Alright, I'll start off first with the brakes. I replaced the rotors and pads on the back of my '94 isuzu trooper (4 wheel disk brakes) and when I was replacing the rear passenger side brake, I noticed that there was some sort of grease or oil everywhere-So i put the brakes back together and drove it to a local brake shop and they said that something like the rear seal for something had blown and it needed to replaced? Can anyone tell me what exactly this part is called so I can go about getting info on fixing it? This would help so much! From what I remember, they said that the entire brake assembly would need to be pulled including the caliper, rotor, and e-brake system in order to get to the seal that had blown if that info helps.
Ok, next, my widnshield needs to be replaced. I’m definitely a DIY’er and would like to replace it myself and was wondering if anyone had experience replacing windshield glass and could offer any tips-I watched a video of someone replacing theirs and it looked like they had some sort of special tool for cutting out the windshield. Were these just exacto knives and razor blades or something different?
Thanks in advance for any tips and info you can give–The Chiltons manual I ordered FINALLY shipped yesterday so hopefully I can get that soon!
The rear axle seal is the one he was talking about. This seals the gear lube in the rear differential and axle housing. If it has been leaking, which would look like grease once it mixed with the brake dust, then check the lube level of the rear axle to make sure your not too low. You will probably need to drain the gear lube out of the rear axle to pull the axle and replace the seal, so I would refill with new gear lube meeting the specs in the owner’s manual. Be careful to make sure if you need to add a limited slip additive to the gear lube when you replace it.
As far as windshields, I let the auto glass guys do that for me. The guys down the street near the ‘you-pull-it’ do a good job and have all the tools to do it right.
Definitely it’s the rear seal on the wheel as Busted Knuckles pointed out. The windshield is another matter all together. All you have to do is snap some chrome on and crack a corner of the new one and it’s time to start over. It’s much easier and cheaper to have a professional take care of that.
Side windows you can replace yourself. Windshields and rear windows are a different matter. It’s not that you can’t do it yourself. It’s that your savings over having SafeLite or whoever do it will be minimal. They have the proper tools and the experience. Their job is less likely to leak. And they assume the risk that the accursed thing will choose to crack during or shortly after installation.
Thanks so much! This is exactly the info I was looking for. And following the other comments, I agree that maybe it is to my benefit to have a pro install the windshield. But I’m definitely going to attempt the brakes myself since I have some experience with them and they do work fine right now—but the blown seal can definitely cause more problems down the road so as for now, the sooper trooper is up on jack stands in the garage until my manual and the parts get here. thanks again to all