Anglo-Frenchman Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 Since owning my 110 I have been aware of a small but fairly persistent leak from the rear of the bell housing which suggests to me that there is oil passing by the rear crank seal. I have established that this is not coming from the gearbox which is actually quite a recent Ashcroft replacement. I accept that the replacement of this seal is going to require either the removal of the engine or the gearbox and although I have in the past on a previous vehicle removed the engine several times (this was actually a V8 and not a TDI motor) I cannot really make up my mind whether perhaps it would be easier to lift the gearbox after the removal of the front seat boxes to access the replacement. The 110 is my principal vehicle and is used a great deal for work around 3000 km a month and I want to choose the route which is going to cause the least disruption and have the vehicle off the road to the least amount of time. I just wanted to get some feeling from other forum users on what would be their preferred option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 Might be possible to do it by moving the gearbox back without fully removing it like here & here then remove the clutch & flywheel to gain access to the rear crank seal, maybe just as quick to remove the engine [provided you can get a engine crane to lift/move it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglo-Frenchman Posted March 17, 2007 Author Share Posted March 17, 2007 Cheers for that Ralph. It looks as though this is probably the easier of the two options and with a little jiggery-pokery there's probably sufficient space in order to change the rear crank seal. I've never had to do one in the vehicle before so I'm not sure how much space is actually needed but I would have thought that if there is enough room to do the clutch then there must be also enough room to do the seal. Perhaps someone might be kind enough to let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimAttrill Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 You could fit a wading plug to stop the oil leaking on your driveway and remove it and let it drain into a tin once a week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglo-Frenchman Posted March 17, 2007 Author Share Posted March 17, 2007 Aha! Thanks what I like, I lateral thinker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest WALFY Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 I had this problem on my 200TDI when I changed the crank. Took 3 genuine seals to get one that actualy sealed. And they were fitted correctly In the end I became quite quick at changing them. In the case of the 3rd one I had the engine out seal changed and back in and running in a tad under 4 hrs IIRC. All removed on my own and replaced with the help of my 10 yr nephew operating the engine lift. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglo-Frenchman Posted March 17, 2007 Author Share Posted March 17, 2007 I am still torn between which is the simpler route and I have a feeling that possibly lifting out the engine could be significantly less hassle than fannying about removing the floor panels and the seat box which I remember doing on the V8 when I put in the auto box and was a right pain in the arse. Out of interest Walfy, what was the make of the seal which finally worked? Was it a genuine part or one of the blue box alternatives. I suspect that once I've got the engine out I may well renew the clutch at the same time which although does not need replacing could be worth doing to reduce the F. factor should it fail in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeagent Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 if it were me, i'd probably take the engine out.. i did the clutch on my old defender, and removed the gearbox instead, never again.. If you've got an engine crane, and maybe a bit of help, you'll get the engine out, and back in, inside one day... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglo-Frenchman Posted March 17, 2007 Author Share Posted March 17, 2007 Does anyone know if aircon coolant has to be drained to remove the engine? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest WALFY Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 The first seal was the old one from the original crank. Trying to save a few quid cost me big in time. I then purchased a seal from Bearmach, asked for a genuine seal got it in the manufactures box. Fitted that and it still leaked. Then went to the local stealers and purchased a proper seal. Got home found out it was the same seal as the Bearmach one, fitted it and it has done the trick. So god only knows why the second one didn't seal properly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve b Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 Hi Anglofrenchman the air-con can be unbolted from engine and carefully laid to one side (I tie to somewhere to take the wieght). I would also favour engine out ......much easier to fit the seal & use genuine less doubts altho no guarantee's . Mine 200tdi started leaking about 2mths ago ...a job for later. I have heard of additives that are supposed to swell seals but don't really have faith in fixes inna bottle ....even WD-40 only work's for V8's until the next puddle cheers Steveb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglo-Frenchman Posted March 17, 2007 Author Share Posted March 17, 2007 Thanks Steve, I appreciate your input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 You still have to remove the floor to undo the bellhousing nuts/bols. You don't need to take the seat box out if you are just going to slide the gearbox back. Les. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex Member Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 You still have to remove the floor to undo the bellhousing nuts/bols.You don't need to take the seat box out if you are just going to slide the gearbox back. Les. What engine? No need to remove the floor on my 200TDI. Just pull the mounts and drop to access the top bolts as stated in the factory manual. Engine is easiest IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 Engine out, like walfy I learned the hard, repetitive way ! Ididn't need to remove the floor when I did either Edited to add - buy a genuine seal ! Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest WALFY Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 My floor stayed in aswell. Just drop the engine mounts off, lower engine and then gain access to the top of bell housing. Easy peasy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglo-Frenchman Posted March 18, 2007 Author Share Posted March 18, 2007 Hi Walfy. You say that you lowered the engine. The reason I ask this is because I do not have an engine crane but I do have a hydraulic platform on wheels which I bought to take out my transfer box a while back so I wonder if this might work for the engine also and avoid the need to buy another expensive piece of kit that wil be (hopefully!) seldom used. It will carry about 750kg so I hope that this would suffice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest WALFY Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 If you do it that way be careful where you take the weight of the engine. If you use the sump I'm sure it would deform and end up touching expensive bits inside. You could make a small cradle or use a plank to spread the load. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 Can't you hire an engine hoist from a plant hire place out there ? Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex Member Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 Hi Walfy. You say that you lowered the engine. The reason I ask this is because I do not have an engine crane but I do have a hydraulic platform on wheels which I bought to take out my transfer box a while back so I wonder if this might work for the engine also and avoid the need to buy another expensive piece of kit that wil be (hopefully!) seldom used. It will carry about 750kg so I hope that this would suffice. The front axle is in the way. Easier to rent a crane. They are not expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest WALFY Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 Talk about missing the obvious. I just thought about getting the bellhousing undone, not the next bit of doing the seal. Thanks to Red90 for pointing out my failings You nwill need to lift the engine once the bellhousing is off. If you don't have access to an engine lift what about a scaffold bar frame and either a hand winch or your/mates vehicle winch. Not the best solution but easily achieved Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex Member Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 The cheap ******* solution that people use is to block and tackle off of the rafters and mov ethe truck back and forth. It is a bit harder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars L Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Since crank seal is the subject... I have bought Allmakes gasket sets for my 200 Tdi and as the rear crank seal is something I only like to do once, I specifically ordered an extra one to be sure to get one of OEM type. The one I got was exactly like the one I had lying around packed in a Britpart bag. The variant made in aluminium, green and with a former to keep the shape. Makes me kinda doubtful... In the gasket set, there was one looking as a normal seal, and in red brick colour. So now is the question - which one should I use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest WALFY Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 IIRC The genuine one is ali and green with the former. Just be careful when you fit it. I had 2 genuine fitted. First 1 just wouldn't seal the 2nd fitted perfectly. You takes your chances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglo-Frenchman Posted March 23, 2007 Author Share Posted March 23, 2007 Well I have just ordered the new seal together with new clutch as I intend doing this at the same time just in case. Whether the new seal is a genuine one or not remains to be seen however I have another question regarding this particular project. Now that my vehicle is running without its cooling fan or cowl, there seems to be a huge amount of space between the front of the engine and the inside of the radiator. With this in mind would be possible to actually remove the engine without having to take off the front panel and radiator assembly which although is fairly easy I know is just one thing less to fanny about with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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