I had my mechanic swap my axles and I asked him if he should just replace the axle seals as well. the car is a 94 civic btw. He stated that its not necessary since they dont really need to be replaced. Well now my driver side axle is leaking, should I have to pay him to add the axle seal or could it be the axle itself that is causing the leak or is leaking? You would think a good mechanic would tell you to just have them replaced as proactive maintance since they are only 5 bucks a piece. But once again can the axle itself be the cause of the leak?

 

The axle seal may not have been leaking when he removed the axle, but it may have been damaged when the new one was installed. If you offered to pay to have the axle seal replaced and he didn't want to, it sounds like he new knew it would leak, and he assumed you would go back to him and he would charge you twice, or he assumed your seal would be okay and wanted to save you money.
Either way, if a customer offered to pay me to do a job, I would jump on it without hesitation.

 

The seal can be damaged during installation of the axle, though this is avoidable if proper care is taken. In addition, a small amount of fluid may seem to leak after replacing an axle. Wipe the area clean of oil for the next few days to see if the apparent oil leak stops.

 

i verified and yes it is the driver seal. I dried the area and can see the oil slowly building after just a 2 mile drive. He offers a 6 month warranty. what do you guys recommend?

 

When was the axle replaced? Is the oil accumulation very small? If the job was done very recently, I might suggest that you continue to keep your eye on leakage for a few more days. You may find that it subsides with time. Just my opinion.

 

it was done about 100 miles ago. and yes it is small but accumulative build up. should I continue to monitor the seal? for how miles do you think?

 

Is the leaking decreasing with time? If so, continue regularly watching the leak while checking to make sure the oil level in the transmission is full.

 

As a professional mechanic , if a customer had asked me to change the axle seals , I would have done it . Even if he didn't ask , I may have suggested it to them , as labour is a lot lower at this point , and it doesn't hurt to be a little pro-active (especially if this is an older vehicle) . The thing as a mechanic , you have to look after your customers , as a happy customer is a return customer . I wouldn't say that you got screwed overall , but just got caught up in a bad decision by a mechanic , that for all that I know , still may be a very good tech . I would talk to the shop and let them know that a: you are not happy with the situation and b: what can they do to help you out . If they are a reputable shop , they will work with you , as long as you are being reasonable with them . If they won't help you out , and are going to charge you full time for the repair , I would start looking for another shop!

 

U sir would be my mechanic lol ya i dont see why he woudl refuse to change those seals if the axles are out they take around 30 sec to swap out ?????? hmmm either the mechanic didnt knwo how they were changed or he didnt have the time to wait for the seals and wanted it out his shop ASAP

 

LOL I guess we both got screwed, I found out just now that my driver side torque mount was never installed.

 

Did he take you out to eat before he screwed you??

 

here is the game plan, I will wait and see how bad the leak gets. I will then call him up and see if we can work out a deal.

Is it ok if the tranny is not 100 percent full. what if your driving it while its only 80 percent full?

 

Why dont you just try and do the job yourself? It really isnt difficult and taking on these simpler jobs will save u $$$! I was a complete noob a couple of years back but a little research goes a long way in your bank account, trust me!

 

heres the deal, I would but I feel that my mechanic should take ownership of this just in case I swapp out the seal and he claims that the axle is was damaged etc etc. just dont want this to escalate.

 

Put yourself in his shoes for a second. I would want to know if there was something wrong with a car I worked on..

So I would call him and tell him about the leak and that you are going to monitor it for a few more days and then you will let him know more. This way the conversation isn't like: I told you to do it now it's leaking da#@ it. I need it fixed now and it better be for free.

He might tell you to bring it by so he can look at it, and take care of it.

You can feel out the situation first before you go off and raise your voice.

As said before I would of suggested the seals too.

 

This is a wise suggestion.

 

no,for sure, the guys is super fair and I trust his integrity. I am only upset that he didnt recommend the seals in the first place even though I asked and now look. I will play it by ear.

 

post how it goes, but like i said if he does want money to do the complete job again have a go urself!

 

Update:

I talk to him and he stated that he will replace them no problem for free

 

So it sounds like this guy just had a brain fart or something , but is reputable .