General TR Rear Differential Seal

[KVH]

Can it be pulled while still in the car? Also, once the flange is pulled how do you yank the seal out of there?

 

[M_Pied_Lourd]

What car? And...what seal? Are you talking about the pinion seal?

Cheers
Tush

 

[KVH]

Sorry--tr4 solid axle and the pinion seal right behind the flange.

 

[M_Pied_Lourd]

I believe it should be the same process as on my TR3A then. I did it on the car and pulled the seal out with a seal puller tool (looks like a screw driver type handle with a hook on either side of it). If you are going to buy one, don't buy the cheapest you can find as you might find that it bends easily or the rivets pull out. After you get the old seal out, you can tap the new one in place using a seal driver or large socket on the outside metal part.

Cheers
Tush

 

[titanic]

+1-Specifically, don't buy the clone from HF. The hook bent on the first use. Lisle brand works and only costs about $10. Also, check the part of the flange that the seal contacts. If it is worn, try moving the seal slightly out of the worn area or use a speedi-sleeve.
Berry

 

[sp53]

Yes get a strong one because those things can be tight. Be cautious not to scare the outer edge of the housing were the seal seats by praying something between the two because it will leak between the seal and the case if it scares. It often takes some time to get the seal out because of the limited leverage from the tool, if it moves just a little work it out slow. The important thing is to put everything back proper; often that is putting things back just the way they came out, like counting the turns of the nut, you are basically resetting the bearing similar to a front wheel bearing , but with a 100 to 125 pounds of torque on the nut and a very slight drag on the bearing.

I put the new seal in with some kind of gasket shellac around the outside metal and a little grease on lips of the rubber seal

 

[TR3driver]

I used a big screwdriver after the HF tool broke on the first pull.

I suggest setting the nut to the proper torque rather than trying to judge bearing drag. The correct drag is very light, hard to tell from seal drag. And it's probably best not to over tighten even if the bearings are a bit worn/loose.

 

[Geo Hahn]

I used the Harbor Freight seal puller 3 times successfully - the 2 TRs and a friend's Healey. But maybe I'm just lucky so yeah, get a better one if you can.

I retighten them by first marking the position of the nut before removal then counting the turns. Assembly returns them to the same position. This worked on all but the TR3 on which the nut was only finger tight (and presumably had been that way for the past 30+ years). In that case I went with torque.