[fastfish]

I'm replacing the water pump ,front seal,and timing belt on a 92 lebaron with a 3.0...The timing has been a breeze actually ,,The water pump leaked on start up though...arrgh...Tore it back down and cleaned everything and reinstalled it using new gaskets....same result...it seems to be leaking from the back on the side closest to the firewall. i have a new oring on the tube and it was tough to pull off the first time so i though it had sealed ok with the tube. There was a smaller o-ring in the kit but I really don't see a place for that anywhere...did I need it and where would it go???? I'm at a loss..I have bought another seal and I'm cleaning all the surfaces again. I used blue gasket sealer to hold the gasket in place while assembling it all. Am i just getting the pump a little off on the tube or what?? The old pump wasn't leaking at all...just trying to fix most problems or future problems while in there for the front seal. Almost wish i had left it in place!!!! I want to replace the cam seals too..but also at a loss on how to keep them from turning while loosening the bolt They don't seem to be leaking at all though. The front seal was as hard as a hockey puck, It was definitely leaking . What breif time i ran it to test it there was no leak at the crank...I really need to get this done tomorrow...

 

[dana44]

I hate those O-ring seals for water pipes. Last time I changed one on a Dakota, I used an oversize one and used a little bit of permatex to give it a little lubrication to slide in, making sure you feel the little click when it enters the groove. Check for any imperfections on the tube itself.

 

[John Wood]

I've used blue RTV on both the inner and outside of the O-ring to help the pump slide on over the o-ring without rolling it. Also there can be a lot of buildup or rust in the pipe O-ring groove. That needs to be cleaned. I've used a Dremmel tool with the small stainless steel wire brush to clean the O-ring grooves on these water tubes.

 

[fastfish]

welll...I got it all back together!!! and discovered the leak wasn't the pump..rather it was the thermostat housing. I had taken it off to clean it up and put in a new thermostat (bolts looked rather rusty). They really weren't that bad once i got them off. anyway...it was leaking close enough to the edge of the water pump that it looked like the pump was leaking. Water takes some weird turns!! All leaks fixed now and the front crank seal replascement worked. No more smoke from the engine bay or drips on the frame rails and suspension..yay!!My water pipe wasn't that dirty or rusted at all.The serpentine belt is a bear on these!!Oddly..the advanced stores computer showed an entirely opposite pattern for mine. Everything was pictured to the right of the crank. On my engine everything was to the left and the a/c was on a separate belt.I checked the net for diagrams and decided to check a 90/91 to see if it was different...and it matched my cars engine.Now not sure it is original..or is advanced's computer wrong? Were there two belt set ups for 92's? or do I possibly have an earlier engine? My alt and power steering are close to the firewall..alt being high up and power steering down lower.

 

[fastfish]

welll...crank seal still seems to be leaking after changing it out. I'm sure I positiopned it correctly (same as the old one) and tapped it in far enough. Sooooo ..I guess it needs a repair sleeve. The sleeve I have for it has a removeable flange on it and a metal cup installation tool.I don't really look forward to replacing this again but wanted some advice on installing the sleeve. It appears that it would be almost impossible to get that flange off after tapping it in. The directions with the seal show installing it on the balancer itself but that doesn't seem right either. How do I correctly install that part???

 

[John Wood]

I did this on my 96, 3.0 and although I'm having a hard time remembering exactly what it looked like, I'm pretty share that I tapped it in flange end first and it was not necessary to remove the flange on the repair sleeve. That has been a few years ago and I haven't had any problems or leaks. Sometimes those sleeve cups don't provide enough depth if the crankshaft sticks out a bit so you may need a piece of pipe to drive it in further. Carefully measure the seal wear groove distance and drive in the sleeve far enough so that the flange is far enough back that the rear of the seal won't get squashed against it. Try not to scratch the new sleeve at the sealing surface if you have to use a pipe. Protect it with tape if necessary.

On my 3.0. I sleeved the crank and cam shafts, and when I had the tranny out, I sleeved the rear crank. With all new seals, I have no leaks in those places. I will need to re-do the valve cover and rear cam plugs soon since some seepage has become evident in those places.

 

[fastfish]

thanks john..that was my issue..I wondered if the flange would bottom out and be ok to leave on the sleeve.Sounds like it would not be a problem. I'll probably use pvc pipe if it becomes necessary to use a pipe rather than the tool and tape the sleeve. I don't see evidence of a leak at the cams so will probably just put in new seals and call it a day with them. No leaks from the back of the engine ...so far...even the plugs don't show any drips. My valve cover seal repairs do seemed to have worked! I was getting clouds of smoke at stop lights from the engine bay but not getting that anymore. I think the rear cover was leaking on the exhaust.