I put in new drive axles last weekend and i keep having trouble on the driver side seal. It keeps leaking and it is driving me crazy. Yesterday i replaced the seal thinking that it was bad, same thing still leaking. I can't figure out what is wrong, i sat there and watched my friend put it in. The seal was in all the way and the drive axle was in all the way too. Either i have the wrong seal or the wrong drive shaft. Apparently then my maxima does not have a limited slip differential, because that is what drive axle i have. Can someone tell me how to find out how i can tell if i have lsd. I keep wasting money on tranny fluid, 40 bucks i dont' know what is wrong. Looks like i will have to take this apart again, i am having the worst luck with this. I thought everything was find and then i go out to my garage and i see my tranny fluid running all the way down the drive way. So i either have the wrong drive axle or the wrong seal. Does anyone have an idea to what is wrong, i know im a dumbass i should of found out if i had lsd or not. I just assumed and we all know what happens when you assume, the passenger side is fine no leaks no problems. This sucks i have no cash right now untill i sell my 300zx so right now im screwed and i have no car to drive. My Z is not legal to drive right now and i don't have the cash to fix her either. This never ends all i want is to get my maxima back on the road, but no i guess that is too much to ask.

 

Are you 100% sure it's all the way in?

 

Wow! This is deja vu for me! I had the exact same thing with my Max when I bought it. I replaced the axle seal with OEM one, yet the problem remained. Turned out that the last owner had installed the WRONG kind of axle in there. It wasn't for VLSD, so it was too small. Haven't had a problem since I put in the right one. Hope it helps.

 

Oh, and BTW, do NOT buy a non-OEM seal. I tried two NAPA ones and they were both of the wrong size. Nissan sells it real cheap, just get it from them.

 

Yes im 110% sure that it is all the way in, and damn it i got my seals from Napa. Both of them, well what is the tranny code for the limited slip differential. Maybe i have the wrong axle, i hope it is the seal but i have wasted 80 bucks on tranny fluid now. I'm tryin to save what i have left and see if i can put it back in later. I have to go to nissan tomorrow anyways to get a linkable fuse for my 300zx so i can get her started so i can sell it. I need more cash for my maxima. Damn this sucks, so those napa seals are a piece of **** huh, figures just my luck.

 

hey...i have no idea why you are wasting tranny fluid. When you put it all together, put a container under the tranny and then start to fill it up. IF it starts leaking, STOP! I have a feeling it isn't in all the way. Yesterday when putting mine back in, I thought i had it all the way in but for some reason (probably paranoia,) I kept turning and twisting and what do you know...it went in a little further and just clicked in! When filling the tranny up, I put something under just in case. But it didnt leak. I can pull mine into the garage (it's wet outside) jack it up and take a pic of what it looks like close to the tranny if you want.

 

I found this thread like five lines down, this is how you know if you have LSD or not, the plate is on the driver's side of the motor bay on the firewall I think.

https://maxima.org/forums/4th-generation-maxima-1995-1999/302019-how-exactly-should-i-go-about-posting-group-buy.html

 

Jack the front of the car up . spin the wheels with your hand . If it hard to turn you have lsd if it spins pretty easy you dont . Most se's are lsd diffs and the hole is bigger . I assume you didnt look at the axels to make sure they were the same first ?

 

Amen to that one. When i did my clutch i figured i'd go ahead and change out the seals while the tranny was out. I had a dealer seal on the drivers side and a non dealer one on the passenger side. I went through about 4 different ones until I put the OEM on. No problems afterwards.

 

When I bought mine the first time, the shaft was a hair too big to fit in the tranny. Then I found out I have a locking differential, so I took the old one back and got the right one.

 

how about spinning the wheels by and and see if they go in the same direction?? If they do, lsd...if not...go figure.

 

i've had this problem for too long and haven't had the chance to install a new seal. sucks. anyway, another way to tell the LSD axle is that it has two splines on the part that goes into the tranny. non-lsd has only one spline.

 

splines? what's a spline?

 

the grooves that match up with the gear.

 

The funny thing about the NAPA axle seals is, one was just a little too small, the other just a little too big. When you put them in, they seem to be just the right size. But when you start driving, they somewhat buckle under stress and fluid leaks. My mantra is simple: Any and all seals and gaskets should ALWAYS be OEM; no questions asked. As for other parts, I call Nissan after checking with parts stores. If the difference isn't huge, I always buy Nissan. Less headache later on.

 

It did not start leaking at first, no leak until i drove it for a while. I parked it and then like an hour later i came out and i discovered a leak. I put a container underneath it right away and i have most of it. There is still probably two or so quarts in it still. I did the same thing last time, but my dumbass wasn't paying attention and i put it aside and i accidently knocked it over all over my garage floor. Yeah i felt stupid i was ****ed, this time i will not do that believe me. Well im goin to get a seal for nissan and im am certain we got it all the way in. We didn't have this problem with the passenger side i dont' know. The third time is the charm right. We turned and pushed it in all the way hmm who knows but i heard it snap in. I do appreciate everyone's help though, i just can't wait until i just get this problem fixed. I don't have a camera so i can't get any pics. But from the help i have recieved i have a good idea of what's wrong. Again much thanks, im going to take it back apart again this weekend.