Front oil seal, done in engine bay at last!

[GSouthee]

So plan for next week is to pop out engine (really is it going to be that easy!!) Going to take rad and nose off so engine can come out with head (especially as just done head). I am assured it is fairly easy.
   
   Then get that dam front pulley off, tried it from under car with a 15 inch bar welded to pulley and me hanging on it did nothing. So thought I may as well take engine out to get to it properly and whilst there change the flywheel rubbers as  it is some 30 years since last done.
   
   All sounds easy, but I am sure there are going to be some knocked knuckles and light cursing before all done.
   
   Got some freeze spray and my blow torch to help release the thread on the front pulley to see if that helps.
   
   If anyone has done this before on a 2 Litre saloon let me know if there any pitfalls that I cannot see yet.
   
   Cheers  Gary

[BE774]

Hi Gary, did you manage to get the job done at the weekend and sort out the best way to do it?

[GSouthee]

Hi Graham
   
   No  not started yet forgot I promised wife a couple of days in France  on Friday to Sunday. Very nice break though. Although she started mentioning re-decorating the bedroom soon, so I had better get on with the engine before I get dragged of to look at William Morris wallpaper pattern books, Paint sample etc etc etc.
   
   I thought dealing with this car/engine was hard work and taxing with nowt more than a simple AC handbook, but deciding whether the various shades of green paint patches that may end up on the wall best matches the carpet/wallpaper is the devils work.
   
   So will be starting removing the engine this week. Down the garage with the radio and kettle pondering over what nut/bolts hold the nose section on, is there anything else I should check on whilst engine out, is there any painting of inner body work/chassis that needs doing (that part is easy its black).
   
   I will take pics as I go along for my archive and if any use to anyone contemplating the same at some time will put them on here via a link.
   
   Whoops! got to scarper she who has to be obeyed has just mentioned something about curtains/pelmets?????
   
   Cheers  Gary

[BE774]

Wondering how you are going to stop the engine turning over when you try to undo the crank damper nut, as you won't have the gearbox and weight of the car to help hold it. You could try the old trick of inserting a length of rope into a plughole then turning the engine over till it locks (do it on two cylinders as they work in pairs.

[GSouthee]

Had not thought of that, but I do seem to remember my dad doing that on a truck back in the 70's to undo something. Not sure I would go that route as keeping any muck/fibres etc out of bores would be difficult.
   
   But no I am hoping to try to loosen  it with the engine still attached to car, now I have the front off and have  better access. I was thinking of re welding the bar onto it or a nut and using an impact wrench, heat and freeze spray.
   
   Failing that maybe with engine out I can use a bar across the flywheel between the clutch bolts, I have done this before on other engines.
   
   If all fails to release it I will carefully cut it off (last resort) and replace it with another or may make an alloy one as I have a couple of old fan pulleys here and could machine it out and thread it to suit, but wont know till other one off.
   
   Let me see what Monday/Tuesday brings, unless wife catches me and wants to discuss/show me  chalk based paints colours.
   
   Cheers  Gary

[GSouthee]

Well.
   
   Having done my bit (I think) in assisting my dear wife by being dragged to the wallpaper shop to look at god knows how many pattern books and selecting samples, that are now bluetac'd around the bedroom to see what one we (she ) likes the best.
   
   I did manage to get back down the garage, got the nose off, rad out and set about getting the dam front pulley of. Is it me or is it just plain daft that to get the fan belt off you have to take off the engine mount bolts to jack up the engine just to get space to slip it off the pulley's.
   
   Anyway,having got better access I found that an old 'C' spanner, that I had lying around fitted into the holes located in the groove of the pulley. With trusty blowtorch and a can of freeze spray in hand, 'C' spanner in place, I heated the outside of the pulley and sprayed the inside of the pulley towards the thread, a sharp hit with the hammer on the 'C' spanner and it suddenly gave up it's grip and spun off. Back to the jack and raise the engine to clear the front cross-member the pulley came all the way off, (why AC did not just give enough space at the front for this is and getting the fan belt on/off is  beyond me).
   
   Now, I can see the old seal and it is spinning in situ so the oil is escaping round the outside of the old metal seal. So off under the car down the  pit and undo all those sump bolts etc etc. Drop sump (nice and clean inside very little sludge in the deep part), pop old seal out, clean up mating surface, clean off old sump gasket, install new seal of the rubber type, as supplied by Rod Briggs, apply a smear of PU adhesive to outer edge of the seal and slip in to place. Fit new sump gasket, fit sump as so far, Bob's your uncle.
   
   I have had a check on the flywheel rubber from the bottom of the flywheel housing and all look good so not taking the engine out to do them.
   
   Might get down garage again tomorrow but sounds like I've got the go and assist in buying the 'Misty Sage' chalk based paint (oh and I've got to apply it to the wall with drips!!!).  Ho hum, maybe Saturday then and I'll have a clean up of the oil spray around the front and start to reassemble.
   
   Cheers  G

[BE774]

Glad you got the pulley off, Gary. Thanks for updating us on how you did it. Hope that has solved your problem.
   
   You may consider if there is a way to secure a spare fan belt in position 'for a rainy day', but with the quality of most belts these days, you may never need it!
   
   Graham.

[Robin A Woolmer]

The best solution is to use Fenner segmented belts!
   
   Robin

[GSouthee]

Cheers  Graham/Robin.
   
   Managed to sort a fanbelt its a Gates v belt 13mmx11mmx875mm. Also got a spare.  I did see the fenner segmented belts but do not know anything about them, I am sure they are reliable but prefer a complete belt.
   
   Anyway nearly 2 days to replace a £5 oil seal. Cant imagine what that would have cost at a garage. (did manage to clean up all the lost oil under the engine etc with parafin spray, looks nice under there now)
   
   Fresh oil, fresh antifreeze and away we go, nice little test run of some 70 miles all good no leaks etc.
   
   Now I've got to go shopping again with the wife as we (she) has narrowed down the choice of wallpaper to 3 and am allowed some input into which one we (she)  has.  Oh deep joy!

[GSouthee]

Here's a links to some pics of job being done, there are a lot of bolts that hold the nose cone on ans these were a bit corroded, replaced them all with stainless button top bolts for future proofing. You can see how tight the pulley is to the front cross-member in  some pics but all clear when jacked up by about 1 1/2 inches.  You can see the 'C' spanner in the groove, its an old Spax one.Yes made a mess of getting the starting handle pin out when I originally tried from underneath car, definitely easier when doing through the front. Old seal was actually spinning in the block, so the oil was leaking around the outside bit not the leather seal. New one is the more modern replacement type which I used so PU aircraft glue to secure to the sump and block.
   
   Well all good now.
   
   https://www.dropbox.com/sh/2o10ifpi3uh3wti/AADSbte7l4PRxAqQyx3IoVxfa?dl=0
   
   
   
   
   
   Cheers  Gary

[Alistair]

looking at your Dropbox pics I see that you have found a bellows top hose - could you tell me who supplied it please?

[GSouthee]

Sorry got it at a autojumble.