I've got my car's differential out and on the bench. It's only got 30k miles under its belt and the internals appear to be in fine condition, with only a very tiny, almost invisible amount of filings on the magnetic drain plug when I wiped it clean with a rag. I couldn't detect any wear on the crown or pinion and the oil appeared to be a brownish-greenish colour when it was drained.
I separated the rear cover because there was a slow leak of oil and I wanted to ensure that it was properly sealed prior to painting and re-fitting. It appears to have been sealed by a white silicone-type compound which has scraped/rubbed away very easily, and I've recovered small amounts of it from inside the diff casing as well.
Can anyone advise as to the best way of re-sealing it? - I've seen that paper gaskets are available, but wonder if a liquid gasket is a better option.
Finally, I can't be sure that it wasn't just leaking from the drain plug (the oil was certainly dripping from there) - is a leak here a common problem? If so, what can be done to mitigate the problem?
Many thanks
