Rear Main Seal Replacement

k00ksta · Jan 22, 2009

Pull the Engine or Pull the Tranny? What do you guys think is easier to replace the rear main seal. Also If the seal has just dried up a bit is their anything I can do to try to re-vitalize it back to life? I have when the car is running a slow drip and the engine does not even have 50 miles on it yet.

HISSIN50 · Jan 22, 2009

Be sure the crankcase ventillation system is up to par. If it isnt, the RMS is often the first seal to start venting pressure.

k00ksta · Jan 22, 2009

Very Tru

Thats exactly what I thought and I find it strange other than the seal drying up on a new motor that it is leaking. How can I tell really? Oil Preasure when car is warm and running or what? I know all my hoses are good and my pcv valve is clean and still looks very new.

I did do the Shake test on the PCV valve and it does rattle like it is supposed to as well which means thats good.

HISSIN50 · Jan 22, 2009

The seal would not be dried up. It could have torn or distorted however.

There's no easy test for this. You can look for little clues, like the dipstick popping out of its seat. It's quite easy to overwhelm the PCV in these cars (the stock set-up is a low-tension ring seal for lower emissions/higher economy. This allows more blowby).

If your engine is fresh and was rebuilt and has good ring-seal, you should not have such an issue. Is the breather under the PCV valve new? If it's contaminated, the system is bottlenecked.
Was the crank (at the RMS) scored at all?

k00ksta · Jan 22, 2009

I cant recall if the crank was scored but I know what you are thinking with that and the rear main seal. The Breather under the PCV valve is new yes. I will say I do not have any breathers on the valve covers other than the small tube coming off the Oil Fill could it be a possibility that I need one? I do have 10:1 Compression in this motor.

94-302-vert · Jan 22, 2009

To answer the actual question. Pull the trans. That takes less than 2 hours to get out if you have a helper and work at least a little... if you hustle it is less than an hour to get to the RMS...

revhead347 · Jan 22, 2009

Pull the trans, especially if it's a 5 spd. It's really not that hard.

Kurt

k00ksta · Jan 23, 2009

Alright I think the trans is coming out anyone suggest an aluminum drive shaft and loop while I am at it?

SublimeRT · Jan 23, 2009

I've always used FRPP aluminum driveshafts with good luck, but over the past few months I've seen more people say they aren't the best quality. As for driveshaft loops, I've heard good things about Metco bolt in ones.

Driveshaft Safety Loop, Driveshaft Safety Loops: Metco Motorsports

k00ksta · Jan 26, 2009

Sweet thanks guys .. You think it would make my life easier if I get a small Transmission jack? I probably will be doing it by myself here :]

94-302-vert · Jan 26, 2009

A strong person can do it alone. But help is usually nice to dpress the clutch while seating the trans...

revhead347 · Jan 26, 2009

k00ksta said:
Sweet thanks guys .. You think it would make my life easier if I get a small Transmission jack? I probably will be doing it by myself here :]

The stock T-5 weighs about 68lbs, so it is manageable with one person. However, if you want to get a transmission jack, it's not a bad investment. I got a very nice crank style one off of ebay for $80 shipped. I needed it to do the very large one piece transmission I have in my truck. They aren't that expensive. It will take about 2 weeks to get to your door though, so factor that time into when you intend to pull the transmission.

Kurt

k00ksta · Jan 26, 2009

Alright cool I most likely will have the car on blocks so I might be able to just get away with using my floor jack if I need some help. Thanks for the Input and im going to try to take a bunch of pictures of the process incase anyone else needs to replace their RMS maybe it will help them.

revhead347 · Jan 26, 2009

Honestly, a stock T-5 isn't that heavy. The best way is to remove all 4 bolts, then position yourself underneath it. Then pull it straight back with two hands, and bring it down on your chest. I've done this many times with a floor jack, and it just makes it more complicated. The transmission weighs 68lbs, so most regular guys can handle it without an issue. My 3550 weighs 108lbs, so I usually need help taking it out without a transmission jack. I have also learned another helpful trick. Sometimes the clips on the clutch fork wear out, which makes the fork come out of place really easy. So everytime you try and put the transmission back in the fork gets knocked out of place if you waggle the input shaft the least little bit. You can take a length of all thread, and cut it into two 6" length studs. Screw the two studs into the bottom holes of the bellhousing. This way you can position the transmission on the studs, and slide it nice and evenly back into the throwout bearing, without any "waggle." Then put the top two bolts in first. Remove the sections of all thread on the bottom, and screw the factory bolts back into place. This saves some frustration.

Just in case you wanted to go the transmission jack route, here is the transmission jack I ordered. Price is as advertised on ebay, and I didn't have any issues whatsoever with the seller. I actually prefer the screw type jack to the pneumatic jack, because it is easy to make fine tune height adjustments on the jack. I recommend this jack to anybody.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/450-...Z220349489122QQptZMotorsQ5fAutomotiveQ5fTools

Kurt

Adam95GT · Jan 26, 2009

yea i unbolted it and laid under it and wiggled it back on to my chest and kinda just rolled it off of me on to a creeper and rolled it out... LOL
Then you can sit under it like this to tinker with the RMS... i actually found a coffee can the exact size and tapped it in to place with that... worked awesome.

revhead347 · Jan 26, 2009

Damn, either you have some really tall jackstands or you are a midget. I've never been able to get that much space under my car to work.

Kurt

Adam95GT · Jan 26, 2009

revhead347 said:
Damn, either you have some really tall jackstands or you are a midget. I've never been able to get that much space under my car to work.

Kurt

as you can see the back in on ramps... the car wasnt that high up... im like 5'11'' you would be amazed how big that trans tunnel is...

i think it was at like this height:

here is a picture from that day... kinda low

revhead347 · Jan 26, 2009

Damn, you pulled that transmission all in one piece. You know the transmission seperates from the bellhousing right? That's pretty good work getting the car that high. I'm 5'7", and I've never been able to sit up under my car. Good work dude.

Kurt

Adam95GT · Jan 26, 2009

revhead347 said:
Damn, you pulled that transmission all in one piece. You know the transmission seperates from the bellhousing right? That's pretty good work getting the car that high. I'm 5'7", and I've never been able to sit up under my car. Good work dude.

Kurt

Yea the bolts were in there good i know it came apart but it was easy enough to take out as one piece. the t-5 is rather light made it an easy task. Just make sure when you do the RMS not to scratch up the crank

revhead347 · Jan 27, 2009

Yeah, I always take a little sandpaper to the crank when I change an RMS.

kurt

Rear Main Seal Replacement

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