Duratec 2.3L rear main seal experience

[dverbeck]

Hello, I have a question concerning 2001+ Duratec 2.3L rear crank seals. This winter I’ll be replacing my clutch and thought I might change out the rear seal. However both the official Ford shop manual and Haynes both say that the oil pan must be removed but only after engine removal. The Haynes manual does hedge a bit saying that on 2006+ (I have an ’06) I could disconnect the left motor mount, raise the left side of the engine and get the pan out.
Then on youtube I see a dude replace the rear seal on a Duratec 2.3L without removing the pan but using RTV on the sealing surfaces. What has been your experience with rear seals on the Duratec 2.3’s?

 

[RonD]

As a "heads up" when trans is out, also replace the cooling system hose and fitting on the back of the engine, these will leak and no way to get at them with trans in place.
2.3l duratec was designed as a transverse mounted engine, 23EW(east-west), when used in a Ranger, 23NS(north-south), this cooling hose placement was trouble.

Haven't changed rear main seal on a 23EW or NS but have on a few other engines where oil pan should be dropped to reseal lower gasket area.
Often you can just lower the rear of the pan and use "RTV" or similar to reseal, it really is a judgement call.
Shop manuals would require it, because they are not paying the bill, and yes it is always good practice to do this if rear main seal replacement requires lowering of the pan to remove it and re-install it.

Shop manuals can have a bit of over kill as well.
I know the Rolls-Royce shop manual fix for a full ashtray is to trade-in the car for new one, seems like overkill to me, but not their money so why not.
And the 4 hours shop time to diagnose "full ashtray" seem excessive as well

 

[dverbeck]

Thanks for the reply RonD. Good advice on replacing the coolant hoses on the back of the engine.

I was doing some reading on that rear seal and apparently without the special Ford tool it can be a pain to install. My seal is not leaking (143k miles). It seems with the pan lowering and seal install procedure there are risks of accidentally creating a leak during installation of the new seal. Couple that with very few complaints on the Internet about these seals leaking due to wear and tear, I may forego replacement. Thoughts?

Also wondering your opinion on flywheel resurfacing. My clutch, despite the high miles, is actually very smooth with a nice linear action. I'm only replacing it to avoid any surprises. So I was considering not resurfacing, just replacing the pressure plate, disk, pilot bearing and slave cylinder.

Next time I have the Roller out I'll keep an eye on that ashtray...

 

[pjtoledo]

I did the rear seal 3 years ago during the clutch job. the Ford seal comes as part of a rear plate, easy to replace . I did not drop the oil pan.
the special installation tool is a plastic cookie-cutter looking thingy that guides the seal over the crank. it came pre-installed inside the seal.
do not remove the starter, just loosen the bolts 3-4 turns, it bolts to the block and fits in a big slot in the bell housing.

one thing I found useful was to get several bolts the same size but longer than the bellhousing bolts and cut the heads off, they align the tranny coming out & going back in.

with 180,000 at the time, I just hit the flywheel with some coarse sandpaper to break the glaze.

replace the pilot bearing and throwout bearing.

AND GREASE THE NEW SEAL!

 

[RonD]

^^^ first hand experience beats the "other engine" stories

Run a straight edge across the flywheel with a light or flash light behind it, you can see if it is warped or worn.

As pjtoledo said if it is OK then sand it a bit and you are good to go.
If you already have it off, machine shop is about $20-$30 for resurface, sameday usually

 

[dverbeck]

Yes first hand experience is always best. Thanks pjtoledo.

Question for pjtoledo: You received the installation tool as part of the seal package? Did you purchase the seal from Ford?

 

[pjtoledo]

Yes first hand experience is always best. Thanks pjtoledo.

Question for pjtoledo: You received the installation tool as part of the seal package? Did you purchase the seal from Ford?

yes, it was a genuine Ford part.

the tool is shaped like a short cylinder, or the bottom 1" of an empty soup can.. it is inside the seal . think of it as keeping the seal in its correct shape, nice and round. that "cylinder" will slide over the end of the crankshaft. keeps the seal lip from getting screwed up/folded over/mutilated. then just pull the cylinder out, seal stays there on the crank.

IMPORTANT, a dry seal will get destroyed on initial startup, it must be lubricated.
the pilot bearing is a needle bearing cage, or in my case WAS a needle bearing cage.
jammed a 5/8" bolt in it, made the threads catch the outer rim , and pulled it out.

 

[dverbeck]

pjtoledo, thanks for the explanation. I'll be getting the seal from Ford too.

 

[dverbeck]

BTW for you part number hounds, the OEM Ford rear seal kit which includes the installation tool is 1S7Z-6K301-BA, $57.30 at fordpartsgiant.com. This is a really good deal because if purchased separately the seal and installation tool together are $80+.

Savings like that might inspire you to drop your tranny and pull your flywheel

 

[Zillon]

Don't go aftermarket on the RMS.

I recently went through 2 Fel-pro RMS kits, before we discovered that they ship with the install tool inserted into the RMS, which gapes the seal and lets them leak after install.

Just installed an OE RMS, used plenty of RTV on the backside, and used the OE install tool. Fits better, seals like a glove, and no issues.