[GNNR]

Okay, I am a noob TJ owner, just got her this past week. Been doing cosmetic things and figuring out what needs fixing or what have you.

This is a TJ 2.5L SE 97 with 119K miles. New rad and clutch 20K ago. New transfer case this year (Jasper rebuild with 100K warranty), new AC compressor last weekend. Runs and idles fine, shifts fine, tight clutch. No suspension problems. Fixed a radiator leak, painted the pans and drains, bunch of cosmetic crap.

I found a small rust out hole in my muffler so in process of ordering a cat back.

The main problem I have at the moment though, and something I am out of my depth on entirely, is that I have a very low volume leak of clean tranny fluid coming out from under the armor plate mounted mid vehicle over the tranny and transfer or diff. It's hard to see and I haven't removed the plate to check yet (neighbor has my ramps currently) but it kind of looks like a leaky gasget seal between components. Sorry, I am used to conventional cars rather than 4x4 setups for the driveline so I am not sure all exactly what I am looking at just yet.

On the cosmetic front... where can I find OEM mirror mounts for the full doors? Antenna (mount and mast)? New wiper arms (not blades, the arm assemblies off the motor the blades are mounted too... paint is all peeled off)? Also, what do folks use to treat their flares to get them nice and shiney?

[neverbackdown]

Originally Posted by GNNR

very low volume leak of clean tranny fluid coming out from under the armor plate mounted mid vehicle over the tranny and transfer or diff.

the tranny, transfer case, and front and rear differential are all very different driveline components but your best bet is to pull off the skid and take a picture and post it on here and someone will help you with whats what

[TheMightyGoat]

What color is the fluid?

[GNNR]

I will post some pics as soon as I got my ramps back (though I may be able to shoot in above the plate, have to see). Fluid is very light colored and thin, sort of brownish.

[GNNR]

Okay, pics and more details:

1) Check engine light has now come on. No driving until I get this sorted.

2). The volume of fluid leak is minimal, but the skid plate has a pretty good coating from driving... hard to judge except by the amount on my drive way and it is really tiny as leaks go.

I crawled under neath the jeep the entire length and went over it with a fine tooth comb. No other leaks of any kind. Evidence of possibly a small minor oil leak ages ago, maybe, but nothing even remotely new or recent except this.

The leak appears, looking at it from front to back, to be the seal between the rear of the transmission and the mate up pont for the shfiter/clutch assembly. The tranmission bell is dry and clean, as is the shifter/clutch housing and the transfer case. The leak appears main along a small 4 or 5 inch line on the right lower side of the mating point between tranny and shifter/clutch and it's soaked the skid plate pretty good (blow back from air driving I assume). Even so, the bottom of the shifter/clutch housing nearest the mating point and seal isn't really coated heavily.

4) Pics (reduced to 1024 resolution):

http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07311024.JPG
http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07321024.JPG
http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07331024.JPG
http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07341024.JPG
http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07351024.JPG
http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07361024.JPG
http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07371024.JPG
http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07381024.JPG
http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07391024.JPG

(note: haven't had time to get it up on a ramp to pull the plate. also, the spots on the driveway represent several parking spots over 2 weeks. I noticed the dripping and thus leak, it was only dripping slowly from two bolt/access holes in the skid plate, maybe a drop every half hour or so from each).

5) In the interim until I get it looked at by a mechanic or dealer (or apply a fix I am comfortable doing myself if one is suggested), how do I check fluid levels for the tranny/clutch/transfer. The manual is far from clear on this. And if low, where are they filled at and how. Noob stupid I know, but just point me in the right direction.

[Ichabod1960]

Click free:

[GNNR]

Thanks. Wasn't sure if I should put that many pics in the thread, but if it helps sure.

[Ichabod1960]

Before you start worrying about a leak you should clean the whole area. Get some engine degreaser and have at it with some rags. Then you should be able to tell if and what is leaking.

[GNNR]

Hmm... it's clean except for the plate really. That and the seal area as seen in the picture (a 5" band about 1" wide where the tranny and clutch appear to mate up, unless I misidentified the pieces). I'll hit it tonight or tommorrow.

Is there something to that bolted on plate at the bottom of the clutch/tranny assembly there that could leak? It seems to be the most covered in fluid, and none fo the actually housings for the tranny, clutch, or transfer seem to have anything on them (except that stripe there at the mating point, but dunno).

[4.0l sahara]

could be the trany front or rear seal.

[GNNR]

I was thinking rear, but really don't know. So, what kind of cost in a shop to fix that roughly???

[jdarg]

Pretty odd leak. Its not the transfer case. I don't think its the transmission either. A leak where the transmission case halves meet up isn't very common IMHO. The RTV betweem the case halves looks stock...and it looks wet several inches in front of there too.

My vote is a leaking rear main, which isn't nearly as common on a 2.5L as on the 4.0L, but when the oil weeps past the rear main and drips down the bellhousing, it blows backwards as you go down the road and it hits those same areas you show covered w/ oil.

Is the front of the bellhousing wet at the bottom too?

[GNNR]

There isn't a drop of fluid from the engine leaking out anywhere. There is a sludgy buildup from an old leak on the lower front of theengine along the oilpan edge just behind the pulley but that's it, and it's not wet, very old. The entire bell housing top to bottom appears dry and clean of any fluid or sign of leak. Underbody of car is clean. It's jsut the stupid skid plate, and that seam isn't it either, it's bond dry and no sign of recent leak or buildup like I would expect. It's like the leak is past that point, like under that bracket assembly on the bottom fo the tranny/clutch as seen in http://www.lazykitah.com/leak/IMG_07351024.JPG. The entire top of the skid plate has a thin layer of crap and oil on it, not heavy, no puddling, and it isn't dripping except right after driving and then only a short while.

I am going to drop that skid plate and clean it all and try and figure this out tommorrow. I can't for the life of me figure out how I am supposed to fill/top off the tranny either if it's leaking.

Bear in mind too the clutch case and transfer case are all clean and the transfer is new as of a couple of months ago (installed by a certfied mechanic, 100K warranty... that of course isnt' transferable). The underbody is all clean too, no sign of wind blown flow from a leak of any kind that I can find, just on the top of and bottom of the skid plate itself. I talked to the previous owner some more, not a drop of fluid in his driveway, no noticeable leaks (he is honest enough, this was his 'baby').

Is it safe to leave the skidplate off or is that structural? I don't mean permanently, just for testin purposes. It's an obvious PITA for one man to keep taking off and putting back on.

[raskull]

The skid plate holds your driveline in place.. so no. There is 4 bolts that go through the skid into a bracket on the tranny.

You can take it off and put a jack stand under your oil pan (with a block of wood) for lookin around.. but you gotta have the skid on while moving.

I would suggest doing that, that way you can really see whats going on. If it's just a seal leaking somewhere.. all that stuff is replaceable without too much effort.

[GNNR]

They aren't bolted to the skid plate though, right? I don't see anything through the late. I assume it's resting on the plate, not bolted to?