HR215HXA with GXV140 engine - Oil leak on crank seal, flywheel end

Newbie to the forum, great to be here. I've never ever had a problem on this outstanding 22 yr old machine but lately it's been slobbering out oil from the crank seal flywheel end. I just completed the repair today (or so I thought) by driving in the new seal with a length of PVC pipe. Since the old seal was not flush with the case (in fact it was roughly 1/4" below the lip) I assumed that I should drive the new seal down to the same depth. I started her up, did about 15 minutes of mowing, and she starts slobbering oil again.

My question then is this. After searching a bit for an answer to this problem, it appears that perhaps I should not have driven this seal to the same depth of the old one. Should this seal in fact be flush with the top of the lip? Should I lube the outside of the seal at all? Thanks ahead for any replies.

Dan50 said:

Newbie to the forum, great to be here. I've never ever had a problem on this outstanding 22 yr old machine but lately it's been slobbering out oil from the crank seal flywheel end. I just completed the repair today (or so I thought) by driving in the new seal with a length of PVC pipe. Since the old seal was not flush with the case (in fact it was roughly 1/4" below the lip) I assumed that I should drive the new seal down to the same depth. I started her up, did about 15 minutes of mowing, and she starts slobbering oil again.

My question then is this. After searching a bit for an answer to this problem, it appears that perhaps I should not have driven this seal to the same depth of the old one. Should this seal in fact be flush with the top of the lip? Should I lube the outside of the seal at all? Thanks ahead for any replies.

Click to expand...

Shop manual says to "...drive new oil seal into crankcase until the outer face is flush with the crankcase" and to "Oil the bearing to ease installation..." (nothing about the seal). Special tools (drivers, attachments, and pilots are shown):



Are you sure it's the seal that's leaking?

Thanks Robert,

I've got the Honda service manual, darned if I found any written directions but I may have missed it. the only thing I saw was a detailed blowup of the crank end components on the removal/installation page. Anyways I much appreciate the words of wisdom. Before I took off the original seal, it was obviously leaking when you tip the mower to the side, like I do when I change the oil thru the dipstick holder. I have not removed all of the components yet again to check if it is the new seal leaking, but the oil is coming from the same area. Since the first oil leak, and again after I changed out the seal to the wrong depth, the mower has a different sound, kind of a droning sound. I am guessing that noise is the seal rubbing against the ball bearings. You would have to disassemble the motor to change that out, wouldn't you, how often do those go bad?

Thanks again,
Dan

Dan50 said:

I am guessing that noise is the seal rubbing against the ball bearings. You would have to disassemble the motor to change that out, wouldn't you, how often do those go bad?

Click to expand...

Yes, the engine off the deck, pan off the bottom of the engine, crankshaft out, then remove the bearing from inside the crankcase. Once out, it should be inspected for both axial and radial play/noise, and replaced as needed.

Hard to say what the useful life of the bearing should be, as conditions vary greatly. How old is the mower, maybe 20+ years? Only used at home (not commercially)? I would guess that is not an unexpected period of time for the bearing to last. A quick check shows a new bearing from Honda has a list price of about $26, but most dealers discount off that. You need the frame serial number off the mower's deck to get the correct match; here's a link to find a dealer near you:

Find A Honda Dealer

Thanks again Robert,

I already have the seal on order again, I'll change that out first, flush with the crankcase, and hopefully that'll fix 'er. Changing the bearing out may require more time than I have at the moment after repairing 3 riding mowers in the last three weeks for myself and neighbors!

The mower's 22 years old, but it gets pretty light duty these days as my rider does most of the work. I've always been religious on oil changes with Mobil 1 and the air cleaner stays clean so if it were a bearing it would surprise me but who knows.

Dan