I have a 1998 Oldsmobile bravada that I put a rc 6 inch lift and the electronic 4x4 system from a 1995 Chevy blazer into it. Everything works good. I have one issue and that's is the axle seals on the front diff. I kept the original front diff from the bravada. Anyways those dam seal always leak. I have replaced them a few times. I've used ac Delco gm genuine and some cheaper ones and they all leak. I'm not a newbie, I been fixing cars for a long time and am a master tech. Ive changed plenty of axle seals. Has anybody else had this issue or is it just me?

 

I replaced my left front one over 5 years ago and it has bee fine.

Have you noticed any odd wear on the seals when they do leak, e.g., as if they are off center, or it is as if the seals are the wrong size for the axle shafts?

 

Well I rebuilt the front differential when I did the 4x4 conversion and lift so everything inside besides the ring gear and pinion gear are new, the inner solid axle on the right side has a little movement in the tube without the CV axle installed but I'm sure it's normal. With CV axles installed the seal rides where it should. I've tried other CV axles thinking that they were the issue but no luck. With the wheels up in the air and spinning I have good smooth rotation and contact between the seals and CV axles.

 

The only thing I can think of is if there is some sort of small mismatch between the seals ID and the axles OD. Are the axle diameters the same for both years? Are the seal part numbers for the 98 Bravada and the 95 Blazer the same? This of course would be moot if you stuck with the 95 axles and 95 seals for the 95 diff which I'd guess you would have done.