rear main seal STILL leaking???

alright, i replaced my RMS a couple weeks ago, but it was still leaking, so just today, i did it again, with a new seal figuring i must have screwed it up somehow. seems pretty unlikely that i could have screwed it up to the point it leaks almost worse than before. help me what could i have done?? wishing i left it alone to leak not as bad....

Did you use factory parts?. I've heard stories of people using aftermarket parts that didn't fit correcly and still leaked after the repair.

did you replace the valve cover gasket? a valve cover leak looks alot like a RMS leak when it drips down behind.

Well. Make sure you put the upper seal in the correct way. If you put it in backwards, it will leak like it wasn't there. Also make sure your pan gasket is on correctly. If you overtighten the pan bolts, you'll pinch the gasket out and cause a leak there too.

yea, it was a factory part. the only thing i can think of is that maybe my oil pan gasket's rear main seal "loop" wasnt seated right, but the oil seems to drip from the transmission access panel. when i torqued the cap down, i went to 60 ftlbs first, then to 80 ftlbs.

I heard that there could be grove by the old seal and a new seal wont help stop the leak.

well if thats the case, stroker crank for me i suppose.....

What did you use to punch out the old seal?

exact same thing happened to me. i did the valve cover gasket too, but it wasn't that. i have just been living with it and filling up the oil every now and then but i guess i'll have to try to figure it out sooner or later. when i put the oil pan gasket on i used rtv sealant and put it on right away without letting it harden up so when i torqued down the bolts it pinched out the side up to half an inch in some spots. but i don't know if thats too big of a problem??? if oyu figure anything out let me know.

a very small centre punch very lightly until i could grab the seal on the other side with needle nose pliers. didnt need to go very deep though, considering how hard it was to pull out. the old one the first time broke but left enough tail to get the last half out.

Did you guys replace the oil filter adapter o-rings also? When I replaced the o-rings it took about two weeks for all the oil on the outside of my engine to drip off. I think it had somehow accumulated in my bell housing and thats why it took so long.

Whenever I have to break down and do a rear main, once I've got the job opened up and the seal surface exposed, I'll run my thumbnail lengthwise over the sealing surface. I'm feeling for a "hitch" that indicates a groove in the crank - if I feel it, I don't put it back together as it stands.

At that point, you either order a double-lip seal (installs like regular seal, has two sealing lips,) an "offset lip" seal (single lip, installs like OEM, but seals about an eighth-inch away from the OEM,) or get a repair sleeve (last option - requires removing the crank.)

I'll turn the crank slowly and check in three or four places, just to make sure there isn't one starting. You can also usually see it under a strong directed light (which is yet another reason I love my SureFire G2 - I've seen dimmer headlamps, and the thing fits neatly in my pocket...) but the thumbnail is the best thing to check with.

It is possible to remove the crankshaft with the engine in place, but the transmission must be dismounted to free the thing up, and it's easier to remove the front cover as well (if you're feeling lucky, you can do it with the front cover in place. Either way, remove the vibration damper on the nose.)

If you get the seal in reversed, you might as well not install the thing in the first place. The intensity of leaking past a grooved journal depends on the depth of the groove.

Other things that can present as a rear main leak:

• Valve Cover Gasket. Leaks at the rear will drip down the back of the engine block
• Oil filter adapter. This usually travels along the back of the block and drips down.
• Manual transmission input seal. At first glance, gear oil can look like engine oil (auto transmission fluid can be differentiated rather quickly.) This is especially true if you're running engine oil in your manual gearbox!

A quick way to sort out whether it is or is not the rear main is to check the engine side of the flywheel/flexplate - if there are radial streaks of oil all around the thing, it's very probable that it's your rear main. If you don't see lots of radial streaks, start looking elsewhere.

If you're not sure - clean your engine and check again after running it for 10-15 minutes. And, if you suspect a rear main again, ask for either an "offset lip" or a "double lip" seal - I think the double lip is available, but I'm not sure about the offset lip.

Installation Tips:

• The open part of the "V" in the seal goes toward the inside of the engine (probably obvious, but it bears repeating. We often get tripped on the obvious stuff because we're too close to the problem.)
• Be sure to soak the new seal in clean engine oil. At least ten minutes is good - a half-hour is better. I'll usually put the thing in a cup of oil before I start teardown - longer is better. This makes the seal lip more pliable and helps it seal more quickly.
• Engine Assembly lube. You'll need it for the rear main bearing anyhow - put a blob at the spot where you're going to insert the upper seal half, and it will slide in more easily. This will also help keep the seal from getting nicked on the way in.
• REMOVAL - if possible, use a small brass rod. You can be careful with a steel punch - but if you slip, you're likely also boned. a 3/16" brass rod will still be strong enough, but it won't gouge or scuff the crank surface. With that in mind, a soft hammer is also a good idea - same reason. I use a brass hammer, but lead, rawhide, or wood will also work (as will plastic like Nylon or urethane - but I suggest you avoid using a rubber hammer.)

i dont remember seeing any oil on the engine side of my flexplate. this is also an auto tranny in my xj, and the oil on the ground was not red. as well, i when i got home, i parked my jeep pointing down on my driveway. its kinda steep, steep enough that i cant make it up it on ice in 2wd. when i looked out later, i noticed that the puddle had grown since i parked it. it was running for a couple of minutes before i shut it off as well. so i should maybe start looking towards my oil filter adapter and my valve cover gasket then? this is actually a pretty good excuse for me to get rid of that fram crap i put on doh: )

amcinstaller said:

i dont remember seeing any oil on the engine side of my flexplate. this is also an auto tranny in my xj, and the oil on the ground was not red. as well, i when i got home, i parked my jeep pointing down on my driveway. its kinda steep, steep enough that i cant make it up it on ice in 2wd. when i looked out later, i noticed that the puddle had grown since i parked it. it was running for a couple of minutes before i shut it off as well. so i should maybe start looking towards my oil filter adapter and my valve cover gasket then? this is actually a pretty good excuse for me to get rid of that fram crap i put on doh: )

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Sure is! Go Wix or Baldwin next time... Hell, a sock in a coffee can is better than Fram.

Clean your engine bay and check again - clean as much as possible around the oil filter adapter and the rear of the valve cover. Let the engine dry, then idle for about 10-15 minutes and see what you can see. You'll find a small, bright flashlight and a "mirror on a stick" to be useful to checking these things out...

If the puddle gets noticeably larger, I'm going to think valve cover leak - there's still a pool of oil on top of the head when you shut down that takes a few minutes to drain back down into the block.