Don't know if this is the place for this but here goes.

I've LSJ swapped a 98 Firebird. Its using a solstice transmission and crank pulley, and after a few runs at high rpm the crank seal is getting pushed out. I replaced it with a new one and had the same thing happen in less than 100 mi. I've since ordered a new crank pulley and seal since the pulley I have (bought new for the swap) looks like it wobbles a little bit, but am wondering if maybe the gen 2 blocks have different front cover and seal dimensions or am I suffering major blow by? Doesn't seem down on power and the second seal I ran with the dipstick hanging out so excess pressure had another escape in addition to the valve cover breather. The breather is running into the intake but its far away from the TB.

Heres a photo for fun,

 

Forgot to mention that my timing cover has gouges in it from the pulley coming into contact. I don't remember if it was like that before the swap or not, but that means that there was major deflection at some point in the engines life. It has just over 100k miles.

 

After doing some more research I found threads of LE5 guys switching to 6 rib lsj pulleys, so I cant see why the Solstice LE5 pulley shouldnt work with the LSJ.

That leaves the question of why my crank seal keeps getting pushed out though. Anyone have any thoughts? When it happens and I remove the pulley the seal doesn’t look damaged but it can be pulled out by hand and offers little resistance if I try to put it back in.

I haven’t been reusing the bolt either for what its worth.

 

is the crank moving forward?...thrust bearings worn? is this a high mileage engine?....lets see a pic of the front cover or video of the pulley under load.

 

The car is parked until next season so I can't get anything under load, but I did have somebody actuate the clutch while it was idling today to check for any noticeable movement, and it wasn't moving back and forth at all. Granted this was after a cold start and not while the engine was warm. Engine has just over 100k miles, pulled it from my own Cobalt. I'll pull the balancer tomorrow and get a picture of the cover.

 

Here are pictures of the original and Solstice pulleys, the timing cover, and crank key. Looking at the pulleys I would guess that neither of these actually did the damage to the timing cover, weird that I didnt notice it before but oh well.

It looks like the Solstice pulley may be hitting the timing cover where it protrudes out around the seal though.

What do you think? The lip around the pulley surface that touches the seal is really hard to measure accurately but its right around 2mm on both. Yet on the Solstice pulley its paint is rubbed off.



Lsj



Solstice

 

I've never had this problem and it's not something I've heard of too many other people having either.

I'd have someone sit in the car and slowly pump the clutch pedal while you watch the crank for movement.

 

I've never seen worn thrust bearings in person. Will I be able to push / pull the crankshaft by hand with the clutch disengaged? Am I going to be measuring play with a dial indicator or is it only when its visible that I should worry?

 

I've only seen crank walk on one other vehicle before, and it was a MK3 Supra with a 2JZ. And it was clearly visible when actuating the clutch pedal.

Pulling by hand? I doubt it. I would personally only worry about excessive visible play right now, but checking with a dial indicator probably isn't a bad idea.

 

You should make sure you don't have a plugged PCV or breather system, high crankcase pressure can push out seals. Can drill/tap oil cap for 1/8 NPT and use a boost gauge.

 

Thank you all for the replies. I'll keep this thread posted if I find anything.

Are you referring to the pcv port I've read about in the intake manifold? I never considered an issue there that's a good thought. What kind of issue could be present there beyond a failed intake manifold gasket, and how might I correct it?

 

The one on the back of the valve cover is a bit more pertinent and problematic. LSJ's notoriously have bad crankcase ventilation - GM used to remove the factory port and weld on a -10AN fitting for their LSJ racecars. What do you have that port connected to?

There are plastic baffles in the valve cover and it used to be an issue when people would powdercoat their valve covers and unknowingly melt them. Yours doesn't look PC'd, so that shouldn't be your problem.

 

The valve cover port runs to the intake tract through 8 or 9 inches of rubber hose.

 

Talked with a friend today. He said that he's seen Ecotec crank pulleys start to separate before, and once this happens it'll take the front crank seal out with it. So that MIGHT be your problem.

 

I do hope that my first Solstice pulley was just defective out of the box but we'll see. I have a new one on order already with a fresh seal installed, and a mechanical boost gauge to measure crankcase pressure in the spring. I really appreciate your insight.