Fluid Film

Jeeps are pretty notorious for rusting but surprisingly Chopper doesn't have that much, just a bit of normal surface rust here and there. We'd like to keep it that way so I went to see an old S2000 buddy @dedonderosa (Stephen Derosa) to have the underbody Fluid Film coated. 

Fluid Film Coated - 1-14-2021

Fluid Film is a Lanolin based rust inhibitor / lubricant. It can be pretty messy to put on and smells like farm animals so I'm glad to not have to do this myself. Lanolin is a waxy substance derived from sheep's wool which is probably why it stinks so much. Thankfully the Jeep is parked outdoors so it can air out. I can't even imagine how it would smell if I put it inside a garage.

Steve puts a few coats so it's nice and thick and could last for as long as 2 years though I may have him add a coating each year for extra protection since I'm sure this will eventually wash off over time. 

This penetrates into the metal to displace any water, which is the primary source of rust, but since it never dries it can be a bit messier over time which is why I waited until we were largely done with any mechanical work under the car before getting this done. The tradeoff to the potential mess and smell is good rust prevention. Time will tell of course how well it protects but the Toyota truck boys swear by this and we all know how rusty those can get :D

Now we can rest a bit easier driving through the salt and brine on the road. 

New Brakes and Rear Axle Seal

When I went to SJF to get the BFG K02s mounted, we noticed gear oil by the driver-side rear brakes so today I went back to get all that replaced and install new brakes all around while we were at it.

Rear driver side axle and bearing race removed

SJF noticed that the reason for the leak was that the bearing race was cracked which seemed really odd since it wasn't obvious what might have caused it until the axle was removed. You can see there was a manufacturing defect in the housing where there's some extra weld protruding where the bearing would push up against and the crack on the race was on the same spot. 

Smooth

To fix this for now he was able to gently cut it smooth so the bearing could sit flush up against the housing. I'll have to keep an eye on this to see if it leaks again but this should allow the bearing to seat properly now. A new Yukon Gear & Axle bearing retainer, bearing, and seal was pressed in. 

Old bearing and seal getting ready to be removed

Bearing, seal and bearing retainer pressed in

Since the axle was getting worked on anyway, it made sense to take this opportunity to change the brakes all around as well. I decided to go with the Power Stop Z36 Extreme Truck and Tow brake rotor and pad kit. The old brakes were starting to squeal a bit and I'm not really sure if they were ever replaced so I wanted to have peace of mind that all the brakes are well sorted. 

Driver side rear

Passenger side front

As we were putting the wheels back on, I noticed that one of the tires had a screw lodged in the tread. I unscrewed it and was pleasantly surprised that I had no puncture despite it going straight in. Thank goodness for chunky treads.

Screw embedded in the tire

Screw removed..no leak!!!

Maintenance Update:

Mileage: 68,914

- New rear driver side axle seal, bearing, and bearing retainer

- New Power Stop Z36 Extreme brake pads and rotors all around