So, my rear main seal toast?

[Dabba]

I got the truck in the mud/water up to the front bumper and doors. It was left running for a few hours as we made mulitple attemps to pull it out. As the truck sat in the water i noticed she smoked alot more than she normally does (she hardly ever smokes) which had me concerned but no biggie. Pull the truck out and take a look under it, im loosing a lot of oil what looks like between the tranny and engine. Im not sure how i did this, i mean maybe it bottomed out or could sitting in the water do this? I also hear what sounds like a glass marble bouncing around in time with the rpms of the engine as she engine brakes. I was only 5 min away from my house and i assume this may have been from low oil, but the oil light never went on. I have two hasily taken pictures. I dont think i have the skills to tackle a rear main, and was wondering if anyone had their mechanic do it and how much it cost them?

 

[maritimer]

check your oil level, also check your trans and transfer case levels for posible fluid contamination. loose marble sounds are never good. but sitting in water to the bumpers shouldnt have hurt anything as long as the vents are above * on mine they all are above the hood* i moved mine up fro mthe factory hieght after my g/f decided to take the beast swiming had the wwater up level with the hood by the time she relized she wasnt in 4-wheel drive lol. but yeah check your oil, changingthe rear main is easy you can do it without pulling the trans just drop the pan and pull the rear bearing cap remove the lower seal and use a pipe cleaner to push the upper seal piece(s) out and slide new seal in re-assemble. never rely on the low oil lights they rarely ever work properly

 

[Dabba]

thanks.

 

[lavarok]

I can attest that changing the rear main is not that technical, messy for sure, but not rocket science. I just did mine on my m1009 yesterday. It had the rope seal and was leaking heavily. It does require a good deal of patience, plenty of tools including a torque wrench with foot lbs for the main bearing cap, and lots of shop towels for mopping up oil.

Autozone rear main ~ $22
Autozone oil pan seals ~ $12

My parts were ordered in and arrived next day.

Here are the steps I took:

1. Jack up front end frame, to raise frame slightly off axle. Even an inch will help.
2. Drain oil, remove filter.
3. Unplug batteries
4. Remove starter
5. Remove bottom access for bell housing, tricky since tranny cooling lines have to be pushed over a bit, no need to remove the lines though
6. Pull oil pan, may need to loosen a line for the front axle breather from frame rail, tends to block access to front bolts on oil pan. Use a screwdriver to gently pry the pan loose from the engine block if it sticks; which it should if RTV was used.
7. Remove oil pump/pickup
8. Remove rear main bearing cap
9. Remove old seal
10. Install new seal, carefully. I had a helper and with 4 hands we were able to hold it in place while applying pressure to push it in the grove. Take note of placement, mine was labeled which side points out. TM shows a shim which can be made to assist in seal install. I'd be wary though as you don't want to damage the seal.
11. Following the TM, use RTV on the rear main cap as specified, install rear main cap and torque to spec.
12. Reinstall oil pump/pickup
13. Clean old gasket from oil pan and engine block. RTV oil pan gasket to oil pan, let sit for 10 minutes, RTV top of gasket, let sit a few minutes; then reinstall oil pan while trying not to get RTV places it should not be.
14. Reinstall bell housing access cover and air breather line for front axle if removed.
15. Reinstall starter
16. Install oil filter
17. Fill oil, check level, etc.
18. Reconnect batteries
19. Start it up, recheck oil level after idling for a few minutes and verifying no leaks.

That is about it! If anyone sees a step I missed, please chime in. As long as you have another vehicle to drive in case the job takes longer than you hoped; you'll be fine to try it yourself. It took me two days, maybe 7hrs total. First day, I setup doing steps 1-5. Once you pull the oil pan, you will want to finish through step 13.

Good luck if you choose to tackle this.

 

[Dabba]

thanks for the help. The biggest problem im going to have is my impact gun only has rough settings on it, and i dont have a torque wrench so. I guess i can try this, but shell be sitting for awhile before i do. I also have to replace the starter as its been sitting in the mud for hours she wont start, only gives me a click. I did check the oil and it was about a cm to the end of the dipstick which makes me think it was only down 2 quarts, which isnt the worst i guess. The smoking and the noise make me worry the most.

 

[lavarok]

You don't need an impact gun for any of this. A 1/2" ratchet and sockets will do the work. Removing the oil pan will allow you to inspect the crank and the bearings which may yield answers to your other symptoms.

Autozone torque wrench ~ $30

 

[Dabba]

thanks. Im hoping i didnt destroy any bearings or whatver and it was just because she was low on oil.

 

[Dabba]

Well, some people suggested it could be the cdr valve as well.
i should also mention there was a SMALL amount of water soaked into the foam around the filter and in the filter cover. Does the cdr valve have an opening to the outside or is it all "internal plumbing"? Because if it is indeed open than im pretty sure its gummed up good...