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View Full Version : Rear Main seal project woes

Joshua
November 19th, 2006, 06:21
I am in the middle of replacing my rear main seal. This is my first time attempting this but I am mechanically competent and I do my research. I referenced the jeepin.com walk-through and this one: http://www.go.jeep-xj.info/HowtoRearMain.htm
for this project, but when i got my oil pan off a very different sight greeted me than the one in the pictures. There was a flat, wide metal rail running the length of the engine, which i removed.

My question is this: the closest thing i see to being the rear bearing cap has very large (3/4" +) nuts on it that look quite different from the 1/2" looking nuts in the pictures. What am I missing? What do I remove to access my rear main seal? I will try to add pictures, and since this is my DD i really need to have it running tomorrow..... thanks!

-Joshua
Saudade
November 19th, 2006, 06:52
You likely just have a different year than Jeepin. On later models, there's a bearing cap brace. You'll need to remove it to get the rear cap off. Maybe you can loosen the other cap bolts enough to get the rear cap off. Try not to mix these parts up. Mark them and replace exactly where they came from.
Yucca-Man
November 19th, 2006, 07:07
What year do you have? Sounds like a 96+, and the flat metal rail is a girdle that runs the length of the bearing caps. As I recall, it has bolts holding it that are separate from the bearing caps.
Joshua
November 19th, 2006, 08:12
You guys were right, once i removed that brace, i was able to remove the rear bearing cap. getting the upper half of the seal out of the block was a real PITA, but now things are progressing again. Thanks, guys.

- Joshua
SteelblueSteve
November 19th, 2006, 08:13
Look at the write up on tek-tonic= http://tek-tonic.com/rearmainseal/ Don't use the "small screwdriver" to knock out the top seal though, use brass punch.
Speed_racer
November 20th, 2006, 07:28
You guys were right, once i removed that brace, i was able to remove the rear bearing cap. getting the upper half of the seal out of the block was a real PITA, but now things are progressing again. Thanks, guys.

- Joshua
if you had someone spin the motor while pushing on it with a punch, it will usually slide out.