Front Crank Seal Leak Repair : MGB & GT Forum : The MG Experience

Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #1
bfried Brandon Fried Chevy Chase, Maryland, USA Sign in to contact 1969 MG MGB "Little Red"	Topic Creator (OP) May 23, 2009 03:28 PM Joined 17 years ago 63 Posts

A mechanic recently told me that the cause of the oil leak in my '65 renovated MGB was a front crank seal that needed replacement. The leak diameter of oil on the ground an hour after driving is about two inches. Any ideas on how much this should cost t repair? How essential is repairing it if I monitor the oil level frequently?

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Re: Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #2
scottydawg Scott B MTP, SC, USA Sign in to contact 1973 MG MGB	May 23, 2009 03:33 PM Joined 19 years ago 5,321 Posts

That should be pretty easy to fix, Brandon. Things you have to remove: Fan, Crank Pulley, oil slinger, timing chain cover. Hammer the old seal out, and the new one in. You may (may) have to loosen the motor mounts and jack up the engine a little to get to the bottom bolts on the timing cover...

For a good mechanic, this is a 1 or 2 hour repair, max. Costs are minimal, I think the seal is less than ten bucks. I might have an extra timing cover gasket laying around too.

"Since the creation of the Internet, the Earth's rotation has been fueled, primarily, by the collective spinning of English teachers in their graves."

"Keep in mind that free advice can frequently be worth less than you pay for it."

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Re: Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #3
NOHOME P P O, ON, Canada Sign in to contact 1967 MG MGB GT "Maggie (GT From Hell)"	May 23, 2009 04:27 PM Top Contributor Joined 19 years ago 19,051 Posts

Replacing the seal may only be a temporary fix. Have a look at the pulley surface where the seal rides and if there is any trace of a grove, the new seal is not going to last long.

Speedy sleeve the pulley, OR machine the surface, OR buy new pulley. OR ignore it aadn hope it last long enough!

For a brittish car, the oil loss you describe is almost expected; when it stops, we add oil!

Pete

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Re: Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #4
99hjhm James H West Midlands, England, UK Sign in to contact 1971 MG MGB 1971 MG MGB GT "DLP 692J" 1971 MG MGB GT "WEL 682J" 1975 MG MGB GT "LVT 844P"	May 23, 2009 04:40 PM Joined 18 years ago 1,008 Posts

Don't machine out the groove, it will leave the diameter to thin and could crack down the key slot.

Speedi sleeve if the damper is OK.

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Re: Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #5
ZOMBIEWOOF CHIP GRIFFIN LAWRENCEVILLE,GA., USA Sign in to contact 1968 Chevrolet IMPALA SUPER SPORT "HEAVY METAL" 1971 Toyota LAND CRUISER FJ-40 1972 MG MGB	May 23, 2009 11:16 PM Joined 17 years ago 303 Posts

Also remember to leave cover bolts loose until crank pulley is temporarily installed, to center the seal/cover to the crank.

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Re: Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #6
wdp w p Calif, USA Sign in to contact 1953 MG TD 1958 MG MGA 1500 1966 MG MGB 1972 MG MGB GT	May 24, 2009 12:52 AM Joined 18 years ago 128 Posts

I have the same problem, leaky front seal. Anyone have a part number for the correct speedy sleeve?

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Re: Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #7
99hjhm James H West Midlands, England, UK Sign in to contact 1971 MG MGB 1971 MG MGB GT "DLP 692J" 1971 MG MGB GT "WEL 682J" 1975 MG MGB GT "LVT 844P"	May 24, 2009 06:50 AM Joined 18 years ago 1,008 Posts

I'm sure Hap will... A bearing/seal shop should be able to supply one if you give them the shaft size. Moss I think sell them in the US.

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Re: Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #8
NOHOME P P O, ON, Canada Sign in to contact 1967 MG MGB GT "Maggie (GT From Hell)"	May 24, 2009 07:01 AM Top Contributor Joined 19 years ago 19,051 Posts

Pete Caldwell at Worldwide, sells them also. I am going through this with a Bugeye.

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Re: Front Crank Seal Leak Repair #9
RonnieMac Ron McDonald Rosthern, SK, Canada Sign in to contact 1971 MG MGB	May 24, 2009 07:09 AM Top Contributor Joined 19 years ago 3,451 Posts

wdp Wrote:

Quote: I have the same problem, leaky front seal. Anyone have a part number for the correct speedy sleeve?

http://www.vsm.skf.com/en-US/HeavyDuty/KitsAndTools/~/media/Files/enUS/HeavyDuty/2007_027_FULL_BOOK_for_Web_secure.ashx

Pick a size. Any size.

Someone will chip in with a diameter on the crankshaft front.

On earlier threads to do with the rear main seal and the shaft diameter, there was a fair bit of variance on measured shaft sizes. You'd probably do best to take three or four readings on your own shaft, then use the average as the speedi sleeve size. The catalog allows you to come up with a part number.

Many machine shops and supply houses stock the sleeves

1971 MGB GHN5UB237226

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2009-05-24 10:55 AM by RonnieMac.

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Front Crank Seal Leak Repair

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