seal the deal

hello,

is it a big deal to change the lt1 crankshaft seal? there are so many references to changing the water pump
and opti seal, but never any comments about the crank shaft seal, not that i could find anyway.
i want to replace mine, as it is leaking. it looks pretty straightforward, as once you remove the balancer and
snub, it is right there in front of you. are there any difficulties to it, or is it as simple as it looks?


i thought that maybe i never heard about anyone doing it because somehow it is a PITA,
but i can't see how. by the way, i changed my 94 rmw opti and water pump seal, so i am confident that my
steady drip on the crankshaft is from the seal.

thanks a lot,

anthony

Removal is straight forward, i just punch an awl into it and pry it out,.
Install is tricky, last one i did i hunted for a piece of pipe the right diameter and used it as a driver, with a piece of 2x4 across it,.
Much easier with the timing cover off,.but you need to grind the sides where the pan gasket fits, so it'll slip back into place,.or do it the long way, drop the pan first,.

FYI....,if the front seal is leaking, gravity takes the oil downwards and the wind from the rad blows it all back along the pan,.

IF you have oil dripping downwards onto your balancer, simple physics tells you its coming from higher than the balancer,.

wash everything off clean, let it dry,.throw a handful of flour over and in and around everything, drive it for a day, it,ll help pin point the leak,.


Nick

thank you nick,

when i wrote "the steady drip on the crankshaft" what i meant was that there is always a drop
of oil suspended on the underside of the crankshaft. there is also a film of oil on the surfaces surrounding the
shaft, on the timing cover. i assume two things. one, that i did my work correctly on the opti and water pump
seal, using the seal installer tool, so they aren't leaking, and two, that the oil on the face of the timing cover around the crankshaft is being slung there by the spinning shaft.
i cannot see above the crankshaft to see if is coming from above. it better not be.

thanks again, anthony