Front crank shaft seal keeps coming out
 

Hi,

I had a bad oil leak from the timing belt covers recently so i took them all off to have a look. Once i`d got the crank pulley and sprocket behind it off, i discovered the old crank seal was protruding from the crank case and the front had worn off revealing the inner steel ring.

So i replaced it yesterday drifting the new seal right in seated right. I drove it this morning and its leaking more than ever. I `ve just taken it all off again to discover that my seal has done exactly the same thing - the seal has moved so that its protruding further than the case- i`ve taken some photos -

Attachment 50025

i took it out and it all looks pretty clean inside - there doesnt appear to be any endfloat.

Attachment 50026

here`s the seal -

Attachment 50027

did i install it correctly? i put some grease round the edge of it, then drifted it home carefully until it was seated back against the crankcase. it then sat inside the recess with a 2-3mm to spare before the edge of the crankcase.

should i have not used grease and maybe engine gasket sealant or something maybe?

any help would be great:)
cheer,s
mike

it's not genuine by the looks of things

yeah- i`m not sure on that - i bought it from here -

Subaru Front and Rear Crankshaft Oil Seals on eBay, also, Subaru, Car Parts, Cars, Parts Vehicles (end time 27-Sep-08 19:47:24 BST)

it`s obviously had the front face worn off by the sprocket rubbing against it.

Another thing i forgot to mention was that i have noticed in the past couple of months oil appearing on top of the crankcase near to the oil dipstick and filler.

Could crankcase pressure be pushing it out?

Looking at the pictures on the web site, I'm 99.9% certain the various seals/gaskets aren't original, but copies.

I'm not suggesting it is the cause of the problem, but it could be.

Certainly, I wouldn't grease the seal first, and I would check the oil pressure release valve to make sure it's not sticking.

Mark.

where is the oil pressure release valve? is it screwed into the inlet manifold and then connects to the breather pipe going to the case?

i did check this and it seems to move pretty freely

The oil pressure release valve is part of the oil pump, its a commen failure on these engines, they make an upgrade oil pump.

Be carefull driving it, you could end up knackering your engine

thanks - as i`ve got the front of the engine stripped down, is there an easy way to check the valve?

here`s my oil pump - do you have to take it off to get at the valve or is it something to do with the allen key head bolt on the side?

cheers, mike

Attachment 50028

yeah thats the pressure valve on the side thinks its 10mm

cheers - i took it out and it all looks pretty clean - the spring came out, then i fished the plunger out too. there wasn`t any crap in there or anything, just oil, so i refitted it.

think my next step will be to fit a genuine subaru oil seal with some engine gasket sealent round it and see how that goes. is there a good place on the net for genuine scooby parts? not got a dealer near me and new to the subaru scene:)

thanks for the help, mike

Easy fix, remove oil pump.tighten screws on back of pump.Oil is leaking on inside pushing seal out.Very common problem.

cheers mate - i`ll give that a go too before i fit the new seal.

Change the o ring on oil pump aswell..whenever ya change the front crank seal.;)

I always thought that you greased/oiled the inside of the seal ie the inner lip that goes around the crank but left the outer dry. Atleast that's the way I've always done it and its been without issue.

where is the o ring - do you have to take the oil pump off to get to it?

yup

thanks for that tip - i took the oil pump off tonight and 2 of the screws were hanging out, 1 was loose and only 3 were holding it together.

tightened them up and hopefully with a new seal, it`ll be fixed. i `d be interested to know how this works - how does oil leaking out cause the seal to push out?

I always put a light smear of grease on lip of the seals i fit to prevent any friction burning of the lip when the engine is first started.

When the back-plate screws come loose,you will get pressurised oil leaking into the cavity behind the seal which in turn pushes the seal forward until it contacts the cam belt sprocket on the crank.
Thats the wear mark on the face of the non genuine seal.

Mick