WATER INTRUSION    

                                                   
4WD Gearbox and Differential water intrusion  

    
Many 4WD owners tackle river crossings during off road adventures.  

This can result in water intrusion into drive train lubricants which is very undesirable considering the importance of proper lubrication in these heavy duty vehicles. If perchance water does enter into a compartment it can emulsify with the oil and compromise the film strength, allowing metal to metal contact. Once wear metals start to be created they will increase the damage to load bearing surfaces until a failure occurs, unless attended to.  

Following a weekend out in the bush or along the beach, an owner may then be unaware that water has penetrated the drive train oil and may hook up a boat or caravan to travel home totally unaware that every mile driven is causing wear to both bearings and gears. In fact the compromised oil may go undetected until a failure takes place somewhere in the future. This will be a costly repair and also cause short term loss of the vehicle, which if it is used for business activities could increase the losses or incur hire vehicle expenses.  

It is unlikely that insurance will cover the repair bill caused by water intrusion! It is wise to check water intrusion by opening the filler plug of compartments after traveling through either rivers or along beaches, this will be self evident because the oil level will be higher due to the water sitting under the oil, if the oil pours out when the bung is removed then it is a good indication that the oil needs draining, if, when this shows water in the drained oil, flush the compartment and replace with new oil. This simple check could save thousands of dollars ! 

 
"PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE"  

When we have tested water on the Timken Test Machine it fails at approximately 30 ft lbs,when we add SMT2 into the water and apply load, even at 150 ft lbs the amps have not increased and damage is minimal on the test piece. This shows that SMT2 Synthetic Anti-friction Metal Treatment has the ability to protect load bearing surfaces, even when no lubricating oil is present, and 100% water intrusion has occurred.