Looking for some advise on how to remove the flywheel while the engine is in the car. I tried with an impact driver but it didn't budge. It appears that the threads have some sort of anti vibration sealant. The driver I'm using is rated for 2k lb of torque.

 

The sealant is just there to stop an oil leak. That Milwaukee impact driver is for screws. It doesn’t have any guts. I use this one with the same xc5.0 battery you have pictured and it zips it right off. https://www.milwaukeetool.com/Produc...nches/2962P-20

You could use a breaker bar with a piece of pipe as an extension. Some people use the jack handle. But that will require the fly wheel stopper installed.

~ GW

 

LOL as a contractor that is all I have.... I'll have to hunt one down. Hopefully a rental... Thanks.
No jack bar.

 

I use the same one everyday with a mini battery. Great for fasteners, but not for what you need. Especially with two adapters. Remember, that’s on at 300 ftlb.

~ GW

 

So do the adapters reduce the effectiveness?

 

They do, but that impact driver is not rated for what you need. It doesn’t have enough mass. Even with a fully charged battery.


~ GW

 

Yes I'm realizing that. I just ordered the 650 lb torque driver. Now when I reinstall the nut what sealant do I use? Also is using the driver alone enough torque or do I need to combine it with a torque wrench.

 

If replacing the sealant with a skim of new will help you sleep… OK. But imo it’s not that critical.
You need the half-inch impact which (iirc) Milwaukee rates at 450 ft/lbs. If it’s ever been off before, that should get it off w/o much problem. But if it’s the first time, it may take a stopper and a BIG cheater or a bigger impact.
Going back on I’ve used my 450 ft/lb impact and just drilled it for everything it was worth. Never had issues.

Once loose, leave the nut on several threads and use the biggest dead low hammer you can find to smack the face and loosen the FW from the tapered shaft. Just leave that nut on so it suddenly doesn’t fall off. If it’s going to be off for a while I like to leave a skim of gear oil or light grease on the snout of the FW to prevent any corrosion. It’s the shiny and smooth part that inserts into the engines rear main seal and you want it to stay that way.

 

^ This.


You should really torque the nut. But some, even I, will impact it back on.

~ GW

 

i use a 6 ft piece of pipe and a flywheel stopper. i don't know if you will be able to fit it while the motor is in the car... you should easily be able to remove the nut w a 4 foot pipe. if it doesn't budge hit it w a propane torch for a few minutes.

 

Agreed. But the biggest torque wrench I have is a 1/2” drive that goes to 250 ft/lbs.
edit: FSM specifies 290-360 ft/lbs.

 

Thanks fellas. I'll take a stab at it once the impact driver arrives.

 

All right.... I was able to remove the flywheel. Now that it's off I see that there are signs of oil. Please help me understand where this is prelubrication during the building if the motor and the rear main seal or is this because oil was actually leaking from the crankshaft and bolts.
Is the solution to tighten the bolts and change seal even though it looks new?

 

Is that oil or coolant?
You can re-torque the tension bolts while you're in there... but they should not be leaking.

 

It appears to be oil. Would coolant really come out from the seal and bolts? What would be the reason why there would be oil coming out of the rear main seal?

 

The tension bolts go through the coolant jacket so yes, they could leak coolant. While you have the flywheel off, you should re-torque the tension bolts for good measure. Was your car leaking oil before you took the flywheel off? Could just be residual oil now that the fly wheel is out of the way it can drip.


~ GW

 

Ahh makes sense. The motor was rebuilt. So I'm not sure if it's oil they added to the seal to slip the FW on. So oil wouldn't be leaking around the bolts only coolant? If that was the case.
No I haven't seen oil prior to removing the FW.

 

I did just check what was around the bolts and it appears to be vasaline.
So moving on to the rear main seal, curious to why there would be oil.
I did read that someone ran their motor with the tranny installed. Is that possible?? Maybe I can run the motor to see if oil comes out.

 

Appears to me to be a leak at the rear main seal. Probably < $20 for the seal and it’s pretty easy to change. That one looks new and appears to be seated evenly. But not sure why it would be leaking after a recent rebuild. They usually last quite a while.
Maybe look at, and post a couple good pictures, of the back side of the FW…of the part that inserts into that seal. It should be really clean, smooth and shiny and there is always some grooving. I think it’s really rare and never saw one myself, but have heard of really deep grooving on high mileage cars causing a leak.

If you re-torque tension bolts be sure to follow the specs and order set out in the FSM.

 

I re torqued them and they were at 28 ft lb. They only thing I see on the FW is a ring. You can feel it with your finger. Is this supposed to be there?

 

Grooves look normal but there does seem to be signs of some rust/corrosion. And that could be responsible for the seal leak.

 

From what I have been reading the groove is caused over time because of wearing from the main seal. This is a new motor and from what I understand it should of had a new FW also. CAN SOMEONE CONFIRM THIS?

​​​​​​Obviously it's not a new FW. If I were to fill the groove with sealant would this work?

 

No sealant isn’t the answer.

I have never seen a brand new FW but think there are grooves from the factory which correspond to the ‘lips’ of the seal. Your FW does appear pretty new but it also looks like somewhere along the line that snout was got some rust on it. And in my experience it doesn’t take much corrosion to pit the mating surfaces and abrade that seal as it’s spinning inside, just enough to leak.

 

What do you think caused the rust? The car hasn't been driven in the rain or even been on the road more than 10 miles. Unless it was installed that way. I can't see how any moisture can be so isolated without water being present.

 

So you say the engine was rebuilt, like JUST rebuilt and never run? That just all looks like residual oil from building an engine. You put oil on the threads of the tension bolts when installing and oil on the washers so there will be some there.

Nothing looks like a big leak or anything weird.

Also....why are you removing the flywheel?

The rust on the flywheel is fine. It's raw cast iron, cast iron rusts VERY fast but that's OK, it's just surface rust. The edge that touches the orange seal may need a once-over with a Scotchbrite and that's about it.

Dale