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Changed the rear main seal

S

Switch1625

NAXJA Forum User
Location
San Diego
Some friends helped me change the rear main, we got the oil pan off no problem, cleaned it, put the new one on, rtv'd it and placed it back up, but by then they had to get going, so they put in 2 or 3 bolts and left the rest for me. As always, nothing went right, none of the bolts would go in. I ended up getting like 4 in i think, but the rest just eather i cant get the mstarted, or on some they are all the way in, but keep turning, i dont know what to do
 
Take a breath.
Were you using a torque wrench to tighten the bolts?
Have you pulled any of the bolts that keep turning and looked to see if the threads are stripped or damaged?
Are you sure that the bolt holes are lining up?
Is the pan hanging from the other bolts far enough down that you can't start the others properly?
 
Were you using a torque wrench to tighten the bolts? - No
Have you pulled any of the bolts that keep turning and looked to see if the threads are stripped or damaged? - Not yet
Are you sure that the bolt holes are lining up? - I can see through the holes without any problem.
Is the pan hanging from the other bolts far enough down that you can't start the others properly? - The pan looks like its on tight to the engine if you know what im saying.
 
Switch1625 said:
Is it okay to try and put the bolts in right now even though we put the atf on last night at about 11?
Click to expand...


ATF?


You mean silicone? if you had the pan tight it should be ok...if it is loose you'd want to start over again.
 
Sometimes that gasket wont line up just right and it can be a booger to get some of the bolts lined up correctly. I found it easiest to make sure that all the bolts were just barely in. Even then I had to take a flat blade screwdriver and insert it between the pan and the block where the last bolt just wouldn't go in b/c the gasket was interfering. I pushed the gasket over just a c hair so I could get the bolt going. Then went back and started torqueing them to 7ft. lbs from the middle on out.
 
Unfortunantly i dont have a torque wrench, so what im doing is tighthing it about as tight as you would for the oil drain plug for now.

I found a new technique to getting the bolts on, and i just got about 5 on!

Just found a huge problem. When i went out there, i looked under the jeep, and there is a huge puddle of tranny fluid...
 
Where's it coming from?
 
Well its gathring on the transmision return line ( think thats what its called) where it slopes down next to the starter. Its been dripping at about 10 drips perminute for the last several hours

Another question, why the hell is it so hard to get the starter in??? Ive got it in so the smaller cylindrical thing (solenoid???) is on the top, it seems like thats the only place it would work becacuse of the gears, i have the bolt going in, and ive tightend the bottom bolt so its got about a centimeter left to go, and i can barley turn it.

This is almost embarising
 
Have a look at the tranny lines and see if they got kinked. Sometimes the clamps will wear through the lines and make them leak. BTW, there are two different sizes on the pan bolts.
 
Two diffrent sizes, nice...

ANyways, im calling it a night tonight, i got quite a few bolts done = \ got about 5 more to go, i tried 2 of em and couldnt get em, then a bolt fell in my eye so i said F it and here i am now.

This leads me to another question, can i push the jeep into my garage, only about 2 feet, in neutral, with no tranny fluid?

Edit: I went ahead and pushed it in anways, so nevermind on that question
 
Last edited:
Look at those trans. lines. You have to pull them out of the way really gently to get that pan back in. I had a helluva time doing this alone. I ended up putting RTV on the pan, then installking the gasket. I then zip tied the gasket to the pan and then drank a beer. After that I cut the zip ties and then had a buddy at the rear of the pan while I cleared room for the front.

There are different size bolts. IIRC...the majority of them are 13mm. The ones that are bigger (can't recall the size) go at the corners and get torqued 2-3 ft lbs more than the rest.

Relax man. I know it's tough to do that but I did this same repair before a long trip. Not even 1/4 of the way to where we were heading, I had a massive leak. I ended up having to drop the pan after I made it to where I was going and do it all over again. Chill out and relax. When you get tired and pissed off...you start missing things. I felt like a huge moron but it's a difficult repair when you've never done it before. I'd do it again now for sure. But every repair is easier after the first time. Call it a night and get after it again tomorrow.

Put it this way....tomorrow at 8:45 a.m. I have to get 4 molars yanked. I would rather walk to your place while a small man beats my knee caps with a sack of Masterlocks and help you out than go to the surgeon. You can do it.
 
Where's the trans fluid?

P.S. Did I mention that I'm sh!t housed and toasting to teeth?
 
riverfever said:
I ended up putting RTV on the pan, then installking the gasket. I then zip tied the gasket to the pan and then drank a beer. After that I cut the zip ties and then had a buddy at the rear of the pan while I cleared room for the front.
Click to expand...

GREAT IDEA.. I'll remember that one!! Keeping that gasket in place is a PITA.
 
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