[Dafinalione]

Hi,
After reading a lot of horror-stories about water in diff’s, I have decided to extend the breathers for the diff’s, and I have e few questions regarding this.

How and where do I locate the breathers?

Can I extend the breathers without removing the diff housing from the car?

Do any of you know if there’s a guide or some pictures of the diff breathers
somewhere?

Do i need to worry about transferbox and gearbox, or are they not as prone to "suck" in water?

Any help will be greatly appreciated

Regards Jens

 

[Dafinalione]

By the way, my car is a 2007 5-door 1,9 DDiS

 

[Oldtrack]

The rear diff breather is easy to see.
On top of the diff you will see a small rubber hose coming out, and leading a short distance into the chassis somewhere. Replace this hose with a longer one. Route it somewhere up high, either to the engine bay, or some people put it behind the rear lights.

The front is a different story, i couldn't even see the diff, so I got ARB to fit them both.

They are now mounted behind the battery on the firewall. You can buy kits from ebay, including the filters and mounting plate for the ends.

The geabox breather already sits high on the firewall so i left that one as is.

In all it's a well worth mod

 

[75431]

In addition to Oldtrack's correct info:

On my 2006 model the gearbox breather was not extended to the firewall, you'll find the breather hose (about 10cm long) behind the engine, in the middle, right under the firewall. It's a tight place but you can just reach it.

To locate the front diff breather stand at your right front wheel and lean into/over the engine bay, almost in line with the wheel axle and aft of the filter housing you dive deep into the engine bay where you'll find the front breather.

Centre diff not needed, breaths through gearbox.

I bought a Carnage kit which comes with 4 filters and plenty of hose to even extend the rear all the way to the engine bay.
I'll see if I can add some pictures.

 

[75431]

1st pic: where I positioned my filters (3)
2nd pic: front diff breather - the hose that runs from right corner to centre of pic (only the right corner bit is the extension, rest is original)
3rd pic: hard to see but buried behind the engine, under the firewall you'll find the gearbox breather.

The front & gearbox have a plastic cap on the end, you simply pull this off the hose.
Make sure you use oil resistant hoses. You either fit them together with (plastic) joiners or, like mine, the extension hose fit nicely in the original.

Good luck

 

[Dafinalione]

Thanks a lot guys. I guess there's nothing left but getting it into the workshop and getting on with it

 

[Dafinalione]

By the way, what is the inside and outside diameter of the hose you have used?

 

[kb9yoj]

By the way, what is the inside and outside diameter of the hose you have used?

Everywhere I look it seems that the range is 6mm to 8mm (1/4" or so) ID for the diff breather kits and DIY stuff.

 

[Knighty]

I just did the rear diff on mine as rear of car goes a fair way in the water whilst launching a boat. Just extended the tube and routed it to behind the rear light cluster and ended with a cheap small plastic petrol type filter like bikes and outboards have.

 

[FireCkrEd]

Dafin check this out

Breather Kit - VITARA / X90 - Bits4Vits WebShop

 

[kb9yoj]

Salty

Dafin check this out

Breather Kit - VITARA / X90 - Bits4Vits WebShop

It's a nice kit, but $50 is expensive for tubing. Some basic oil-resistant tubing and fuel filter will be a lot less.

 

[Gregg]

Ressurecting a rather old thread but the comment about rear breather being easy to see.....is the 3 door that much different? all I can see is a short length of black tube going into a tubular subframe component which I am assuming is the breather. cant reach around the diff to make sure and cant get my hand up to the pipe. Is that hollow structure sealed or open? will going through water at that depth get into the diff? If I manage to cut the hose and join it onto something longer do I need to seal the hole into the frame? Am I going to have to drop the diff...:-( ? any knowledgeable replies welcome. havent even looked at the front or gearbox (auto) yet..

 

[auszook]

Hi Gregg,

Yes that black tube going into the subframe component is the rear diff breather. You should be able to pull on it and the end will come out. Just extend the line up into your engine bay, no need to do anything else.

Check out this video by 4 Wheeling in NSW:

 

[2013GV]

Ressurecting a rather old thread but the comment about rear breather being easy to see.....is the 3 door that much different? all I can see is a short length of black tube going into a tubular subframe component which I am assuming is the breather. cant reach around the diff to make sure and cant get my hand up to the pipe. Is that hollow structure sealed or open? will going through water at that depth get into the diff? If I manage to cut the hose and join it onto something longer do I need to seal the hole into the frame? Am I going to have to drop the diff...:-( ? any knowledgeable replies welcome. havent even looked at the front or gearbox (auto) yet..

Yep, that's the rear breather. Same as the 5 doors. pull it off the rear frame, blob of rtv in the hole.
I extended mine up behind the left rear tail light and cable tied it to the wiring loom. Nice cavity straight down from the light, stiff wire with tape over the end poked up from the bottom works well.
Fronts visible beside the right engine mount, I extended that one up by the fuse box, just tied it to the loom around the right front inner guard.
Transfer case is the bitch. Pipe is up on top by the motor that drives the 4wd, it points down into a cavity on the top of the case.
I went to super dear and bought a pack of 2 hose barb connectors and some cheap line, front breather cap plugged straight onto that line, rear is out of the dust with a u bend so open end is facing down behind the light. Transfer is cable tied to the auto dipstick and has a fish tank bubbler outlet on it.

 

[Gregg]

well done front and rear, now for the "bitch". hope that isnt considered sexist....

 

[Gregg]

Transfer case is the bitch. Pipe is up on top by the motor that drives the 4wd, it points down into a cavity on the top of the case.

is this best addressed from left or right hand side ? cant tell from the drawing.
thanks

 

[2013GV]

Transfer case is the bitch. Pipe is up on top by the motor that drives the 4wd, it points down into a cavity on the top of the case.

is this best addressed from left or right hand side ? cant tell from the drawing.
thanks

Honestly I cant remember, the top with the motor is canned to one side, that's the side to attack it from. I loosened the rear crossmember and lowered it on a jack just enough to get my hand up there, managed to do it without removing shafts etc

 

[Chrissybabe88!]

I took mine to Ironman dealer to get fitted. They did all three and said the transfer box was by far the worst. He showed me the hand injuries. From memory it was about $150. I used a 4 tube set bought on ebay. The filter end is mounted on the included bracket up by the front RHS suspension.

 

[2013GV]

hmm, 1 band aid, $35 in bits and about an hour and a bit in my labour time