EASY Step-By-Step Pinion Seal Replacement | NBS Chevy

Howdy everyone, today we're sliding back under the 2003 Suburban 1500 to take care of yet another rear differential project, this time replacing the rear pinion seal of the driveline. Super easy and cheap project that can save you some serious $$$ in the off-chance you catch it before too much fluid has leaked out (yay preventative maintenance!) Hope you all find the video helpful and like always, feel free to reach out in the comments if you have any questions!
And happy pre-Thanksgiving everyone!
Parts List:
- Rear Pinion Seal (GM 8.5" gear uses Duralast P/N: 710506)
-7/16 Socket or Crescent Wrench
-32 mm Socket
-Impact Wrench (some have advised against using one for this application, so I may have just been lucky - use at your own risk)
-Wheel/Hub Puller
-Seal Puller
-Rubber Mallet (helpful to seat new seal)
-Synthetic Grease (to help ease in the new seal, I used Mobil 1 but whichever you prefer)
-PB Blaster and/or breaker bar (if bolts are rusted on)
Want to see sneak peeks of projects before the video goes live?
Follow me on Instagram!: / garbearvillegas

[@zeropoint7665]

Count threads not splines. Excellent instructional video😊

[@spelunkerd]

This is the way most shops would do this procedure, even though guys who work in driveline shops may roll their eyes. They would say you should reset the crush washer tension to reproduce the preload between the two bearings underneath. With the diff already installed, that's not so easy. Even though the torque spec on the pinion nut is really high, the final position for the nut is the more critical factor. So, just be certain that the exact same number of threads are still present after you're done, it's not so critical the white line you drew lines up exactly. Some would turn it a hair tighter to account for natural wear of surfaces internally.

[@heesanoice7637]

Great vid, bro. My Silverado is doing this same leak, so I figured this is what I was gonna have to do. Thanks for posting. Love your safety flip flops !!!

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Lol at the flip flops… wouldn’t do it any other way 😎

[@martyvillarreal9144]

Nice video short and sweet. Thanks for sharing

[@RK-iw8jz]

good to see before diving in, thanks for the tips

[@ant_yep]

Great Great video! I never did that seal before. You made it look easy 👍

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Thanks buddy, yeah I kinda felt like a badass taking off the driveshaft even though it was only a few bolts... after that the rest was pretty easy - much nicer working on vehicles with a taller ride height haha

[@ant_yep]

@@1Brain4Wheels Nice

[@MrTA-cq5bk]

very informative video! Thank you for sharing... 👍👍👍

[@connorhauss6044]

Went smooth on my 91 Silverado. Problem I ran into was filling the diff back up previous owner stripped the fill plug to nothing. Tried welding a bolt and wouldn’t budge. Filled from the breather hole and worked well no leaks.

[@ZBrink11]

Pro tip: always remove the fill plug BEFORE draining differentials and transmissions.

[@connorhauss6044]

@@ZBrink11 in my case it really didn’t matter. There was no oil left in it when I popped the plate off.

[@Anth4044]

Great video thank you so much for sharing really going to help me so much 💯💯💯👍👍👍

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Glad I could help Anthony!

[@user-fn8fn5cq4w]

Very helpful bro, thank you!!!!🙏

[@TheBluegrasslady1]

I checked my front differential fluid level and it was really low . I checked it because I noticed it really oily all around there. Bummer, I just bought the truck.. it’s a 05 chevy colorado z71 5 cyl 4x4 . Would I do it the same way. This was a great video.

[@matthewjensen9550]

Great tutorial!

[@ambiorispuntier945]

Awesome vid. Thanks for the info.

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Glad to help! :)

[@randysmith6304]

You’re awesome man!! Great video

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Thanks Randy, I appreciate it!

[@b4aftermatch257]

great video

[@ilkoderez601]

Great video thanks

[@stateofwander6963]

Great video, thank you for making it. Curious, would this process be exactly the same for a Chevy Astro? And, would it be useful to check the bearing and u-joints to make sure that there isn't a deeper issue that the leaking seal is just a symptom of?

[@zeropoint7665]

A pinion is a pinion is a pinion

[@moneymig]

Sorry man but you sound sweet as hell with that lisp

[@clownpuncher7070]

Good video to watch if you turn the volume down. 🤷‍♂️

[@knightandfog]

Well done.

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Thanks!

[@maverickyoung632]

Did it leak again after replacement and drivibg

[@jesusransamy4225]

AWESOME THANKS

[@virgilrassner1076]

Well done

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Thanks, I appreciate it!

[@MDTAR15]

its been 3 years, has it started leaking again? Just curious.

[@lio2471]

I’m doing this right now on my 92 Silverado. Just struggling to take off the 32mm nut

[@uRealReels]

Use deep 32 mm socket

[@user-rv2gr5vl1j]

could not pull out the yoke on my '04 2500 Suburban 4 x 4

[@thesetruths1404]

Also, when my opinion seal did that it was a rubberized washer that sat between the nut and the yolk that was either missing or all messed up and it was causing it to leak down the threads of the output shaft and that's what was causing me. It was not the main oil seal that you show tapping in. Was there another washer or anything like that on your assembly? I have an 87 so it could be different

[@LEONDELASIERRA1]

How did you stop the leaking by the threats

[@thesetruths1404]

​@LEONDELASIERRA1 I had a shop rebuild all the u joints and they fixed it.

[@alexs8305]

Chock your wheels folks!

[@1Brain4Wheels]

That’s never a bad idea, thanks for looking out!

[@jesset6574]

You can knock it in as well by getting a small 2x4 and hitting slowly around the ring should be ok will not mess it up nice vid man

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Oh that’s a good idea, I wish I had thought of that! Thanks man!

[@tonyespinoza6649]

I have a gasket leak as well but Also a little humming noise, on/off going down a hill, would that be part of it ?

[@kingctv9646]

Oh i found out what that was

[@antonioescobar8414]

Maim man ❤❤❤ great 👍

[@LEONDELASIERRA1]

Can silicone be used on the threads just to make it more oil leack proof?

[@trevormcdaniel490]

You don't want to do that

[@staccin_solo1694]

So what happens if you don’t mark it

[@scottsheffield2594]

Do you by chance remember the thread count sticking out past the nut? Hoping you wrote it down. I need to know for mine.

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Shoot, I’m sorry man, I know I had it written down at the time but that note is long gone… to be honest, I don’t remember it being down too low, I want to say maybe ~5 threads were showing?

[@scottsheffield2594]

@@1Brain4Wheels thanks

[@onlymans165]

Great job man

[@1Brain4Wheels]

Thanks! :)

[@supersteve9448]

I have a torque wrench can I just torque it to manufacture specs?

[@1Brain4Wheels]

I think that could work, but when I looked into it, people said to measure the active/in-motion torque, not the breakaway torque (like what a standard wrench would set at) and so that’s why I just installed to the same thread count. Ideally if you can get a wrench with a torque gauge installed on it, that will ensure you get it dialed in just right!

[@stepdaddy21_10]

My 09 Silverado having the same leak 😅

[@thesetruths1404]

Is it there a torquing procedure for the nut that holds the yolk onto the output shaft?

[@connorhauss6044]

That’s why you count your turns and mark it when taking that nut off

[@chepetrin3521]

How do you find out what gm gear size i have?

[@brittanieegbert7697]

Glove box

[@dominicscaramozi8892]

How much torque on the pinion bolt?

[@zeropoint7665]

A lot...look it up for your vehicle. Its online

[@Mohamedseddek]

👍♥️💪💪

[@clarkvalcoic1736]

do you have to remove the fluid first?

[@uRealReels]

No, it will find a way to the floor tho

[@alexis_1503]

Puller what else can I use?

[@sar9907]

Take a screw. Drill it to old seal. And use a hammer and pull down. Comes out easy. No puller needed.

[@MrJoker-be5eu]

Is that the front differential or the rear?

[@1Brain4Wheels]

This is for the rear

[@TheRancher03]

Manual for 2007-2009 but may be different for yours. Suspect 2007-2013 1500.: Pinion and Differential Case Bearing Preload, New Bearings 3.4-6.2 N.m 30-55 lb in Pinion and Differential Case Bearing Preload, Used Bearings 2.8-5.1 N.m 25-45 lb in

[@sandrabeasley567]

i can see a foot in a flip flop. that is not proper footwear for automotive work

[@autumnwoe6356]

How about you do it the right way and use a torque wrench

[@tybrown4905]

What’s the torque specs

[@jscm3738]

Because that’s NOT the right way. There is no torque spec. The correct way is to remove the whole carrier, & measure pinion preload. Nobody wants to do that for a simple pinion seal replacement, so this method maintains the original preload.

[@autumnwoe6356]

Very cool , thanks

[@The_pipeliner]

@@jscm3738 there is definitely a torque spec for the bolts holding the u-joint straps in place and that torque is 15 ft/lb. And that is a very important one considering the load it can receive if not torqued properly.

[@user-bg9on2mc1w]

who cares about pinion preload anyways?

[@my95buick]

I didn't mark anything

[@TheSilverSurfisher]

😂😂😂

[@loboxx337]

Yeah we all should care.