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Rear main seal replacement. Any tips??

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Old May 21, 2006 | 08:08 PM
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Rear main seal replacement. Any tips??

Well I have been dealing with oil pressure problems for a while now and in the end my rear seal is leaking...slowly(read thread,"o-ring replaced,AGHHHHH"). enough to give me the dreaded little above 0 at idle and 30 PSI above idle. What I want to know is if it is easy to replace? it is a small leak and I am wondering if some stop oil leak will work. Although I really do not like quick fixes.

Who has done this before? Just want to know what I am in for. I know what I need to remove but I know there is always precautions and so forth(example, like the clutch being depressed when changing thermal pellet so thrust bearings do not fall out of place) stuff like that where the factory service manual doesn't say. Appreciate the help guys.
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Old May 21, 2006 | 08:52 PM
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Anybody?
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Old May 21, 2006 | 09:00 PM
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rear main seal wont affect your oil pressure.
stop leak wont work
do you even know what a rear main seal is
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Old May 21, 2006 | 09:13 PM
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The orange round seal behind the counter wieght surrounding the E. shaft. I have oil build up dripping from my inspection plate on the bottom of my tranny..its not tranny oil and that is the only seal back there. What do you think it could be Mr. Duff?
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Old May 21, 2006 | 09:30 PM
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i don't know if it will help

just pop off the flywheel
take off flywheel nut
I used a screw driver to pop of the old rear main seal
clean everything off
use a rubber mallet and tap in the new seal
pop flywheel backon
pop flywheel nut on and torque it
bam rear main seal fixed

I don't know how oil could be coming out from it. it just sits on the back of the rear stationary gear

when I took my olf one off I had a serious amount of carbon buildup in that area (i did this when rebuilding my short block)
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Old May 21, 2006 | 09:32 PM
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Thanks dude. Still learning about this motor, appreciate the sound response and for not being a dick. Take care.
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Old May 21, 2006 | 09:42 PM
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I don't see how it could be the rear main seal....how much oil is leaking out? I would think it would have to be spraying out to affect pressure?

James
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Old May 21, 2006 | 09:48 PM
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Thats what I thought. After shut down the is a puddle I would say about a 1/16 of a quart. Im using the dye tonight. keep you posted.
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Old May 21, 2006 | 10:05 PM
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the rear main seal haws nothing to do with your oil pressure as i have stated.
you may have a leaking one, but that is not your solution to the low oil pressure

learn to repalace your oring correctly if you touched it.
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Old May 21, 2006 | 11:27 PM
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replaced the o-ring right. was the casting with theflon ring what more could I do mr. Duff? Even did as mazdatrix instructed, like I said was the later year casting and my ring (teflon and rubber) combination was correct.
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Old May 22, 2006 | 10:57 AM
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bump
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Old May 22, 2006 | 09:50 PM
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well i put in some oil dye and sure enough the is oil coming from the rear seal, dripping down to inspection plate. Found some other small leaks but nothing to make my pressure drop like it is. i am going to drop thr oil pan, remove front housing, re-do th o-ring just in case it fell out of place when I installed it the first time. Also inspect everything else, might even swap the oil pump with my old one. If this does not fix it, final verdict is bearings and all I can say is ****!
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Old May 22, 2006 | 09:52 PM
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oh, one more thing. I ordered the gasket for the front housing o-ring, last time i used RTV, maybe that was the prob.
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Old May 23, 2006 | 08:47 PM
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taking the seal out tonight, I wish I had a floor lift.
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Old May 23, 2006 | 09:45 PM
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I know I'm no help, but I'm having oil pressure issues as well. Good Luck!
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Old May 23, 2006 | 11:00 PM
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Originally Posted by FC3S Murray
oh, one more thing. I ordered the gasket for the front housing o-ring, last time i used RTV, maybe that was the prob.

told you you installed it wrong
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Old May 24, 2006 | 01:23 AM
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slpin, shut your lips, I am double checking it. No point in killing my engine. Keep you posted Mr. Duff.
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Old May 24, 2006 | 02:37 AM
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I know this is pointless....but Mr. Duff......lollercakes
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Old May 24, 2006 | 02:52 AM
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I'm gonna throw in my input but no flames allowed.:
I put the front cover plate on exactly as Mazdatrix advised me to do. Use ONLY the white teflon o-ring (use a little hylomar or something to hold it in place). Then apply a thin layer of Ultra grey silicone sealant all around, and do it carefully, especially where the oil hole is that leads to the oil metering pump shaft that keeps it lubricated. Install with light torquing of he bolts, tighten fully a little later on, and voila. I have done this with atleast 4 different 13B's and it has worked flawlessly EVERYTIME. Especially when I did this to my brothers 13B turbo 4-port. it had about 5 psi of oil pressure at idle. I pulled the front cover off, didn't exactly find anything particularly wrong, so I followed Mazdatrix's instructions. Well, after it was done, it was idling with oil pressure anywhere between 40 - 60 psi. Works everytime.
Brian

P.S.: Oh yeah, replace that rear main seal too as well as the rear stationary gear o-ring (just in case).
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Old May 24, 2006 | 02:54 AM
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Let me rephrase:
do not use the gasket or rubber o-ring!!!!
Use only the white teflon o-ring, and ultra grey silicone to seal the cover.
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Old May 24, 2006 | 11:25 AM
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Originally Posted by 2Lucky2tha7
Let me rephrase:
do not use the gasket or rubber o-ring!!!!
Use only the white teflon o-ring, and ultra grey silicone to seal the cover.
What you said makes no sense...it does not agree with the mazdatrix write up at all?

http://www.mazdatrix.com/faq/oring.htm

James
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Old May 24, 2006 | 12:23 PM
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yeah, the first time i replaced the o-ring, the only thing still intact was the teflon ring. o-ring was long gone. What I will do is use the o-ring and teflon ring and also coat a small amount of silicon around the both of them to insure security. Put the gasket around the rings and that should do it. The pressure problem might even be a faulty stainer tube or the mesh filter is clogged with RTV or something, even might be a bad gasket between the tube and where it mates to the bottom of the housing. I am just going to double check everything two fold! Thanks for the help though dudes.
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Old May 24, 2006 | 12:27 PM
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Hey Wankel7, I personally talked to a few of the Mazdatrix guys over the phone and that is EXACTLY waht they told me. They said they do it in all of their race cars. Hell, I've done it to 4 engines so far and abolutely no problems whatsoever. I just did what he recommended .
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Old May 24, 2006 | 12:39 PM
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Let me clarify:
He stated that leaving the gasket out and using just the white teflon o-ring and a thin layer of silicone actually creates more pressure against the teflon o-ring and seals it even tighter because the cover is closer to the engine due to the lack of a gasket. I asked about the rubber o-ring that goes in between it and he said to just leave it out because a few times he has seen that over time, the rubber o-ring sometimes gets stuck in the oil passage and causes problems. After thinking about it, it made complete sense to me and sealed flawlessely. Also, if you notice, there is no bolt in that area, so pressure is not as great as it could be. Anyway, just my experience.
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Old May 24, 2006 | 01:02 PM
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Intresting, never thought to leave out the oring. I was just going off the Mazdatrix website and what I did in my engine.

I did the gasket, oring, and teflon ring along with a new oil pump and my pressure is outstanding.

But if it works....run it!

James
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