[chrismhaase]

I have a 2005 HONDA RANCHER TM that is leaking a oily fluid from the inside of the left rear tire. It looks as if it is where the axel is coming in into the rim. Does anyone have any idea what this is?

 

[Helmut]

Your rear diff axle seals are probably leaking and the gear oil is running down the axle tube and leaking out the end of the axle tube. There's a good chance the axle bearings are also bad.

 

[chrismhaase]

Wow that doesn't sound cheap to fix. Have any idea of what that would cost?

 

[Helmut]

The parts to replace all the axle bearings and seals will probably be around $150 if bought from a Honda dealer. You might be able to find them cheaper somewhere else.

I would jack up the rear end of the ATV and try to wiggle the tires to see if the axle bearings are bad. You might get lucky and just have a bad seal and not have to buy all the bearings.

 

[rancher11]

im not expert in atvs like Helmut, but looking at my local honda dealers site, it doesnt look like it will cost much for parts.

 

[Helmut]

im not expert in atvs like Helmut, but looking at my local honda dealers site, it doesnt look like it will cost much for parts.

LOL. I'm not an expert either, but I've worked on quite a few ATVs over the years.

The price that I came up with above is for all the bearings and seals and you may not need all of them.

 

[rancher11]

yeah, i went to central maine powersports and looked up all the bearings/seals. i came up with about $150 in parts. weather he does the labor himself or not is another story

 

[shadetree]

i would say..tear it down..look at all the parts that are bad..then you can tell how much it's gonna cost before you worry about the price or them.

 

[chrismhaase]

Thanks for everyone's input. I am not a really handy person, so I will take to my local bike guy. He is fair priced, $45 an hour for labor, saves all the parts he replaces and shows me what is wrong with it. I also have another seal that needs to be replaced.

How often do seals typically need to be replaced? The atv is 5 years old, so should I start to see all of the seals needing to be replaced now?

 

[Helmut]

How often do seals typically need to be replaced? The atv is 5 years old, so should I start to see all of the seals needing to be replaced now?

Most of the time what causes the seals to go bad is the bearings get bad and lets the axle move or wiggle and that damages the seals. That's why I say there's a good chance that the axle bearings are bad.