hi guys im trying to get a full diagram of a 2000 kia sportage rearend to see what to take apart to put left rear axle seal in please help

Sign up for Kia Tech Info under the owners' section of the Kia website. Pretty detailed descriptions and diagrams available for pretty much anything you'd want to do to your Kia.

The rear axel in the Sportage is very similar to a Ford 9 inch.

You lift the rear, pull the wheels off, then the drums. Then you have to pull the third member. Then remove the four nuts securing the retaining plate behind the axle flang and jerk the axel out. To get the seal out you may or may not have to remove the break shoes and the backing plate. I can't remember off the top of my head. The seal pops out and to put things back to gether you reverse the steps.

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You do not have to remove the third member or brake shoes to do this job. The axle will pull free once you remove the bolts from the retaining plate. The backing plate is held on by the same four bolts that secure the axle retaining plate. There are two seals, an inner and an outer. The inner seal stays in the axle housing. Pull this with a hammer claw or seal removal tool. The outer seal is on the axle shaft. To change this one, you will have to remove the retaining nut from the drive shaft and the bearing. You have to drive the retaining nut off with a chisel and the spec to torque it back on is 200 ft/lbs. I had a leak and just changed the inner seal and was good to go.

Good call. Forgot that you don't have to pull the third member unless you need to do something with the diff or are checking the gears. The axle will come out without having to pull the third. Replacing the axle bearing is typically not needed if you just have a seal leak.

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