Which way do the rear axle seals go in???
 

I was too dumb to take a picture of them before I pulled the old ones out. It's been a couple of days, and now I forget which way they go in. I looked at the Victoria British catalog but the picture isn't good enough to tell. I checked the FSM also, but had the same problem. Does the cavity in the seal go in or out?

Also, the Haynes manual says to put some lithium grease on the seals. Are they talking about the space between the seal and the wheel bearing? Are you supposed to pack some grease in there before you slide the axles into the diff?? It was pretty vague in the Haynes manual. Just wanted to make sure that I'm doing it right the first time, because it has kinda been a pain in the butt....

So is it #1 or #2? Where does the grease go and how much??

#1 - Cavity In

http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3340/pict0027lt0.jpg

#2 - Cavity Out

http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/2995/pict0028su6.jpg

Thanks fellas,
Jamie

Install according to the top picture. When you install that type of seal, you always take some bearing grease and pack it in the back where the spring is located. The idea is to prevent the spring from accidentally being pushed out by holding it in with a thick grease. So just take a good blob, smear it in that cavity flush, and install.

Yup. Top one

Thanks fellas! Do I need to pack any grease on the outside for the axle bearings??

I noticed on the rear end from a 81 GSL that I bought a while back had a coating of grease on the inside/outside of the bearings. I'd probably recommend greasing the bearings with a pretty good glop on your figure, inside and out, just so that there isn't any direct metal to metal contact, thus reducing the friction between the housing/bearing/axle. And plus, what harm can the grease really do if you apply a bit more than needed?

1 but Jamie thats not the right seal. It should fit the axle tube hole with some interference (read: you hammer it in). Not drop in. Its too small. Unless Im looking at it wrong, could be an optical illusion.

I didn't hammer it in yet. It sits back inside the axle pretty good. The big part of the hole in the picture is where the bearing sits I think. It appears to be the exact same as the one I took out....

Top 1.
I think the grease on the seal is to stop start-up damage from a dry half shaft and to help when you install the shafts. I just changed my diff and put a smear of diff oil on the seal. Reused the old seal but I'm sure it looked like Photo 1 not 2.
Don't overgrease the bearing because, unlike the diff oil, it's not held back from the brakes by a seal, so running a distance on a warm day could possibly cause some grease push-out into the brake area.