Biotex Posted February 16, 2013 Share Posted February 16, 2013 I drove the truck 1600 miles on the interstate, and not one drop of oil was missing from the crankcase. I did however have to add transmission fluid twice, for a total of three quarts. So I parked the truck and just now got around to removing the transmission. What surprised me is that the brand new clutch and pressure plate had zero oil anywhere to be found. I figured there would be oil all over the inside of the bell housing also, but not the case. It seems to me that the oil must dribble or drip out of the open end of the bearing retainer and drop through the clutch and get splattered everywhere. I very puzzled as to how the oil can find its way to the bottom of the bell housing without coating everything inside. I'm 99% certain the bearing retainer itself is not leaking since there was a nice bead of brand new rtv all the way around, and when I wiped my finger at the bottom area, it was dry. The clutch slave is an external one, so the bearing retainer and seal were just replaced prior to my 1600 mile trip. I inspected the retainer for cracks, and none found. My best guess is that the input bearing is worn, and causing the shaft to wobble enough to elongate the new bearing and cause the leaking. The pilot bearing is the roller type, and brand new. Only other thing I can think of is the input shaft perhaps grooved and needing a speedy sleeve, but I have not disassembled the retainer yet. Wanted to get on here and get some opinions first. What are the possibilities of where this tranny fluid is coming from? The drip is at the bellhousing to engine mating surface. In the picture, you can see traces of oil on the retainer bolt heads. The front of the retainer was dry though. Could the oil be coming from those bolts? Needs thread sealant perhaps? Ony other traces of oil were inside the throwout bearing, which puts me back towards leaning to a bad seal. I'm just not sure. I'd really hate to put this thing back together and still have the leak... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geonovast Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 There shouldn't be any need for thread sealer, they don't thread into anywhere where there's oil. If you don't have RTV all the way around them though, it could be seeping out from there - but I doubt it would be a noticeable amount if they're tight. Plus, I think there would be evidence of it. Either there's a crack somewhere, or it's coming out of the shaft on the retainer, and just thin enough to not get thrown around by the input shaft. You may have to pop the retainer off and check that seal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biotex Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 I just ordered the new parts: 1990 JEEP COMANCHE 4.0L 242cid L6 TIMKEN 223253 Input Shaft Seal $ 8.09 TIMKEN KWK99128 Input Shaft Repair Sleeve $ 16.74 Shipping First Class Mail $ 1.90 Order Total $ 26.73 I will take it apart tomorrow and mic it out to see what's going on. Sure hoping I don't need a new front bearing also. It feels pretty tight side to side movement that is. I was thinking perhaps the wrong seal was used, but that doesn't appear to be the case since they are the same part number external slave same as internal slave. Still a chance the seal is in backwards, but probably not the case since the PO remebered putting it in correctly. I know it is confusing which way they go, so I'll know tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimoshel Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 Hook it up to an electric motor. Spin it. See what happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biotex Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 Hook it up to an electric motor. Spin it. See what happens. Interesting idea. You think it would show the leak doing it that way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geonovast Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 As long as you got it going fast enough, don't see why not. It doesn't know the difference of what's spinning it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biotex Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 Found the problem! The lip on the retainer seal had been folded back on to itself. I ordered a new seal, and a speedi-sleeve since the shaft was pitted. It mic'd out to 1.260" which is perfect, but the pitting would eventually prematurely wear out the new seal. I feel better about the situation now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geonovast Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 Glad it was something simple. :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimoshel Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 The simpler they are, the harder it is to find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1987Comanche Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 The lip on the retainer seal had been folded back on to itself. Interesting. Any pics of the old input shaft seal? Think it got rolled over on install? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biotex Posted February 18, 2013 Author Share Posted February 18, 2013 Interesting. Any pics of the old input shaft seal? Think it got rolled over on install? I'm pretty certain it did get rolled over on install. I just don't see any other way for it to happen. Here is the only picture I have since the other one was too close up and was blurry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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