SnowyATX

All,

After dealing with some nasty clutch issues after a new motor install I'm 95% (pics coming soon) that my flywheel bolts have been leaking causing the front portion of the clutch disk to become very sticky and nasty. The original post is shown below:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1748916

I've seen a few other posts where folks have had the same issue with after market cranks. So my question is this? 1.) How should I clean the existing holes (maybe carb cleaner???) and 2.) How should I seal the bolts (ARP's).

This is such a bizatch as I've ordered a new clutch and a new RPM tranny....oh well it will feel like new again.

Thanks in advance for any input for those that have been down this patch.

SnowyATX

Yep, used a mirror and each hole breaks thru just a tiny bit.....dangit. What a crap load of effort and $$$ for $.05 worth of sealant.

Anyhow, the question still remains. What sealant should I use? Red loctite maybe?....although I don't think its intended to be a sealant but I could be wrong.

LoneStarFRC

Not sure if I follow this too well here. As far as I knew, the flywheel to crankshaft bolts don't pass through anything that could "leak". They are dry and merely attach the two pieces to one another. The only "fluid" they might see would be some Loc-Tite used on the threads to prevent loosening.
Maybe I'm missing something here.

SnowyATX

LoneStarFRC,

Unfortunately I don't have a pic of a crank itself but the only way I can describe it is that these holes are not blind....as in they are exposed to oil on the inside of the motor....I think. The flywheel bolts were soaked in oil when I removed them....anyhow I'll post pics when I get them off of my camera.

You may be right....at this point I'm baffled and a little pissed so any input is appreciated.

LoneStarFRC

It seems to me that if you are seeing oil on the bolts, it's most likely coming from a rear main crankshaft seal leaking or possibly a leaking oil pressure sender (up above and on the rear of the engine) that might be leaking down into the bellhousing and backside of the engine.

Patches

Here's a pic of the flywheel.



Here's a pic of the rear crank flange with bolts removed. Notice no oil inside those holes.



Here's a closeup.



The rear crank seal is on the outer flange surface. Here's an illustration tha shows how the seal fits over the crank.

edcmat-l1

The flywheel bolts holes are THRU holes. You can see into the inside of the engine thru them. I just use a liberal amount of red locktite on them. When it hardens, it seals. Never have problems with them leaking.

Patches

I've always used just Loctite on the flywheel bolts as specified by the SM:

"Apply threadlock GM U.S. P/N 12345382, Canada P/N 10953489, or equivalent to the threads of the flywheel bolts."

SnowyATX

If I'd only known this when I put the ARP's in there. Oh well, life can always be worse.

Sick Z06

I dont mean this in any derogitory way at all.... 90% of being a mechanic is attention to detail. When you removed the old bolts, you should have looked at them and wondered why they looked "crusty" on the ends.

I try my damnedest, to pay attention to that kind of stuff, since it always returns to bite me in the rear. Glad to hear you solved the issue though. How bad was the oil damage? Did you have to replace the disc?

LoneStarFRC

Are all LS cranks like this or is it the case with aftermarket only?

SnowyATX

The irony is I built up a whole new motor and I screwed this up "knock on wood". The clutch is toast (gooy, stick, nasty on the front side) as will be seen when I get my camera working again. I have a completely new one sitting here ready to go in.

Agreed on the attention to detail. I guess it was the ARP's that through me off. Oh well....time to put it back together and move on.

LoneStarFRC

Why can't you just do a good cleaning of the pressure plate and flywheel and then just replace the disc?

Sick Z06

I hear ya there, funny how the simple thing can bite you in the rear, huh?

Simply put, at this point the friction material of the clutch, be it organic or not, is now contaminated with oil. Which will cause a swelling of it, and will continue to cause it to degrade much quicker then if it was not contaminated. Also it will continue to bleed out its contaminate onto the pressure plate, and flywheel, and thus cause more glazing. Leading to premature failure of those parts as well.

Best idea is to replace the disc now, while its much cheaper to do so, and use a can or 2 of brake clean to get the flywheel and pressure plate clean.

SnowyATX

I'm going all the way as I already have a brand new clutch (and hydraulics) and a new RPM tranny on the way. I'm tired of messing around with this drive train. Had I known it was bolts only I'd probably of done the clutch only but at this point the new tranny won't hurt.

SteveDoten

, red loctite or replace with new GM bolts, the information is covered in the GM tech data

see5

The crank is pressurized with oil. Make sure that plug in the end is not leaking.

bayarea

do the stock bolts require sealant or is it just the arp.

do you have a pic of this plug? if its the oil galley plug i know what your talkin about.

Chevy Guy

Wow, learned something new. I never knew the flywheel bolts were open to oil/oil pressure, sounds like a silly design to be quite honest.

see5

That is it right in the center of Patches picture . Looks like an old style freeze plug.