I see this extolled in magazines, but I've never had a problem with the standard neoprene seal, which works pretty well. The original seal was rope. You need to remove the little nail in the bearing cap when converting the seal to neoprene. Ask me how I know…
I did... I'm almost ashamed to admit it. A huge waste of money! The 2 piece neoprene works just fine. My first one piece seal only lasted one day of driving. I had to pull the engine back out and took it back to the machine shop. They replaced it for "free" but the cost in removing and re-installing the engine in both time and money was enormous. The second one has held up well, but it still drips. Don't do it is my advice!!
I used the seal that came with my FelPro bottom end kit. Following "best practices" and a few simple steps in the installation of the rear main, should be all that's necessary. Even a premium seal can be "hosed up", if not installed properly.
Think a couple of tips:
Clean mating surfaces
Offset parting with seal lip in the proper direction
A "light" smear of Hylomar on the mating machined surfaces
Hi,
I purchased it from NAPA. It was the brush-on version. The idea of adding a slight smear came from article I read years ago on creating a more leak-proof seal. I think it was the Perm Hylomar.
Good Luck!