I had been noticing the truck was having some hard shifts from drive to reverse for the past day and a half and took a look under the truck. The whole underside of the vehicle is coated in a thin layer of what smells like oil. I did some investigating and the engine has a measurable amount of oil on the dipstick and there's plenty of transmission fluid on the other stick (red color). The block seems to be dry and the wettest part seems to be the front differential, where the shaft connects the t-case to the diff. I also noticed the boot to the left cv axel is also a little wet where it connects to the differential.

I'm going to get it towed to a shop tomorrow but has anyone had a similar problem and was it the front diff? if it is the front diff what's a rough estimate for worst case scenario?

any help or insight would be greatly appreciated!

 

Why does it need to be towed anywhere? Drive it to the spray wash and clean the underside, then drive it back home and look for where the leak is coming from.

 

2nd dat.

 

Agree with Doc Olds, Could be gear oil from one of your shaft bearings...

Have you jacked up your front end or done any work lately.

 

It was put on a lift last week to check the brake life but no other work has been done to it in a very long time.

I opted to have it towed cause the amount of oil was concerning, and I was afraid if it was the front diff it was near dry. I'm working full time and am a full time student, and if I had the time I would have checked myself to confirm the level. Sending it off and riding my motorcycle in the meantime seemed like the most time efficient approach.

Going back to the shop to pick it up and they told me its definitely not the front differential and that its engine oil. Only problem is the exhaust manifold is in the way of seeing where the leak is actually coming from. They wanted to charge me 450 take the manifold off and continue the diagnostic. I plan to keep an eye on the oil level and do some investigating over the summer when I have some more free time.

 

I looked under the truck once I got home and was a little disappointed to see they didn't spray it down like they said they did on the invoice. I'm a little concerned they didn't check the differential level like I asked. They told me they made the assumption it was motor oil because the level was low in the engine. Now I'm concerned the reason they didn't see their florescent additive was because that's not the source of the oil.

Is gear oil that easy for someone with experience to distinguish from motor oil?

 

When gear oil is fresh its heavy and thicker than motor oil. When gear oil is old it gets thinner. Harder to tell.

Sounds like your guys were a bit lazy. Best bet is get under yourself wipe it all down then check it and see for yourself. Place some cardboard underneath to help find the leak.

 

 

In that case start by replacing rocker cover gasket set. Check oil filter.

 

I wish it was that easy lol