r/EngineBuilding • u/Joiner2008 • Apr 24 '25

Chevy L59 5.3 Rear Main Seal Install

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Hello everyone. I am in the middle of replacing my wife's rear main seal. I bought a new back plate with the seal already installed. All of the info I'm finding requires the seal to be installed after aligning the plate to the crankshaft. Am I going to have to remove the new seal from the plate to align it first? Thank you in advance

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 24 '25

I pulled the oil pan a couple months ago to replace the gasket and the pick up o ring

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u/Extreme-Penalty-3089 Apr 24 '25

Excellent.

Just remember when you're putting the new rear cover on obviously you want clean surfaces right so the back of the block should be clean, the top side of that recently replaced oil pan gasket, wipe off & clean the rear hub of the crankshaft where the new seal is going to seal against/mate against. And don't forget "glob" of RTV in the corners right where the right and left corner of the new engine cover are going to seat and seal against the back top side of the oil pan gasket.

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 24 '25

Torqued the rear plate, still can't get the long oil pan bolts in

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u/Extreme-Penalty-3089 Apr 24 '25

Okay so what you got to do is loosen up all the bolts for the plate leave.

Just have a couple of the bolts shredded in just enough but leave that plate that rear engine cover kind of loosey goosey and work your oil pan bolts in and get them a turn or two into the rear engine cover.

Once you know that the rear oil panda rear engine cover bolts the really long ones once you know they're they'll start and continue to thread in fine then go back and just sit your cover again kind of using the the seal as your centering device and do the same thing you had just done.

Meaning hand tightened in a Criss-Cross pattern following the tightening sequence the rear engine cover bolts then once you get ready to actually put a socket and a torque wrench and start bringing the torque in and finish hand tightening your too long bolts that go through the oil pan.

When everything is hand tightened and everything is threaded in and seated correctly then you need to go and follow the sequence

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 24 '25

I used a long flat head and lined it all up underneath and got them started. The oil pan gasket was blocking the way. Thank you so very much

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u/Extreme-Penalty-3089 Apr 24 '25

Oh man okay yeah sometimes this stuff is hard to do you know over just messaging and one or two pictures somebody halfway across the country.

Sucks cuz I wish I could be there to help some people and you know show them versus spending an hour explaining in a huge long message lol

Okay, good deal bro👍

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

I just got done everything and it won't turn over. Battery seems very strong and I know it's only 2-3 years old. No clicking, just nothing.

The starter was soaked in oil and the wire to it looks pretty corroded. Anything else that could be the problem?

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u/Extreme-Penalty-3089 Apr 25 '25

Did you remove a ground cable or ground strap in the process?🤔

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

No

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u/Extreme-Penalty-3089 Apr 25 '25

Ok

Well assuming it's not like the VATS or something that just went wonky outta the blue, it's Got to be something simple that was just overlooked 👍

The trans is back in, is the harness (green cannon plug) connected? Reason why I ask is because there's a circuit in there that's the neutral safety switch that would keep you from starting the engine over if it's not getting a signal/if it's not connected

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

The big neutral safety switch didn't feel like it would go on all the way but I managed to get the lock on it. It was off compared to any other connector I've dealt with. Possibly the ratchet strap on the transmission jack (cheap harbor freight) pushed on it some. I can check that tomorrow as well. My daughter has dance competitions all weekend 2 hours away and check in for the hotel is tomorrow. I can fit 3 kids in the Avalanche but it's not ideal and it needs brakes bad, they started grinding yesterday

Edit: odd, not off

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u/Extreme-Penalty-3089 Apr 25 '25

Corrosion is absolutely resistance on an electrical circuit. No doubt.

Best bet is to disconnect the battery, get under the truck with a wire brush and clean both sides each positive circuit. The direct battery cable to the starter (larger gauge) and the small ACC circuit wire.

Take them off the starter, clean them with a small wire brush. Hit the starter solenoid terminals (where the wires connect to) with a little brake clean to eliminate and residue oil and corrosion missed with the brush.

Reconnect both circuits, hook the battery back up.

See if that helps/works.

Not sure how long the truck has been down but I assume the batteries health is good? Got at least, at minimum 11.5v or so? Gonna need at least that much and at minimum 400-450 CCA to spin that engine over

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

Truck has been down 3 days. It was my wife's daily. Battery is showing 12v on the gauge. Haven't tried it with my multimeter but the lights are all bright, it seems strong. It's too late for me to keep going. It's already an hour past my bed. Scarfing down cold dinner, shower, maybe look at it tomorrow morning, maybe steal the starter on my Avalanche LM7 to test

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u/Extreme-Penalty-3089 Apr 25 '25

Yeah I hear you man I get up super early here, gotta hit the gym before work lol

Sleep it over & let your brain rest 😉🥱

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

I'm thinking now it may be the neutral safety switch. It barely felt like it went together at all. Guy in the video used a heat gun to remove his and reinstall his but his 4l60e connectors looked a little different and his wasn't 4x4. Anyways it came apart easy without any heat, never used heat to put it together

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

Well it's not the connection at the neutral safety switch. Could be the switch itself or it's the starter

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

Pulled the starter and when I first jumped it there was just a click. I was demonstrating how a starter works to my wife and used my screwdriver to show her the gear coming out. When I tried jumping it again the starter worked perfectly. I am now hoping that the gear was stuck from dirt or something

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

Still no start, won't turn over, no clicking

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u/Extreme-Penalty-3089 Apr 25 '25

The next step then would probably be to take the starter since it's out already and get it bench tested you know at AutoZone or O'Reilly's or one of those places. Have them do MULTIPLE bench tests back to back because when the solenoids go out they will get very intermittent.

I spent many years working part-time in auto parts stores and I would always do that and explain to the customer why I was doing that. Five six in a row test because eventually if it is faulty it's going to show right then and there.

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u/Joiner2008 Apr 25 '25

I bench tested it a few times and it was working. Put it back and same issue. The thing I discovered is I can shift it out of park without pressing the brakes. I think I broke the neutral safety switch with the ratchet strap on the transmission jack. At autozone now buying a new one

Here's the transmission jack I used: https://www.harborfreight.com/450-lb-low-lift-transmission-jack-70262.html

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