Volvo 240b Drive Motor Leak

Best Practices for Volvo 240b Drive Motor Leak

Actual Question

Top Replies

it sounds to me like you have a floating seal that has been cut.

That doesn't sound too bad. What is the likelyhood there is any bust/bent steel parts in there? The cost has me losing sleep right now.

If I had to guess, you`ve got a leaking drive motor which then filled the final with hyd oil and pressurized it to the point that it blew the seal on the final. Easy to check and see if the final is over filled. Use caution when pulling the plug if it is under pressure. I have had this happen on both my JD and CAT excavators in the past, as recently as last winter on my CAT.

ddigger said:If I had to guess, you`ve got a leaking drive motor which then filled the final with hyd oil and pressurized it to the point that it blew the seal on the final. Easy to check and see if the final is over filled. Use caution when pulling the plug if it is under pressure. I have had this happen on both my JD and CAT excavators in the past, as recently as last winter on my CAT.Click to expand...I second what ddigger said, i have also seen it on a Volvo EC140

I pulled the level plug on the final drive, and it is low. Nothing on the end of my finger as far in as i could get it inSo far all we have is a gear oil leak.Will have to call the mechanic in the am.Any other thoughts? Is this going to be a big job?

More Replies

May not be so bad then! Prob just F/D seal, should nt be that big of a job, but i never done one, i'll have look in the manual in the morning, although your guy might have been out to you by the time i post it!Let us know how you get on anywayCPS

The likely hood that there is anyother damage to the final drive is unlikely, if you have been working in very muddy conditions then it could have been cut that way we have seen it before.

I sure hope it turns out to be a simple fix for you! I am never that lucky it seems. Best of luck, keep us updated.

Thanks for the support! I know this is the kind of stuff that 'just happens' regardless of care and maintenance, but it sure hurts when it does.On the plus side, its a small price to pay for all the work that gets done.On the farm, you can never afford to pay someone else to do the type of stuff you do. It sure is a privilege to own it.

We got the final drive pulled off today, splitting the track definitely the hard part.The gearbox design is quite impressive. No snap rings or nothing. Just a few bolts hold it all together, with what appears to be a three speed gear reduction. We were expecting to find a shaft with a big preload nut and tapper bearings, but nothing like that. Bearings are regular radial load ball type held in place with a large steel ring with about a dozen bolts. No preloading, no shims, nothing. Very simple.Anyway, the oil was clean, gears in good shape, no filings or anything at all that would lead one to believe that anything bad happened in there. The mechanic said i was very lucky that it happened sitting in my driveway, and i noticed it right away. Guess he's right.The gearbox seal is pretty ingenious, and it is best described as floating. Its steel on steel. One side was split. Can't explain why that happened, but there is no doubt it had something to do with the frozen mud packed around it.So far we have about a days labour R+R, plus the seal and some oil. Not sure about replacing the two big bearings in there. There is no reason to believe they are bad, but mechanic thinks it might be worth replacing them anyway.Not sure what they cost, but 8" bearings can't be cheap.What do you think?

all I can say is of you are in there mow you might as well replace them that way there you know what you have new seal with new bearings

Ec 240bwatglen said:I just walked past my excavator and there is a pool of oil under the right drive motor. It is gear oil, and it appeared overnight.It has been really cold lately, i assume that has something to do with it.What am i looking at here?Click to expand...During hard cold seales got stuck and they turn in the housing (big O-RING)and cose leak as long as you don't force the unit you should be able to repair itI send you an email with break down.Cheers Janni

watglen said:Not sure what they cost, but 8" bearings can't be cheap.What do you think?Click to expand...I would leave them if there in good shape with no pitting or flaking!Like you say they wont be cheap, just make sure there nice and clean putting them back together!

I emailed you a parts break down and info you could reply that you got it........???

She's all back together, with a twist.We were in the process of putting the track back together when we noticed the other final drive sprung the exact same leak we just fixed! WTH!Somebody care to explain just what is going on here?:Banghead

what was the damage on the first unit? damaged big O-RING??on the floating (dual cone seal) let me know that will help to see whyCheers

Both O-rings were good, but the one metal ring was cracked. Not sure if it broke during disassembly or not. The crack was fresh when i first noticed it, and had no oil present on the crack surface. We dropped the housing as we slid it off, and it weighs more than two guys can support. So the seal ring impacted something solid, and i think it broke then.Except for the cracked ring, there was nothing else to see that would cause a leak.

How many HR on the unit? was surface worn to the centre ? (contact of the steel ring ones they wear there is no pressure it won't take much to get some drt between and leak (also duals could be faulty....take picture of the old one and send or post[email protected](when re& re new duals ensure to clean seat where BigO-Ring go no rust or any deposits other wise will leak again.......Best of luck cheers

this machine only has 2200 hrs on it. It is its first winter though, as it spent its younger days in Tulsa. Its a 2007 model year.Steel rings were in good shape, except for the crack.I think it must be the dirt packed in around the o-ring that froze and dislodged the seal somehow. Volvo says the machines don't have any weird problems in this area.I recently(before freeze-up) washed the unit for storage, so perhaps the water got into the seal area and screwed things up.I am going to leave it till spring, and see what happens when it warms up. Perhaps it will fix itself.Cheers, and happy new year!

Say R U the operator or you have some else running the unit cose operators never tell what happened if the machine went over an embankment and that end where the drives are did not absorbed impact (and that could explained the dual cone ring cracked ........Same to you all the best in new year 2010 just for the heck how much did dealer ding you for the floating seal?

I wanted to update this thread now that the machine is running again.In the end both oil leaks must have been caused by moisture and dirt and the deep cold. I have checked both drives a couple times, they are holding oil. The second leak fixed itself. Whoda thunkit????In the end the new seal cost about $5-$600, install was another 1000 all in. At least we learned something.Ken

You must be a registered user to add a comment. If you've already registered,
sign in. Otherwise, register and sign in.