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I discovered two small leaks on my oil pan from a brand new motor and a little bit of residue by the beginning of the bell housing. So I removed the oil pan and I noticed that there was oil on the edge of the bell housing and also noticed there is a seal on the bell housing. Do I need to change this? Is the oil on the edge of the bell housing. Never knew that there was a seal here before.
coming from the oil pan or the seal?
Its not a seal for oil. Its just more of a cushion. If there's oil there and your oil pan is off....... put the oil pan back on and see if it still leaks. If the motor is new then its likely there because the oil pan is off. The rear main would be a candidate for the source of the oil but you can't reliably suspect it with an uninstalled oil pan
For chasing down small leaks, I was advised to get everything clean then run the engine again and search for the highest point that gets oil on it. Years ago when I swapped in a used JDM pullout engine, the rear main seal leaked and I needed to pull the transmission to replace it. Some of the symptoms were the oil seemed to leaked only when the engine was running, and there was oil above the transmission inspection plate and up in that bellhousing / clutch area. A friend advised replacing the rear stationary gear o-ring at the same time, luckily he was willing to help do that for me because I wasn't brave enough to try it on my own. The old stationary gear o-ring was hard and brittle, and everything went back together nicely and has run well for 10+ years since then.
Last edited by scotty305; Sep 11, 2022 at 07:21 PM.
Its not a seal for oil. Its just more of a cushion. If there's oil there and your oil pan is off....... put the oil pan back on and see if it still leaks. If the motor is new then its likely there because the oil pan is off. The rear main would be a candidate for the source of the oil but you can't reliably suspect it with an uninstalled oil pan
There were two areas that had signs of leaking oil. The seem right above the oil sensor and the corner of the pan by the engine mount. But when I removed the pan I saw oil at the edge of the bell housing where it meets the oil pan lip. I'm wondering if the rear main seal is leaking? I have to drop the transmission which then I'll confirm the seal.
… I'm wondering if the rear main seal is leaking? I have to drop the transmission which then I'll confirm the seal.
It’s usually pretty easy to tell by just using your fingers and a light thru the inspection hole. If it’s dry you probably don’t need to go to the trouble.
But if engine oil is present on the inside of the bellhousing it’s a rear main seal. If it feels more like thick gear oil it may be the input shaft seal on the transmission. Both are pretty easy and inexpensive…once the trans. is down.
