Axle Shaft Seal problems of the 2002 Ford Explorer

Leaking rear axle seal.

Rear axle seals and wheel bearings. We have had to replace the rear axle seals on June 4, 2004 with 4, 000 miles, and on Jun 16, 2006 with 69. 600 miles. Also had to replace rear hub bearings and assembly on April 17, 2007 with 74,000 miles. This is obviously a recurring issue, and I have been told this is a common Explorer problem. All work on this vehicle has been performed by reputable Ford authorized dealers/service, and would expect work to last longer than 1-2 years.

I was told that the 2002 Ford Explorer has rear seals leaking. I need to get these replaced as soon as possible because I will have to replace the drive train if it fails. I have 119,000 miles on the vehicle, but I always had it serviced with Ford. I have done some research and apparently the seals have been failing at low miles. I felt the seals were defective because there were some with this problem with low miles. Apparently the dealers waited until the warranty expired. I felt if the vehicle failsed this would be a safety issue. Ford has produced more defective Explorers. I am now faced with a large repair bill.

Thumping noise from drivers side front end in the wheel area. The noise is most noticeable at between 40 and 60 mph during acceleration. It also becomes a humming noise as the gas pedal is released and the car is coasting or decelerating. Had new tires put on then new brake pads and rotors. Nothing fixed the problem. Talked to my brother, another loyal Explorer owner, and he had same problem diagnosed as a bearing needing replacing. He also told me about a leak on his garage floor in the rear middle of the car where the rear axle is. I told him I have same exact spot of something leaking on my garage floor. We read about all the seal problems with the axle and needing to be replaced. He spent over $1000 on the front bearings and now in for another big bill for the seal problem. I see we are not alone in our Explorer disappointments. All with the same problem. Come on Ford, back up your vehicle and pay for these defects to your suvs.

I noticed a fluid leak from the rear axle of my 2002 Ford Explorer and took it to the dealer for diagnosis. It turned out that both the left and right rear axle seals had failed. The vehicle had only 75k miles on it when the leak began. I double checked the recommended service schedule to see if I had missed something but they do not recommend that the rear axle fluid be changed until 150k miles. So this is not a case of owner neglect. After some discussion at the dealer service center they informed me that this repair is fairly common on Explorers, mountaineers and aviators and that the repair kit has a newly designed seal. If there is a newly designed seal available, this strongly suggests that the original seals are insufficient. This is also proven by the fact that both seals failed, not just one. The cost of the repair was quoted at $490 ($380 of which was labor cost). This is too much to ask a consumer to pay for a part that was under designed and not properly tested prior to being put into production. Therefore, I believe these rear axle seal parts should be recalled and the oem should be forced to reimburse vehicle owners for repair costs. I also noticed that there are TSB's regarding Explorer, mountaineer, and aviator vehicles that may have been filled with the wrong rear axle fluid at time of production but have no way to get more information on this to see if my vehicle is affected. I would be interested in any information NHTSA may have.

Brought my car in for a 60,000 mile checkup and was told that my axle seal was leaking and that the ring and pinion gear-rera kit/seals were needed to fix the problem at a cost of $1131. 83 plus tax. The advisor said that the seals rotted and then the leakage began and it went down hill from there. This same car had been in earlier this year with what we thought maybe a transmission problem. It was checked and we were told there was no problem but there wasn't any indication of axle leakage problem. I have researched other complaints here and there seems to be about 4-5 other people who have a similar problem and want to know why Ford motor company hasn't address this problem with a recall. Thee are a lot of other folks with the same problem expressing it out on Fordforum. Com. We have owned 4 Explorers and feel very disappointed that we need to spend this kind of money with a car that has only 60,000 miles on it.

There is a slight leek of differential fluid from the left axle seal. I now have noise at highway speed from rear end. Fluid level has remained good.

Yet more leaking read differential seals. Rear end howling also, has been for about 15,000 miles now. 79,000 miles currently. I will have to change the rear seals again, and will inspect for the howling noise again. May have to change pinion bearings!? as a mechanic, it is unbelievable to me that we would be having seal and bearing failures at such low mileages. Bad aluminum housing castings maybe? bad machining? too much slop at the rear half shaft, causing premature wear on the seal faces? what ever the reason, Ford is not making much effort to repair. And they seem surprised that folks are buying foreign trucks. (Toyota trucks).

: the contact stated after having rear axle pinion seal repaired at a local independent repair shop the mechanic noticed the rear suspension coil springs were broken and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was consulted.

2002 Ford Explorer, eddie bauer 4wd 4. 0l; 83k miles, for the second time on vehicle has rear axle seal leak. Rear axle seals and pinion seals replaced at 55k; humming noise/whine from vehicle at cruising speeds. Many similar problems reported online, and Ford TSB's issued, but no recalls. . Read more...

My Ford Explorer rear axke to diff. Seals are leaking oil, and the rear end is very noisy. Ford put new seals in at the cost of $340. 64 . The day I pickeded up the vehicle they were still leaking 30 miles later with the new designed seals in. I put the 2002 Explorer back in the garage to get the seals changed 6 days later. Sthe rear end is still very noisy, but the seals are not leaking for the time being. I called the Ford 800 number to complain and try to get my money back with no avail.

Rear axle has had recurrent leaks. These were repaired 3 times under warranty. On the fourth occassion the dealer replaced the axle. This was also done under warranty. Problem was firsted noted at just under 30,000 miles. Axle replacement was at 58,ooo miles.

2002 Ford Explorer - rear differential axle seal began leaking at 23,000 miles and was replaced under warranty; started leaking again at 30,000 miles and the rear axle and seals were replaced under warranty; started leaking a third time approx. Eight months later and dealership replaced both axle seals; now 5000 miles later the seals are leaking again and the dealership is telling us they don't know why the seals continue to fail; in addition to the real seals leaking we have had to have the abs sensors replaced twice, the oxygen sensor once and a seat belt sensor once.

Consumer stated rear axle seals were leaking. Dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem.

The rear axle seals at the gear case have failed twice causing axle fluid to leak. The dealer has replaced each time saying that "Ford has an issue" with these seals but they do not have a lasting repair. Not all 2002 Ford Explorers have this problem.

The rear seal on the axle assembly had to be replaced 5 times on the consumers 2002 Ford Explorer. The consumer requested reimbursement.