How to replace a pinion seal on your TJ

The "right" way would be to drain the fluid, pull the wheels, pull the brakes, remove the carrier, remove the pinion, replace the crush sleeve and rebuild the whole thing to factory specs. That takes 4-5 hours for a pro and a busload of specialized tools to do correctly. An amateur will likely never get it right. The fix will likely last for 10+ years. The "down and dirty" method above takes about an hour and will last for 10+ years unless you screw it up royally. If this was a brand new race vehicle, I would say spend the extra time and money. This is a 15 year old Jeep- save the time and money.
 
I just took a pic of the real diff seal and it does not have the cover (oil slinger) either, which tempts me towards using the Mopar part I bought without the cover/slinger.

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