..... How difficult of a job is it to replace a rear main seal with the engine still in the vehicle.

Vehicle is a 89 F250 w/5.0.

 

Without removing either the engine or trans., I would have thought impossible. Have you tried Engine Oil Stop Leak in the lube. This softens the rubber seal and sometimes makes the rubber expand to reduce any oil leak.

 

2wd or 4wd? If 4wd will be very heavy and need a trans jack. 2wd those Trans are still heavy but not as bad. You'd have to pull the trans away from the engine as I believe yours is a one-piece rear seal so no way around it. I have the seal and oil pan gasket sitting on my computer monitor waiting on me to get off my duff and do it.

 

It is a 4WD.

How do you install a ONE-piece rear seal ?? How do you slide it over the flywheel flange ??

Do you have to drop the pan, pull the main caps, drop the crankshaft to install the rear seal ??

 

dude... its complicated. how bads the leak?

 

you can do it in the truck but believe me on a one piece seal it's easier to pull the engine, and will your at it maybe even replace the bearings, and oil pump, timing chain expecially the timing chain if it has the original one in it since they used a nylon gear on the cam.

 

Drips out about 10cc or so after the engine is stopped. Don't know how bad it is when driving it ??

 

thats nothing... i leak a quart every 3 days... I've got an oil pan replacement coming up.

 

I'm trying to put mine off til I have the money to either rebuild the motor or get me a crate motor.

 

Oh its not that hard just do the following.
1. Remove Transmission
2. Drop Oil Pan
3. Remove Flywheel
4. Remove Engine Rear Plate
5. Remove Rear Main Bearing Cap
6. Loosen Other Main Bearing Caps
7. Remove Crankshaft Rear Oil Seal

Reverse order to reassemble.

Here is a diagram.

 

Thanks for the replies so far.

How difficult is it to access the rear seal this way ?

- Slide the transmission back a few inches
- Remove the flywheel/engine plate
- R&R Seal with a Slide hammer/screw setup

 

Anyone ????

 

"- Slide the transmission back a few inches"
Can you say two feet for the slide hammer.

"- R&R Seal with a Slide hammer/screw setup"
No way, the rear seal is held tight by the rear main.
To take the rear main off you have to drop the pan, to take the pan off you have to put blocks under the motor mounts and support the rear of the engine.
To take the pan off you normally jack up the engine, put blocks under the mounts and support the back of the engine with the transmission.

To take the transmission off you normally support the back of the engine with the pan.

In your case you have a catch 22 as you will have to take them both off, so in that case you pull the engine.

 

I have never had to drop the pan to put in a one piece rear seal. Pull tranny or engine use slide hammer and screw setup pop seal out drive new seal in, put back to gather.

 

OK you are right and I was wrong.

Here is the way the book says to do it.

Removal
1. Remove transmission. If vehicle is equipped with a manual transmission, remove clutch assembly.

2. Remove flywheel from engine.

3. CAUTION: Use caution to avoid scratching or damaging the oil sealing surfaces during crankshaft rear oil seal removal.

Using a sharp awl, punch one hole in the seal metal surface between the seal lip and the cylinder block.

4. Screw the threaded portion of Jet Plug Remover T77L-9533-B into the hole and remove crankshaft rear oil seal.

Installation
1. Coat the oil seal-to-cylinder block surfaces of the crankshaft rear oil seal with oil XO-5W30-QSP or -DSP or equivalent meeting Ford specification ESE-M2C-153-E. Coat the seal contact surface of the crankshaft rear oil seal and crankshaft with heavy SG engine oil. Place crankshaft rear oil seal on Rear Oil Seal Replacer T89T-6701-AH and, using hammer, tap into place until tool contacts face of cylinder block or bearing cap.