68 Mustang rear seal leaking slightly how hard to remove gearbox to fix ???

[69 SCJ]

Hi guys
A mate has asked me this question
Can this be done at home with basic tools
and how complex is it.
Top loader gearbox 4 speed
Your comments are appreciated
Cheers Steve 

[GEOFF289]

Pulling a transmission out is pretty straightforward, even I can do it. The major issue will be that those top loaders are very heavy pieces.

With a hoist and a proper transmission jack it can be a one man job but with the car just up on jack stands and ramps and using  a floor jack the weight and unwieldy nature of the trans mean a second pair of strong hands is pretty much essential.

You can get adaptors you bolt to a floor jack to make them a kind of trans jack - kind of an adjustable cradle thing - that then holds the trans reasonably steady. The problem with this is that the jack at its lowest point, cradle and trans then sits up too high to get it out from under the car if its just up on stands. In this case that might not be a such a problem. It could be used to remove the trans, drop the jack to its lowest and just roll the whole thing back under the tunnel enough to get access to get the bell housing off to access the seal.

 

[sms777]

It is quiet simple....no need to remove gearbox unless it is late model roller block with one piece rear main seal. Remove tube crossmember, if it has ram style power steering you may have to lower steering drag link. Drain oil from sump, undo all sump bolts and you will be able to lower sump and get it out of the way. Using a braker bar undo rear main cap bolts and slighly tap it from the side to side to loosen so you can remove it. This is where it can get complicated . If it has neoprane seal then it's easy because the halfs can be removed by pushing the upper half around crank journal using tiny srew driver. Careful not to damage journal. If it's rope type you will have to source a sneaky tool online to remove upper half around crank. Make sure you tap out the locating pin from maincap (if still intact) before installing new seals. Reinstall everything in reverse. Maincap bolt torque is around 100lbs by memory but you can confirm online.
Good luck.   

[GEOFF289]

Same if it's a big block?

Probably want to make sure it is the rear main that's the problem before you start. Leaks from manifold/head/block interface at the rear or even rocker covers can dribble down and look like you have a rear main problem when you don't.

[69 SCJ]

Thanks guys
Great feedback
Happy New year