Technical Sedici 4x4 Rear Diff

[Nello]

Noticed a few spots of oil from the rear on the drive the other day and it appears the rear Diff is leaking Oil. Appears to be on the offside... Quick check amongst SX4 owners and it seems this is a common issue on cars nearing 100k.
Requires Axle Diff seal replacement. Will be ordering mine today - seems a fairly simple process thanks to the SX4 owner who posted a How-To Vid on YouTube! Will update progress....

 

[cmm.sedici]

good luck!

 

[tinytim]

Hi Nello,
How did job go?

 

[Nello]

It still hasn't yet! I cannot shift the nuts off the rear axle - they appear to be an unusual size. 14mm spanner is stripping the heads but 13mm will not go on. I have a new seal - £7 from Fiat. The leak is only an occasional drip so not severe but annoying....
This is the very handy 'how-to' on an SX4 - though he seems to remove them easily enough with a 14mm?...........
Mines leaking on the same side but not as bad.

 

[dieselglider]

You could try a 14mm wall drive spanner, or equivalent. These grip more on the flat of the nut, rather than the corners.

 

[tinytim]

The Sedici is a Japanese car and bolt & nut sizes sometimes refllect the post-war US influence in using "imperial" units. It is probably a 17/32 inch nut

Irwin Bolt Grip Nut Remover Expansion Set: Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

I have used the above with success. Hammer on the 13mm one and it should do the trick.

Here is a metric to inches socket conversion table

1 mm - n/a
2 mm - n/a
3 mm - 1/8 inches
4 mm - 5/32 inches
5 mm - 3/16 inches
6 mm - 1/4 inches
7 mm - 9/32 inches
8 mm - 5/16 inches
9 mm - 11/32 inches
10 mm - 13/32 inches
11 mm - 7/16 inches
12 mm - 15/32 inches
13 mm - 1/2 inches
14 mm - 9/16 inches
15 mm - 19/32 inches
16 mm - 5/8 inches
17 mm - 21/32 (11/16) inches
18 mm - 23/32 inches
19 mm - 3/4 inches
20 mm - 25/32 inches
21 mm - 27/32 inches
22 mm - 7/8 inches
23 mm - 29/32 inches
24 mm - 15/16 inches
25 mm - 1 inches

 

[Nello]

OK it only took me 4 months to get around to doing it but I've successfully changed the Diff seal this morning. Tim a mate of mine had some of those Bot Grip Nut remover sockets and they were brilliant - will definately be purchasing a set. And the SX4 guide I posted from YouTube was spot-on. I've had to order a set of replacement Nuts from Fiat as those tools cut them out but they're only 50p each. Easy fix and Good Job! £8.50 for the new seal and nuts and shes as good as new.