Series 3 Swivel Pin housing Oil Level

[Phoenix]

I think that my Swivel pin housing is leaking a little, and what is leaking doesn't look a lot like oil, and isn't brake fluid. How do I check the swivel pin housing oil levels?

If there is no oil in them (only water or 1/2 of each :evil: ) what parts are there that can be damaged or worn, and what do they do (i'm still a mechanical novice.

[Larns]

Phoenix
Jack you car up onto suitable stands, take the tyre off, an on the rear of the swivel pin housing, about half way up, there will be a pipe plug with a square shank. Thats your level/fill point. style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif
A common practice is to put in a mixture of grease/gear oil, which makes a type of slurry, which will look quite odd if your unsure of what you might be lookin at. Or as you said, if it's mixed with water, it'll have a caramello look to it, sometimes it'll look streaky if it hasn't been there long.
An yes, it can do quite a lot of damage to your uni-joints which live within.
The drain point is at the bottom, and is a smaller version of the filler.

Good luck style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif If you have any more :?: just ask

Cheers Larns

[lewy110]

You can actually buy a special one off grease satchet from landrover that is enough to do one swivel housing.

It's a bit fiddly to get the whole lot in there, but once in leaks are a thing of the past.

[UncleHo]

Before taking the wheel off grab it at the top of the tyre and shake it sideways if there is noticeable movement that indicates wear in the swivel pins, this in turn puts the swivel ball oil wipe seal off centre and the oil leaks from the lower part of the seal, swivel pin housing oil--EP 80/90 available K-Mart in 1 litre packs Same oil is used in, Gearbox, Transfer,and both Diffs, Streering, and Relay boxes. :wink:

[Phoenix]

Thanks Lars, Lewy and Rocket. I was hoping that filling and draining it would be as easy as that. Might have to use some of my spare time over easter to do some work on grover.

Fortunately I still have about 5 litres of the right oil left over from when I last changed the diff oil, so I won't have to buy anything.

Now all I need is a decent set of axle stands :oops: , maybe later style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif

[LandyAndy]

Hi Phoneix
One of the main causes of leaky balls is a blocked axle breather.A mix of oil and grease is no good as they seperate back to their original properties at different temps.Landrover do a semi fluid grease which is really expensive and they dont reccomend it for series landies.I use a Penrite semi fluid grease,which is much cheaper.It has stopped seeps (not leaks) in the balls of 3 landys I have owned,also usefull in the steering box for the same problem.
I would go the Penrite way,clean your breather and if you still end up with a problem dig deeper.
Cheers
Andrew

[Phoenix]

G'day all.

I had a moment to drain the oil from the two housings over teh weekend, and one was 1/2 water and half oil (also seemed to be filled with grease, and the otehr seemed to be the remains of a grease oil mix.

I wasn't aware of these semi fluid greases, but I can tell you that all of the water that came out gave me a fright 8O

Andrew, how does running oil compare to running grease in terms of lubrication and wear etc? Sounds like the way to go, but i'd like a bit more information before I change to the grease from oil.

Also, if I do cahnge to oil alone, how do I get the excess grease out? Is it a pull apart job, and if it is, how hard is it?

Also, the seal does leak oil (but obvoulsly not grease), same above if I have to change the seal. Can't tell if it is still leaking as it has been raining since I changed the oil.

[LandyAndy]

Hi Phoenix
The semi fluid grease will drain out no problem,especially if you have been driving some distance with the hubs locked.To fill the swivle or steering box its best to heat the semi fluid grease up in a container of boiling water to make it run easier,I use an oil syringe to squirt it in.
It is good practice to run your hubs locked at least once a month if you dont do a lot of 4 wheel driving as the top bush in the swivel relys on splash lubrication,which doesnt hapen with the hubs unlocked.
Look up Penrite oils for futher info on their products.
Andrew

[Phoenix]

I don't doubt the penrite product one bit, and I do run the hubs engaged (when I remember) to keep it all lubricated.

Only prob is that what is in there looks more like grease than semi fluid grease. Running the hubs locked should help warm it all up to be drained though.

Thanks for the tips.

[esamari]

C52