mud? I can drive my wife’s mini-van through mud without it leaking. Seems like a tractor should be able to.

ChrisJD4320 · Aug 7, 2007

Checked with dealer today. They had to order a part from Syracuse, NY for my wheel seal. He didn't know what part it was. Regarding the battery he said the Strongbox is a vented battery and it's normal for it to leak fluid.

I dont like the sound of that at all. Battery acid will eventually eat the front of my tractor away! Shouldn't they put a SEALED battery in a bouncy tractor? Should I upgrade? My expense I'm Sure....