I need some reassurance here.....

 

I'm replacing the front seals on my EA82 -- camshaft, oil pump, and front crankshaft seals.

 

The camshaft and oil pump seals weren't hard, since I could pull the parts off the shaft. With the seals off the shafts, I gently pried them out. I'd never pulled the seals before, and they were cooked in pretty tight.

 

But the crankshaft seal's gonna be a bear. I don't have the luxury of pulling the crankshaft (and I'm doing this work without pulling the engine). I've heard that you can tap a sheet metal screw into the seal and pull on that. I tried drilling into an old camshaft seal to see what it's like..... It seems there's a 50-50 chance of gettin' it right, or hitting the block. That's a pretty tough steel ring imbedded in the seal.

 

Any pointers or reassurance before I take my chances? What's the best way to get that sucker out?

 

-- Mark

you can use a small screwdriver or a (dentist's) pick to pry it out. just be careful not to goughe the aluminum. the crank is hard enough that it wont scratch unless you are being midieval about your technique.

 

when you install the new seal tap it in so it is flish with the block, as it will go in deeper if you kept tapping past that point.

 

you can use socket extension with the flat side on the seal, and tap evenly around the seal until it is flush

 

same texhnique will rork on the rear and cam seals, but the cam seal can be removes after you take off the piece that holds the cam in, you can push the seal out from behind