sigh..

[DDean]

Not really requesting help for this first part unless someone has some to offer mainly just wanted to rant lol. My front crank seal and rear main seal are leaking oil. I can fix the front but the transmission will have to be dropped for the rear main which a shop will have to do because I don't know how or have the space.

So since I'm going into maintenance mode I guess I should start looking at other stuff. Just hit 77k. What other stuff should I be looking at. I change oil and filter regularly. Air filter is one of K&Ns that I just cleaned and I just changed the plugs last summer.

To do list
Clean throttle body
Repair crank seal
Coolant flush
Kind of want to take the valve covers off and see how things look in there
Install 180 tstat not really maintenance just gonna do it
Replace brake pads

Outside what I've done and plan to do that's the only upkeep performed on this truck. Preferably looking for things that can be done at home and with tools I already have or won't cost me a fortune to buy.

 

[usaf2006]

Shocks maybe? If they're stock still. Axle fluid(s) if you haven't. All I got off the top of my head lol. Sorry to hear about your seals. I think my power steering is leaking a bit. Last time I was under there it was a but wet. And my trans pan may be leaking, not enough to affect fluid level yet, but that will get fixed next month.

 

[JAMMAN]

I would drop the oil pan and check the screen out for sludge. The cylinder walls get so hot that it can cook the oil even if you change it regularly. If you pull the valve covers look toward the rear for sludge build up around the back oil drain hole. Acceleration tends to drift the sludge to the back of the heads.

I doubt if you will see any inordinate wear on the cam or timing chains mine had over 160,000 on it and the cams looked fresh.

If you change the front seal RENT OR BORROW THE CORRECT PULLER to get the dampner off the crank. Trust me

 

[RonJon '06]

Transmission fluid and filter change if it hasn't been done yet. I feel your pain, my rear main seal is leaking and I keep putting it off...

 

[DDean]

Ah forgot to mention transmission fluid and filter were done last fall. Thanks for the ideas keep em comin making a list!

 

[xb1230]

To get to the front main seal you will have to open up the front of the motor, which means removing the Belt, tensioner, Idler pulley and waterpump. All of these should be inspected and replaced as needed. The tensioner and Idler are a cheap part that if they fail can be costly for the rest of the motor.

After these are removed you will be removing the front cover. Inspect the Timing chain, sliders and chain tensioners as they tend to break on the 4,7L leaving you with bad timing problems, bad MPG's and the risk of skipping a tooth on one of the cams... (if the chains look good I might just replace the tensioners just for good measure as they are not that costly).

Oil pump is right under the crank seal so have a look and also the oil pickup as JAMMAN said and in other areas for sludge. If you do the coolant flush, have a look at EVAN's Waterless Coolant. In a few years when I get to flushing the coolant again in my rig that's what I will be putting in. As JAMMAN said the 4,7L tend to run hotter than other V8, cooking the oil. If you have better coolant I would think this would help the cooling process, reduce oil degradation from excessive heat cycles and as such reduce sludge.

If you do brake pads, check for caliper wear and refresh. Even though we have phenolic plastic pistons in our calipers, the rest of them is steel. I took my rear calipers papart a few weeks ago and found out that there was rust deposits on the sides preventing the pistons from operating smoothly. A little elbow grease and a scrubbing pad finalized with a 1000 grit sand paper got the pistons back to brand new silky smooth status and the brakes now operate a hell of a lot better. I was also lucky in the fact that the inner wall of the piston chamber was absolutely rust free and the rubber seals were in very good shape. I will be doing the same operation to the front calipers once I am done with a Home reno project later this summer. What that did in fact was it allowed the pistons to return back to their "stand-by" position much better and smoother and it ended up reducing brake drag and wear. I have gained 1.5MPG's after this... Talk about making sure the brakes don't drag your vehicle and impacts your MPG's... If you have no idea on how to dismantle a caliper, here is a link to a video that convinced me it was feasible with simple tools you have home (if you have an air compressor!) : Eric The Car Guy - Disection and rebuilding a brake caliper. When I do the front on my truck I will be doing a vehicle specific video on the process. the one thing I did on mine that I wanted to outline is spend a little time in the square seal seat area. The side of the seat facing the pads can see a lot of corrosion, so a little patience and a small wire wheel brush on your drill or die grinder will clean it up real good before putting it back together. Also make sure you can operate the bleeder before you take the calipers apart... If the bleeder can't be opened there is no point in getting through the procedure as re-installing the calipers won't be possible.

enough of me romancing this thread, have fun and be safe.

 

[DDean]

Thanks for the advice!