Here in about a month I'm going to be replacing my rear main seal (I still need to double-check this but I'm fairly sure that's the problem). While I have a fairly good idea of what I need to do (if the Haynes manual is at all accurate), I've never attempted a repair of this magnitude before and need general first-timer advice/tips as well as special tools I might need for the job.

I'm assuming it would be wise to rent a cherry picker and possibly buy some blocks to drive up on, though I'm not sure if that's a good idea if I'm going to have to jack it up to take the axles off anyway. I'm not in a rush to get this done, I'd rather take a couple days and do it right than screw myself over by rushing things.

Anyway, any pointers or advice for the job would be appreciated.

I actually just got done doing it myself and from what I can see there are two ways to do it.

1) Pull the engine (whether the clutch is still bolted to driveplate or not...your choice). Doing it this way requires some crafty work with the crowbar to pry and disassembly of your belt train. Of if you want to get crafty and leave your crank pulley still attached, it's still a pain. Also doing it this way requires you to drain all fluids from the engine (coolant and oil). This job generally takes me a total of around 6 hours pull/install.

2) I went this route this past time and it was a PITA! Granted I had very little clue what to do when I did it. Pull the tranny. Doing this requires removal of axles and draining the fluid. Some argue you can leave suspension attached, but other say follow the procedure Corbin wrote up (it's in the wiki, I don't have a link unfortunately...but look up changing axles). This job took me a grand total of 12 hours, but like I said I had no idea at first so I ran into quite a few problems.

Cherry picker will come in GREAT handy. The only problem with that is that you will lose some undercar space to work in and may be a burden unless you're flexible and can maneuver around the legs lol. Also, I wouldn't let the job go on too long with the motor being suspended by the picker. You may/may not do hydro damage to the picker if it waits too long. I had mine sitting for a week without problems.

For tools, you will need the following:

- Jack and jack stands (2 should be fine for front end)
- Cherry picker for engine (or other kind of suspension device. my buddy hooked a come-along to a beam above the car...worked, but broke soon as we got the job done. good thing it didn't happen before)
- 32mm Axle nut socket
- Small assortment of crowbars (i used a 24", 12" and a wonder bar)
- around 24" worth of extensions for some hard to reach bolts
- 12, 14, 17, 18, 19mm sockets (these are the ones I used. each for a different section of the bay during removal. might need more depending on your approach)
- Torque wrench (150 ft-lb one would work)
- Breaker bar
- Steel bar for prying(to aide in removing the axle nut) and another for MASSIVE leverage (3 ft. at least...i used a 10ft bar and it was a cakewalk)
- A case of beer (or if you don't drink, you favorite soda pop)
- I would suggest getting some help for the first time, but you don't have to
- Some time and some tunes
- Some others? I feel I'm missing something...

It can be a lengthy process if you run into the amount of problems I did. Install was a bitch for me. More so than all my problems during removal. Others can knock the whole job out in less than 6 hours. Good luck, and make sure things are done right so you don't have to do it again. Anyone else feel free to add or correct if necessary. Ya'll know more than I do haha.

Where the hell can you rent a cherry picker?

Advanced auto told me to kiss their ass pretty much yesterday.

I hate advanced. I'd burn it down if i knew i could get away with it.....


"that's not quite a rental tool now is it"

"I live about 30 seconds away!"

"We can't rent it out but you can buy one if you walk over there to that box and get the part number"

*walks to where woman pointed, nothing is there*

*Walks out of store*

Look up rental places. By us we have "Grand Rental Station" which rents all kinds of machinery and most of then actually have an engine hoist.

Terry

parts stores won't rent cherry pickers, too much liability and they don't carry insurance for that kind of thing. go to a true rental place and they usually rent them but the cost of rental usually works out to being the same as buying one from the parts store if you have it more than a day.

Knighthawk, I wouldn't worry about our tiny engines causing any damage to the hydraulic ram. we're only talking about 200-300lbs not 800+ for a V8 with all the trimmings