I have a 2003 Lightning with 8,500 miles. The other day I was looking underneath the truck and noticed that the differential cover was "sweating". I say sweating because it is not dripping fluid. It just looks like a stain surrounding most of the right side bolts. Has anyone else noticed this or am I looking around too much. I don't know wether or not to bring the truck in for warranty work on this. I'm the kind of person that cringes at the thought of those idiots at the dealership taking my truck for a "demo run" around the block. I am being a little paranoid but what should I do? Thanks for any info.

 

Do you use the differential as a jack point? Some have said this happens because of that.

 

No....I never did that on this truck because I recently heard that it is not good to do that. My friend is a Ford tech and he asked the exact same question. Thanks for the reply.

 

Clean the area and then watch the area for a few days. If ACTIVELY LEAKING take it in for warranty work. Don't use the "pumpkin" when you use a floor jack to jack up truck as this can cause pumpkin to weep, leak or worse. By the way, for small problems I tell the dealer I want to come in when I can wait while they fix the problem. I wait alright and keep an eye out for what the frigg they do with my vehicle.

 

Most ford rear diff covers leak on the right side. I notice things like that on strangers cars on the street. I figured it was a flaw in design.

 

You could always check the bolts to insure they are torqued correctly. I believe the torque is 23 - 38 ft lbs, but you might want to check on that to be sure.