JK axle tube seal leaking

Looks like I may have to do some wrenching on Elva's JK. Saw smoke from the rear tires, not from excessive use of throttle, and found gear oil leaking into both rear wheels. Looks like it may be the axle tube seal. We took it to the dealer to see if it will be covered under warranty or not, may be void since we bought it with 2,500 miles and are technically the second owners. If not covered then I'll be tearing it down. Looks like an easy job except pressing the new bearing and seal onto the shaft.

Well you kinda have all the tools. I would figure once you swapped the HEMI in the jeep the warranty was null and void.

makitupthehardway wrote:

Well you kinda have all the tools. I would figure once you swapped the HEMI in the jeep the warranty was null and void.

Well since we bought it with 2,500 miles we were technically the 2nd owner which voids the lifetime powertrain warranty anyway. Figured I'd give it a try. Didn't realize there would be some dumbass there that would "Fix" the tranny recall and try to flash the Hemi computer with the V6 programming thus rendering totally disabled. Yep, really. they called and said they cannot fix the seals under warranty but can supply the parts since they have it in stock. then said "by the way" we flashed your computer to fix the overheating tranny recall" and it won't start. Have to pull the CPU and send it to AEV for reprogramming. What a DUMBASS! Even Pete the maintenance guy knew it wasn't the stock motor when we pulled up. FURIOUS! Fixing the seals isn't a problem. Have to pull the shafts, cut off the bearing and seal and press the new ones on. I'm finding this to be a common problem but most people have warranty coverage.

so who has to bite the bullet on the comp issue

Oh and this is the exact same recall we told them not to perform when we had the brake line recall fixed. Told them not to do it because it wasn't the stock tranny or motor. First thing they did was flash the computer for this recall. Now it sits busted!

they say it is on me. I say no way in hell. Gonna talk to the manager about this one.

From JK Forum:

The following was the comment from the administrator on the AEV forum about this recall and HEMI converted Jeeps back in July of 2010:

"Anyway the gist is you can do the recall if you like. All it does is reprogram the cluster to chime an audible alarm if the trans temp gets to 275F. With the extra large trans cooler on the HEMI JKs its not typically an issue except for the people who don't understand what builds heat in autos and drive around in high range offroad with the torque converter trying to destroy itself. (there were supposedly several 3.8L people who caught the cars on fire when in high range in the sand)

If you choose to do it, the dealer will plug into the car with Witech and it will come up and say there are two updates, one for the PCM and one for the CCN (Cluster). Its OK to do the update to the CCN, but you're kind of playing with fire having a dealer one click away from updating the PCM with the latest 3.8L cal..."

The tranny temp issue was a safety recall issued by NHTSA and Chrysler or any manufacturer will always perform safety recalls with or without permission or at least inspect to see if the recall is applicable on the vehicle in question.

The update to the PCM should have only been done if you complained of an engine issue related to that particular engine update. Moreover, the tech should have known that he could no longer perform ANY updates to your PCM even if requeste. In fact, your AEV PCM is clearly marked that it cannot be flashed. This was ENTIRELY the tech's fault and you shouldn't have to pay a dime for their incompetence and negligence.
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talked to the service manager today and he had no knowledge of this situation. Said he would talk to the tech and see what happened. called back and said they would be taking care of the expense. This sounded like the tech was trying to keep it under wraps to keep himself out of trouble. Service manager seems like a stand up guy. They will call us when it is ready to be picked up and I'll talk to him in person.