Installing Flywheel / Rear Main Seal

[DaytonaCoupe66]

I removed a non leaking rear main seal on the 1982 930 3.3l as a precautionary measure. The transmission was out for a rebuild so it seemed like the time for a new clutch and a resurfaced flywheel. Why not the seal?

No drama removing the old seal with care. But....getting the new black Porsche seal in was an exercise in frustration for this first timer. I used the old seal to try and seat the new one in the case. No troubles getting the inner lip over the crank, but when applying pressure to the outer circumference it refused to go in straight. Very tight fit. At some point handling this for hours raises the risk of damage, and I had to wait 2 weeks to get my hands on this one.

After many hours of light tapping with a rubber mallet, failed alignments, re-cleaning and greasing, and many more hours of internet searching, the fix was a mix of contributions that others have made.

I cleaned the seal well with alcohol, into a clean sandwich bag, and placed it in the freezer overnight. I cleaned the crank and case housing with alcohol, and put 50W oil on the crank. As soon as the seal came out of the freezer I quickly coated the inner lip of the seal with petroleum jelly, ran a bead of saliva to temporarily lube the outer face of the seal, put it into place, and tapped it lightly home using the Home Depot drain gizmo/special service tool.

I'm thinking that placing the seal in the freezer was the game changer. This Home Depot tool also allowed the hammer to land squarely on the centre of the pipe for even pressure around the circumference of the seal.

I'll know by month's end whether it leaks.

Cheers!