rossco

does this gen. of truck have very many rear dif problems ? had oil change done and they said it has a leak , i have noticed the cover has a gained some oil on it over the last year and a half but wasnt really to bothered by it.. going to check and fill with a new gasket this weekend,but just curious why this would start leaking ?

Dinner

They changed the oil in the engine, or in the rear diff? I have heard and seen a lot of rear ends leaking enough to have that "coating" on the diff. Most of the time it's because when they changed the rear oil, the people wont use an actual gasket, and they will use silicon(not enough though). Using silicon would be fine I believe, but you have to make sure you use a good amount. Another thing is to check your seal at the drive shaft meets the diff. Oh, and i'm not 100% sure if our rear diff's have breathers, can't remember..but if they do, make sure they are still breathable.

My seal at the drive shaft and diff finally went after 9 years so it's time to change that. My diff never leaked either until a couple of months ago when I ran out of silicon to put a good amount on, so it has that coating

The rear ends on our 2nd gens are pretty good I think, I've never had a problem

sdsaw

Check for leaking oil at the brake flange area.
I know of at least two late 90's trucks with around 70000 miles on the odometer that started leaking there and ruined the rear brake shoes