Ok, it's time for a lot of maintenance on my '86 Syncro (160k miles) and I
need some advice.
1) I've pulled the center driveshaft to check U-joints - which seem
perfectly fine; not tight, just snug, no looseness.  I will drive it w/o the
driveshaft to check for any change in the amount of vibration, which has
been getting worse.  Could the vibration just be worn CV joints - all but 2
rears are original.  I marked the flanges so I could put the driveshaft back
in the same alignment, but I don't understand why that would be important.
Isn't the driveshaft balanced by itself?
2) I will be removing the front differential to send it out for a rebuild
including the VC.  Is there anything I should know about removing it?  It
looks like I can drop it almost straight down after removing the crossmember
supporting the front mount.  Is it that simple?
3) I just returned from a 2,000 mile highway trip and several times I found
a puddle under the rear main seal shortly after parking it.  At home it just
drips slightly.  I'm told that the engine is susceptible to building up
excess crankcase pressure and doing this.  Does this seem reasonable.  What
should I do to prevent excess crankcase pressure?
4) The front right hub is throwing grease.  It looks like it's coming from
the outside edge of the CV joint boot, although the band appears to be
tight.  The last repack was several years ago, and its just been doing this
in the last six months.  What does it mean and what should I do?
5) I need new front brake pads - the third set.  The original VW pads went
over 110,000 miles and I replaced them because they had gotten so hard they
didn't stop well.  The second set are Repco MetalMasters - they stopped much
better but wore out in 50,000 miles.  This sounds fine to me, is this the
best way to go?  The rotors are still smooth and not warped, but have a
substantial flange on the inner and outer radius bordering the edges of the
brake pads.  Do I need to deal with this?