tyro

My rear main seal was leaking after I'd just replaced it with a Victor Reinz seal.

I have the car torn apart again.

See pic (not my seal, stolen photo)

It appears that the outer lip (inner diameter of the seal, facing flywheel) was not meeting up with the crankshaft.

There was a bit of a gap, but the block side (with spring) was making contact.

If I partially place the seal in backwards, there is some play from side-to-side and this has me concerned. Same thing with the old VR seal, a new VR seal and a new Porsche seal.

Now for questions:

1. Is the bore for the seal tapered?

2. Is the lip I describe supposed to meet with the crank - has it in your experiences?

3. What is the diameter of the crankshaft in that area supposed to be?

Anyway, I am sure that I did not seat the seal to the stop - perhaps this was my only problem and I need not worry?!

F18Rep

Probably a dumb question, but... is the crank bent? Its been a while but I don't remember seeing any kind of gap....Bruce

Oddjob

Jess,

I can check the rear main on at least one engine this wknd to see what it looks like. Im pretty sure the seal is still in my spare engine - its in storage, but close by. Otherwise, I do need to pull the clutch off the engine I have in my garage, and could probably get to it this wknd.

If you want to take a look, before putting yours back together, give me a call.

apierce918

i dont remember a gap either

tyro

Thanks.

Jim, I'll see about stopping by later on Sunday.

It's the entire diameter that seems too small, only on that one portion of the seal - which seems important.

The engine was out, and the crank was inspected, but I had nothing done with this part of the crank. There's still a wear ridge from a previous seal - only in one location.

I'll give a call to a few "experts", let me know if you think of anything else.

Bri Bro

If you don't seat it to the stop, it will leak. Here is a picture of my seal...waiting on bearing.

tyro

That must have been it. Not to the stop.

I just got off the phone with Wes at LR, he took a look at an engine they had sitting there - indeed there is a gap. He stated that driving it to the stop is the right way to do it.

I'd still be curious - if anyone has an engine sitting about - take a look at that seal and check for a gap.

I really don't want to pull it apart again for a $30 seal!!

Thanks!

TRP951

When I put mine it I tapped it in until it wouldnt go anymore

Bri Bro

Yes there is a gap on the seal as you look at the back of the engine. I am no seal expert but I thought the outer ring wasn't an oil seal, it was to keep dirt and particles away form the inner lip seal. You can see in the pictures that the seal shows a small gap when installed, also look at the seal and you can see the outer seal is larger diameter then the inner lip seal.

Also note that the seal is driven in past the metal lip on the block. The first time I did this I was wondering if I should align the seal with the metal lip on the block or keep driving it in. The answer is to drive it all the way to the stop using even force around the seal. A piece of PCV threaded end cap fits nicely around the seal and is a good way to drive it in evenly.

tyro

Brian,

Thank you for the photos, they are very helpful.

It appears indeed that the portion of the seal with spring *is* the only real sealing surface when it comes to keeping the oil IN.

It appears as though I didn't drive the original seal to the stop (like the manual says)

Ah well, live and learn.

Bri Bro

Well, they say the second time everything goes quicker because you know what to do. Too bad a $30 part that takes minutes to install is going to take a couple of weekend worth of work. Good hunting.

F18Rep

" A piece of PCV threaded end cap fits nicely around the seal and is a good way to drive it in evenly."

Brian... what size PVC? Are we talking 3 inch? These little tips are priceless....Bruce

Bri Bro

I need to find mine since I need to do this again. The seal was way larger then any bearing race tool I had. I went to the hardware store with seal in hand and looked for something that would fit. It turned out that a 4" PVC cap is just a little smaller then the seals OD and is also a little narrower then the seals ID. I also filed off the threads to get a better grip on it. The nice thing is that it had a large head (what you use the get a wrench on it to screw it in) that was well suited for hammering. I will post a picture when I find were I hid it from myself.

marcoturbo

Will you use a sealant to install the new seal ? I've been told 930 engine builders use Curil-T to avoid these leaks.

Bri Bro

I install it dry, it has a hugh mating area and I don't think it will go anywere.