Rear main seal oil leak?
08-05-18, 10:43 AM
#1
Rear main seal oil leak?
Hey guys,
motor (single turbo) was recently rebuilt and installed. Every time I drive the car oil leaks from the backside of the engine where the transmission bell housing is. From my research it could be the rear main seal, motor mounts or oil pan. As I have an oil pan brace I highly doubt its the oil pan. Could this leak come from anywhere else? Just curious before I drop the tranny and inspect the rear main seal.
Also the oil is a dark yellow color, I run royal purple has anyone ever seen royal purple leak a dark yellow?
Brake fluid level is fine and my tranny oil is red so the only thing that makes sense is for it to be engine oil. Any insight is helpful
motor (single turbo) was recently rebuilt and installed. Every time I drive the car oil leaks from the backside of the engine where the transmission bell housing is. From my research it could be the rear main seal, motor mounts or oil pan. As I have an oil pan brace I highly doubt its the oil pan. Could this leak come from anywhere else? Just curious before I drop the tranny and inspect the rear main seal.
Also the oil is a dark yellow color, I run royal purple has anyone ever seen royal purple leak a dark yellow?
Brake fluid level is fine and my tranny oil is red so the only thing that makes sense is for it to be engine oil. Any insight is helpful
08-05-18, 01:55 PM
#2
It's my habit to look above and forward from where I see oil under the car.
But there's an inspection hole on the bottom right of the bell-housing. A cover with two 10mm bolts. Take it off and look inside with a flashlight or stick a clean finger inside and feel of the inside bottom of the bell-housing. If it comes out oily, it's almost certain it's a rear main leak.
But there's an inspection hole on the bottom right of the bell-housing. A cover with two 10mm bolts. Take it off and look inside with a flashlight or stick a clean finger inside and feel of the inside bottom of the bell-housing. If it comes out oily, it's almost certain it's a rear main leak.
08-06-18, 04:22 PM
#5
It's my habit to look above and forward from where I see oil under the car.
But there's an inspection hole on the bottom right of the bell-housing. A cover with two 10mm bolts. Take it off and look inside with a flashlight or stick a clean finger inside and feel of the inside bottom of the bell-housing. If it comes out oily, it's almost certain it's a rear main leak.
But there's an inspection hole on the bottom right of the bell-housing. A cover with two 10mm bolts. Take it off and look inside with a flashlight or stick a clean finger inside and feel of the inside bottom of the bell-housing. If it comes out oily, it's almost certain it's a rear main leak.
08-07-18, 07:27 PM
#6
So I opened the window in the bell housing and it is a bit oily in there. It's oily to the touch but I'm assuming there should be no oil at all in there so it must be the main seal or the rear gear of ring.
Long story short, this car has been almost a 3 year project. First time driving it was 2 weeks ago. If I continue to drive it like this and pull the transmission when the colder weather comes will there be any damage?
The oil inside the transmission is black because of the dirt but on my subframe and outside the bell housing it is a dark yellow. Since my oil is royal purple, shouldn't it be leaking purple oil?
Thanks for the help so far guys
Long story short, this car has been almost a 3 year project. First time driving it was 2 weeks ago. If I continue to drive it like this and pull the transmission when the colder weather comes will there be any damage?
The oil inside the transmission is black because of the dirt but on my subframe and outside the bell housing it is a dark yellow. Since my oil is royal purple, shouldn't it be leaking purple oil?
Thanks for the help so far guys
08-07-18, 08:06 PM
#7
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So I opened the window in the bell housing and it is a bit oily in there. It's oily to the touch but I'm assuming there should be no oil at all in there so it must be the main seal or the rear gear of ring.
Long story short, this car has been almost a 3 year project. First time driving it was 2 weeks ago. If I continue to drive it like this and pull the transmission when the colder weather comes will there be any damage?
The oil inside the transmission is black because of the dirt but on my subframe and outside the bell housing it is a dark yellow. Since my oil is royal purple, shouldn't it be leaking purple oil?
Thanks for the help so far guys
Long story short, this car has been almost a 3 year project. First time driving it was 2 weeks ago. If I continue to drive it like this and pull the transmission when the colder weather comes will there be any damage?
The oil inside the transmission is black because of the dirt but on my subframe and outside the bell housing it is a dark yellow. Since my oil is royal purple, shouldn't it be leaking purple oil?
Thanks for the help so far guys
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08-08-18, 12:01 PM
#9
I'm going to try to rinse it off see what happens. The flywheel and clutch look dry. It's not leaking a lot but the reason why I don't feel like it's brake fluid is because there is quite still a bit of oil on the floor and the brake reservoir looks full.
08-08-18, 01:50 PM
#10
You should clean the entire area very well to the point of it looking new then wait for the leak. Trying to find it when everything is so dirty is extremely difficult unless you can actually watch the oil come out. Also, regardless of what oil you use, once it's been cycled through the engine it turns black. It's very likely it just a rear main but before dropping the transmission and everything else, it would be better to actually verify.
08-08-18, 05:56 PM
#11
You should clean the entire area very well to the point of it looking new then wait for the leak. Trying to find it when everything is so dirty is extremely difficult unless you can actually watch the oil come out. Also, regardless of what oil you use, once it's been cycled through the engine it turns black. It's very likely it just a rear main but before dropping the transmission and everything else, it would be better to actually verify.
08-08-18, 07:14 PM
#12
If your fluid level is good and there's no apparent air in the system, I'm doubting it's the slave. But it's easy to remove and inspect for any signs of leakage and you don't have to open/remove any lines.
Last edited by Sgtblue; 08-08-18 at 07:24 PM.
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