Oil leakage

[moneyeater]

Hey folks
since it is about 6 weeks gone since i tested my truck on the street and on the dyno i have some leakage problems!
The freezeplugs are leaking a little bit of water and
the transmission is leaking where the speedocable goes in and between the engine and tranny there´s motoroil and trannyoil coming out!
As far as i could see laying on the cold floor the oilpan or the crankshaftseal is leaking and the trannsmissionoil is comig from between the converter and transmissionshaft!
Do i have to change all the seals?Could they be dried out because of the long time without any oil?
How difficult is it to change them?
I hope to get that problem out of the way before next spring because with a leaking drivetrain i´ll never get the thru the inspection!

[moneyeater]

Is there no one out there to give me some hints to get my drivetrain leakfree?
Please help!

[LBJ]

The only news for your problem is bad news! <grin>

The freeze plugs will have to be replaced. I had this happen to my 91 GMC 1/2 ton with 350 CI. Seemed to be most of them. It was a disagreeable job and had to pull the starter off to boot to get to them all (except any at the rear). But once done, that was fixed for good. Be sure to coat the new plugs with something like Copper Kote on the edges as a sealant.

The other leaks sound like you need to replace some seals. You can spray the areas of suspected leaks down with some brake or carb cleaner to dry them out. Then, drive it and keep an eye out for the leak sources.

I have never done the lower engine seals, so can only guess it is do-able, but not likeable. I have bought the one piece pan gasket for my 1977 Bonanza but haven't gotten to it yet. Maybe you can tell me how it goes. Trannys always seem to leak a bit. Maybe fixing the other 2 items will make the tranny leak seem minor. I also changed out my valve cover gaskets which were a constant source of leakage. Use cork, not the black rubber jobs.

Good luck over there in Germany. Wish I were there for a few months of touring.

LBJ

[marvxyz1]

You may not have as many leaks as you think. One example, the leak at the speedo gear may be running down to between transmission and motor. It may pay to check your dipstick tubes for leakage. Just a couple of thoughts!! I've been there... marvxyz1

[moneyeater]

is there a special seal around the speedocable or the speedogear?
the freezeplugs are new but the engine stood for about 6-7 years without any fluids!
Why are the corkgaskets better than the rubbergaskets i just put in?
Questions over questions!
I hate oilleaks-seems that every us-car or truck does that in germany to keep from getting enjoyed!

[James McClure]

Afternoon. OK, lets start with basics. After 33 years with Chevrolet I think I have a handle on this. LOL. If you have 1 frost plug leaking REPLACE ALL OF THEM!! Period!! Don't screw around with it. Pull the engine and replace ALL the frost plugs. If you can and they are available, use the brass ones and use a sealer on the plug and in the hole before you install them. When the engine is out pull the oil pan, oil pump and rear bearing cap and replace the rear main seal. For SURE get yourself a shop manual, don't trust memory here. As long as the motor is out, pull the trans. Replace ALL the external seals!! Drive shaft, converter, detent cable and filler tube. Don't mess with the accumulator cover(s) seals. If they are leaking you can change them later. Check and see if you have "spreader bars" on the valve cover bolts. If you don't, get them and replace the gaskets with cork. DON'T use any sealer, assemble them dry or they will slip out. Hope this helps, jim

[moneyeater]

Well,i think i have to pull the motor and tranny out as it looks because there are many seals to replace!
So at first i have to get all the right seals and parts and then an enginelift.I hope my buddy and me can get this done without making to much damage?!
Wich shopmanual is the best for this task?

[James McClure]

First choice would be a GM shop manual, second choice would be a manual from Helms, as they print the GM manual. After that I don't know. I would suggest doing a Google or an ask.com search or e-bay. jim

[LBJ]

Use cork because the black ones will get hard and crack up, thus leaking again. The cork ones will last just about forever! No sealant is required, like James said, but you can put some on one side of the cork and use it to tack to the valve cover so you can get it on in proper alignment on the head. Let the gasket setup on the valve cover for a while so it doesn't fall off while you are installing. LBJ

[gezn2]

I'll second the suggestion that you get a GM shop manual, they cover all the operations in much better detail than anything from Haynes or Peterson will
The earlier posters in this thread have given you good pointers, chevy rocker covers are notorious leakers and you're definitely going to have to replace the rear main seal, torque converter seal, and assorted other players
This is probably a *very* important fix for you, I've heard that in Germany the police will follow the drips from an oil leak back to your house and write you a ticket with a *serious* fine attached, is this true?

[moneyeater]

Originally Posted by gezn2

I'll second the suggestion that you get a GM shop manual, they cover all the operations in much better detail than anything from Haynes or Peterson will
The earlier posters in this thread have given you good pointers, chevy rocker covers are notorious leakers and you're definitely going to have to replace the rear main seal, torque converter seal, and assorted other players
This is probably a *very* important fix for you, I've heard that in Germany the police will follow the drips from an oil leak back to your house and write you a ticket with a *serious* fine attached, is this true?

It´s not that extreme but if you leave big oilspots whereever you park and they can follow that back to you you´ll get a ticket for environmental pollution!
I must say that the rockercovers don´t leak and the black rubbergaskets with the metalinlay are fine so far!
I think pulling the engine and tranny is neccisarry anyway,so where can i get the shopmanual from GM?The GM dealers here don´t have them!

[James McClure]

Money: Your best bet with shop manuals will probably be on line. I know GM has a web site so try there first. Next do a google or ask.com search. You can use either a GMC or Chevrolet manual. There is little difference between the two. I won't promise you anything, but I'll do some looking here and see if I can't come up with something from some of the contacts I still have in the business. As far as actual engine or transmission overhaul go you can use any GM manual thats close to the right year. Passenger cars used the same drive line as the 2WD cars did. Chevelle, Monte Carlo, Impalla, Caprice ect. For obvious reasons there will be differences BUT, they aren't differences you'll be concerned with. Hope this helps, jim

[old Rusty C10]

i didnt read every post in this thread but im going to say that i would pull the motor and trans out. I would then use a good degreaser and clean the entire thing down ( as well as the engine compartment of your truck and front chassis. At this time i would take it not as a head banging opportunity but as an opportunity to clean and detain your engine compartment.. I would change every freeze out plug on the motor, and they are cheap enough i think i paid like $2 a pop last time i had to do that . I would proly just for the sake of doing it right change every gasket on the motor, and swap in a new timing chain just for fun. I would take the time to paint my motor and the engine compartment, and if so desired id clean up and cover the wiring harness with that plastic loom or something
It sounds like the rear main seal on the motor and the pump seal on the trans.. all are cheap but the labor is the pain.
As to books the GM manuals are by far the best but you could prolly squeak by with a haynes or chilton.. then there is the best manual of all the online one right here on this site
good luck and keep us informed.. if you do the whole engine compartment detail take pic so you can #1 show us and #2 use that for yourself as a progress guide so you dont get too disgusted you actually can go over and see what youre doing and see your progress

[gezn2]

Originally Posted by moneyeater

It´s not that extreme but if you leave big oilspots whereever you park and they can follow that back to you you´ll get a ticket for environmental pollution!
I must say that the rockercovers don´t leak and the black rubbergaskets with the metalinlay are fine so far!
I think pulling the engine and tranny is neccisarry anyway,so where can i get the shopmanual from GM?The GM dealers here don´t have them!

I *just* bought some factory manuals for the '76 K10 I'm dealing with
Helm, the official publisher, claimed not to have anything on their webpage
A little google-fu turned up a used literature dealer with decent prices and everything I wanted at http://www.factoryautomanuals.com/home.php
I just ordered, so if any 'issues' turn up I'll get back on this thread for the benefit of lurkers, they've got Euro prices as well so I assume they can handle overseas shipping

[moneyeater]

Originally Posted by old Rusty C10

i didnt read every post in this thread but im going to say that i would pull the motor and trans out. I would then use a good degreaser and clean the entire thing down ( as well as the engine compartment of your truck and front chassis. At this time i would take it not as a head banging opportunity but as an opportunity to clean and detain your engine compartment.. I would change every freeze out plug on the motor, and they are cheap enough i think i paid like $2 a pop last time i had to do that . I would proly just for the sake of doing it right change every gasket on the motor, and swap in a new timing chain just for fun. I would take the time to paint my motor and the engine compartment, and if so desired id clean up and cover the wiring harness with that plastic loom or something
It sounds like the rear main seal on the motor and the pump seal on the trans.. all are cheap but the labor is the pain.
As to books the GM manuals are by far the best but you could prolly squeak by with a haynes or chilton.. then there is the best manual of all the online one right here on this site
good luck and keep us informed.. if you do the whole engine compartment detail take pic so you can #1 show us and #2 use that for yourself as a progress guide so you dont get too disgusted you actually can go over and see what youre doing and see your progress

dear old rusty c 10,
just take a look at my webalbum and you´ll see that i don´t have to detail my enginebay and it is clean allready and the motor is painted and got new frostplugs because i worked 13 years to get to this status!I think the seals dried out because the engine and tranny were dry since they were put in the frame some 6 or 7 years ago!Now it´ll be quiet a task to get the drivetrain out of the completed truck without a lift or enginelifter!
I´ll keep you informed for sure,because it´s a constant learning process and i´share that with you!
By the way my father lives in New Paltz New York wich is not too far away from Montgomery were the guys from OCC come from! Do you live in that area?