Water contamination in the front differential

[1st7MT]

2025 7mt Badlands 10,000 miles. Decided to change all the driveline fluids and this is what came out of the front diff. Magnet had non concerning debris on it and the rest of the fluids were normal. Can't find any leaks but the drain and refill plugs were definitely not torqued properly almost hand tight. Breather is connected and intact. Truck has been off road 3 times and the deepest water its been in never even came close to the Breather. I replaced the fluid and plan on replacing it again in a week or two. I purchased a variable pressure smoke machine to be certain there are no leaks. What you guys think?

P.s I'm the first owner

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[ducksface]

Did it sit outside on a car lot prior to purchase?
Flooded lot=flooded diff.

 

[1st7MT]

Did it sit outside on a car lot prior to purchase?
Flooded lot=flooded diff.

Purchased it from a dealer in upstate NY. Not really in a flood zone. Plus nothing else showed any kind of issues like that. Guess anything is possible

 

[HBTFD 2.0]

Common for ford front axle fluid to come out like that with no found leaks. I drained my 2011 f150 and freaked out at the color. After googling I felt much better.

 

[Felix808]

Case & point of why you should always check your fluids after extended or deep water crossings. The seals are designed to keep oil in, but water always finds a way through axle seals

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