hows it going all i own a 2002 f150 xlt 4.6l v8 4x4

i just payed 2100 to rebuild the motor basically, new gaskets all the way around new manifold bolts new plugs and timing chain. i told the mechanic that i hear a loud humming on the highway and thought maybe it was the tires. He took it for a test drive and said it was actually the rear end and i need to change the rear end seals on both sides since they are leaking. 400 bucks he told me. i am wondering how hard is it actually able to do and if i could do it my self, where or what parts should i get. do i need bearings as well?

 

Actually thats pretty fair price i think, rear end seals would be taking the driveshaft off, taking the yoke off, getting a seal puller, taking the seal out, the. Use a seal driver to put a new seal in. All those you can get at any auto parts store really. If you dont have access to air tools or have any idea how to do it id let him do it

 

If he is charging only 400 for seals AND bearings that is a steal

 

I wouldn't say its a steal, but that's a fair price if it includes parts. I had mine done when I swapped gears and he didn't charge me any extra in labor just 100 for parts.

 

It's not hard to do considering you can get the bearing out.. Its relatively simple actually. The seals come out easy. Just cross your fingers that you don't discover a groove worn into your axle. Sometimes if the seals go bad its because of metal shavings from a worn out bearing making their way into the seal and grinding away the rubber. Thank god they make speedy sleeves. Your bearings should cost around $30 each for a 8.8 and a litttle more for the 9.75, seals are $8 from ford.
$400 to get it all done isnt bad, but if you have the tools (bearing puller mainly). The job is very simple to do.

 

Parts must be cheaper for you. Between the parts store, ford, and autozone, the cheapest name brand, quality parts were about over $200 for bearings, seals, rtv, 75-140 fluid and friction modifier

 

I booked the appointment and he's just doing the seals for about $250. He charges $65 in labor here. I live in ontario canada.

 

Sounds like a good deal to me

 

I just replaced the bearings and seals on my '00 F150 4.6 with 8.8 rear.

Brief rundown of what it takes to do this:

Remove rear diff cover, drain fluid, remove diff shaft lock bolt and diff shaft, push axles in and remove C clips, pull both axles, remove old seals and bearings, install new bearings and seals, install axles/c clips/diffshaft and lock bolt, install diff cover and fill with lube and friction modifier.

Problems I encountered:

Diff shaft lock bolt was broken off and had to order a kit to remove it and buy a new bolt.

Even though I used a high quality slide hammer to get the old bearings out, it took about 100 wacks per side (no joke at all) to get them out. My arms were about to fall off after that battle.

All in all, not a really bad job but I wouldn't call it easy either.

Got the bearings and seals from RockAuto.com
Bearings were $11.00 each
Seals were $7.00 each

Diff bolt extraction kit was $36.00 off Ebay.

Lube from Advance Auto

Friction modifier from my Ford dealership.

Spent less than $100 total.