Finfam Posted August 9, 2022 Report Share Posted August 9, 2022 2 hours ago, ttxi475 said: Looks like mine. Most likely cause of our issues is that the seals inside gets busted and it leaks all the fluids out. get a new unit and replace it. Is it hard to replace? Basically unbolt the three bolts at the viscous coupler, drop the driveshaft. Unbolt the viscous coupler from the diff with the 4 bolts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttxi475 Posted August 10, 2022 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2022 3 hours ago, Finfam said: Is it hard to replace? Basically unbolt the three bolts at the viscous coupler, drop the driveshaft. Unbolt the viscous coupler from the diff with the 4 bolts? That's correct. 7 bolts only. You can get it done very quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted August 10, 2022 Report Share Posted August 10, 2022 Might want to dump rear diff first, make sure just slight fur on magnet, not larger metal fragments. Inspect both side output shaft seals for any leaks (had to change mine on a 2014). Auto recyclers will want to sell whole diff assembly with coupling; if diff is starting to have issues would be better to have a spare anyway. How many miles/ kilometres on car ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 10, 2022 Report Share Posted August 10, 2022 2 hours ago, John/Horace said: Might want to dump rear diff first, make sure just slight fur on magnet, not larger metal fragments. Inspect both side output shaft seals for any leaks (had to change mine on a 2014). Auto recyclers will want to sell whole diff assembly with coupling; if diff is starting to have issues would be better to have a spare anyway. How many miles/ kilometres on car ? Haven't dumped oil yet but output shaft seals look ok on both sides. It looks like it is just leaking between the diff and coupler. Isn't it supposed to be a sealed unit? She's got 229000 km. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 10, 2022 Report Share Posted August 10, 2022 Is there a gasket in between the coupler and diff? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 10, 2022 Report Share Posted August 10, 2022 What would happen if I unplugged the viscous coupler connector at the rear diff? Would it just be full time fwd? Would it harm anything that way? Sorry for all the questions but just curious. Can't seem to find parts locally at the moment and it seems to be getting worse. (Harder clunk while doing slow sharp turns). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttxi475 Posted August 10, 2022 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2022 16 minutes ago, Finfam said: What would happen if I unplugged the viscous coupler connector at the rear diff? Would it just be full time fwd? Would it harm anything that way? Sorry for all the questions but just curious. Can't seem to find parts locally at the moment and it seems to be getting worse. (Harder clunk while doing slow sharp turns). It's hard for me to say. There's a lot of scenarios where the electronics controls the front/rear torque bias. Given that it's already clamping hard with it plugged in, it might just still stay clamped if you unplug it. You can always drop the driveshaft like I did. About 10 bolts in the front, 3 in the middle, and 3 in the rear. John/Horace 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttxi475 Posted August 10, 2022 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2022 4 hours ago, Finfam said: Is there a gasket in between the coupler and diff? There's no gasket because fluid isnt supposed to be in that spot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 10, 2022 Report Share Posted August 10, 2022 6 minutes ago, ttxi475 said: It's hard for me to say. There's a lot of scenarios where the electronics controls the front/rear torque bias. Given that it's already clamping hard with it plugged in, it might just still stay clamped if you unplug it. You can always drop the driveshaft like I did. About 10 bolts in the front, 3 in the middle, and 3 in the rear. How long could I leave it without the driveshaft? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted August 11, 2022 Report Share Posted August 11, 2022 There are a few people on site who have removed driveshaft and driven car; not sure how long they left it. Technically time shouldn’t matter. I don’t think the traction control programming will still match up to the vehicles handling and capability any more. Driving with tcs button off during rain or snow might be safer approach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 11, 2022 Report Share Posted August 11, 2022 13 minutes ago, John/Horace said: There are a few people on site who have removed driveshaft and driven car; not sure how long they left it. Technically time shouldn’t matter. I don’t think the traction control programming will still match up to the vehicles handling and capability any more. Driving with tcs button off during rain or snow might be safer approach. So I could take off the driveshaft till I can find the part and it won't harm anything else? It will basically drive like a fwd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted August 11, 2022 Report Share Posted August 11, 2022 (edited) Yup. It’s been done before. https://www.moparpartscanada.ca/ https://parts.motorcitychrysler.ca/ Edited August 11, 2022 by John/Horace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 11, 2022 Report Share Posted August 11, 2022 4 minutes ago, John/Horace said: Yup. It’s been done before. Thanks for all the info. When I do take it out I'm going to dismantle it and see what I can do. I Know they say it's not serviceable but I'm going to try it anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 11, 2022 Report Share Posted August 11, 2022 3 hours ago, ttxi475 said: There's no gasket because fluid isnt supposed to be in that spot. Thank you for all your info. I'm going to dismantle the coupler and see what's all involved with it. I know it's not serviceable but I'm going to try it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted August 11, 2022 Report Share Posted August 11, 2022 Normally match marking drive shafts flanges is a good idea. In this case with a different coupling coming shouldn’t really matter. 2late4u 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 11, 2022 Report Share Posted August 11, 2022 39 minutes ago, John/Horace said: Normally match marking drive shafts flanges is a good idea. In this case with a different coupling coming shouldn’t really matter. I'll match the transfer case side, then there's only 3 ways to choose on other side. ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finfam Posted August 12, 2022 Report Share Posted August 12, 2022 Update, I took off the driveshaft and all noises disappeared. Now waiting to find a replacement viscous coupler so I can change that out. Then put everything back together. P.S. It was tough getting the front out of the transfer case, it was a little seized in there. 2late4u 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted August 13, 2022 Report Share Posted August 13, 2022 Keep traction control off in the rain/snow until you figure out how vehicle handles. LKQ is a big recycler site. Across Can and US both. Most places will want to sell complete rear diff assembly. Coupling by itself very pricy new, over a $1,000 Canadian pesos plus shipping. Motor city online parts in Windsor probably cheapest, I posted link several posts back. Keep on the look out on Kijji , Facebook market place etc for a parts vehicle or a full difff assembly. It’s obvious if coupling is leaking or it won’t spin properly in your hands (only few bolts to pull from diff). Nice to have awd in Canadian winters…as you know.☺️ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harveyr68 Posted January 16, 2023 Report Share Posted January 16, 2023 New to this site and I am so glad I found it. Especially this thread. I bought a 2012 journey and 5 months ago it started making this noise. Stopped driving it to figure out what was wrong. I can handle small repairs but thought I would take this on too. I removed differential and found 2 small holes on the top, one for each side. So fluid leaked out of one side and fluid got into another. The differential and coupler are both gone. Everything looked good when I bought it. Finally, have a second hand unit and everything looks really good. Some one told me recently the coupler was suppose to be wet but I was sure the coupler was suppose to be dry. I have been frantically trying to find information before install. Thank you everyone for being so informative. Removing the driveshaft to make it fwd while I waited never occurred to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidlb512 Posted February 2, 2023 Report Share Posted February 2, 2023 Well, I am on the lookout for a viscous coupler. Really wishing the used parts dealers would sell them separately from the rear diff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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