First Car -- 1968 Barracuda Notchback
Once I had the transmission out, I went to take a look at the back of the engine to see if I could trace where my oil leak was coming from. I was certain it was the rear main seal, until I actually got under the car:
Here, let me enhance that for you like they do on CSI:
Yup. That's the back of the camshaft. Where did the cam plug go? Who knows? How did the engine not dump the entire oil pan onto the ground whenever it was running? No idea. How much did it cost to fix this "rear main seal" leak? $1.97 and a LOT of RTV. That son-of-a-gun is going nowhere (hopefully)! Yes, I did hammer the new plug in properly, but I wanted to be extra sure it wouldn't leak. I don't want to have the pull the transmission out again unless it's to put in the new one! Plus, you know what they say: The bigger the gob, the better the job!
While this was setting up I pulled the converter out and got ready to pull the front pump out. I didn't know which seal was leaking but I had access to all three, so I just went and replaced all of them. This was my first time inside an automatic so I was nervous, but after some research on this forum I felt much better about it. I tightened down the front band snug and went to pull the pump out. It took me about 15 minutes to figure out that the slide hammer goes into a smaller set of threads IN the pump, not into the transmission casing itself...
Blunders aside, the pump came out very easily -- the problem was scraping the old pump gasket off. Once I got the new seals in (input shaft seal, front pump gasket, front pump o-ring), I couldn't get the pump to seat in properly, so I stood the transmission upright in a garbage can, still no luck. All it took was a 1/4 turn loose on the front band and it dropped right into place! I bolted it in, adjusted the front band as best I could, and got ready to put the transmission back in.
I don't really have any pictures of the reinstallation of the transmission, but it took a couple days. I couldn't get the transmission and engine lined up properly. I ended up bolting the transmission crossmember back into the car and lifting the back of the engine and front of the transmission at the same time until the converter hub slid into the register on the crank. This got it close enough to where I could bolt everything back together! When I was finished and went to start the car for the first time (still on stands), it cranked and cranked but wouldn't even start. The culprit? My own idiocy:
After I put the rotor back in the distributor, she fired right up and shifted like a dream! She runs great, still does excellent burnouts, and doesn't leave a puddle where she's parked.
This was about as far as I got on the car while I was home, the only other thing I did was fix my wide-open-throttle issues. I'll see if I have any photos of that and post them if I do!
I hope everyone is doing well during this pandemic. Please stay safe and wear your mask! Many of us are either immunocompromised or know someone who is. And, wash ya dang hands! Take care everyone!
Once I had the transmission out, I went to take a look at the back of the engine to see if I could trace where my oil leak was coming from. I was certain it was the rear main seal, until I actually got under the car:
Here, let me enhance that for you like they do on CSI:
Yup. That's the back of the camshaft. Where did the cam plug go? Who knows? How did the engine not dump the entire oil pan onto the ground whenever it was running? No idea. How much did it cost to fix this "rear main seal" leak? $1.97 and a LOT of RTV. That son-of-a-gun is going nowhere (hopefully)! Yes, I did hammer the new plug in properly, but I wanted to be extra sure it wouldn't leak. I don't want to have the pull the transmission out again unless it's to put in the new one! Plus, you know what they say: The bigger the gob, the better the job!
While this was setting up I pulled the converter out and got ready to pull the front pump out. I didn't know which seal was leaking but I had access to all three, so I just went and replaced all of them. This was my first time inside an automatic so I was nervous, but after some research on this forum I felt much better about it. I tightened down the front band snug and went to pull the pump out. It took me about 15 minutes to figure out that the slide hammer goes into a smaller set of threads IN the pump, not into the transmission casing itself...
Blunders aside, the pump came out very easily -- the problem was scraping the old pump gasket off. Once I got the new seals in (input shaft seal, front pump gasket, front pump o-ring), I couldn't get the pump to seat in properly, so I stood the transmission upright in a garbage can, still no luck. All it took was a 1/4 turn loose on the front band and it dropped right into place! I bolted it in, adjusted the front band as best I could, and got ready to put the transmission back in.
I don't really have any pictures of the reinstallation of the transmission, but it took a couple days. I couldn't get the transmission and engine lined up properly. I ended up bolting the transmission crossmember back into the car and lifting the back of the engine and front of the transmission at the same time until the converter hub slid into the register on the crank. This got it close enough to where I could bolt everything back together! When I was finished and went to start the car for the first time (still on stands), it cranked and cranked but wouldn't even start. The culprit? My own idiocy:
After I put the rotor back in the distributor, she fired right up and shifted like a dream! She runs great, still does excellent burnouts, and doesn't leave a puddle where she's parked.
This was about as far as I got on the car while I was home, the only other thing I did was fix my wide-open-throttle issues. I'll see if I have any photos of that and post them if I do!
I hope everyone is doing well during this pandemic. Please stay safe and wear your mask! Many of us are either immunocompromised or know someone who is. And, wash ya dang hands! Take care everyone!
