Crankshaft seal leak

Tiny
JENNIFER11889
  • MEMBER
  • 2010 CHEVROLET MALIBU
  • 2.4L
  • 4 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 230,000 MILES
I have had my front crankshaft seal replaced four times in the past year and a half. I've had family and mechanic shops replace it. Each time, it holds up for a little bit then starts leaking again. The most recent time it was replaced was about three months ago, and I also had to replace my alternator because oil got thrown up into it. It's now starting to leak again. The last seal I got was from the dealership, so I'm not sure why the thing keeps leaking. Please help!
Monday, February 11th, 2019 AT 7:33 AM

6 Replies

Tiny
ASEMASTER6371
  • MECHANIC
  • 52,797 POSTS
Good afternoon,

The reason they leak is from the crankshaft itself. It is wobbling up and down. This happens because the front main bearing is most likely worn allowing the crank to wobble.

If you have had three replaced, I would have someone check this bearing to confirm.

Roy
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Monday, February 11th, 2019 AT 10:24 AM
Tiny
SCGRANTURISMO
  • MECHANIC
  • 4,897 POSTS
Hello,

It could be that you have a nick or a burr on your crankshaft. It could possibly be out of round. Did anyone that you had replace the seal check for any problems with the shaft itself? Here are a couple of links for you to go through:
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/symptoms-of-a-front-crankshaft-seal-leak
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/front-main-seal-replacement
I have included a oil leak flowchart for you down below in the diagrams. Let us know what you find out please. I hope this helps.

Thanks,
Alex,
2CarPros
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Monday, February 11th, 2019 AT 10:25 AM
Tiny
JENNIFER11889
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
Roy - I wasn't aware of any bearing, but I'll definitely ask my go-to mechanic to check that out for me.

Alex - Is that something they would have noticed when they were replacing it?
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Monday, February 11th, 2019 AT 12:21 PM
Tiny
SCGRANTURISMO
  • MECHANIC
  • 4,897 POSTS
Hello,

Like Roy said, it is the crankshaft itself that is causing this. They should been checking for what was causing this especially since this is the third one in a year and a half. Without seeing it we can only make educated guesses as to what is wrong with the crankshaft, but we know that it is the crankshaft.

Thanks,
Alex
2CarPros
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Monday, February 11th, 2019 AT 3:54 PM
Tiny
JENNIFER11889
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
Thank you for the information. I'll see what I can find out about it and get back with you guys.
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Monday, February 11th, 2019 AT 6:05 PM
Tiny
MOTOR MASTER
  • MECHANIC
  • 279 POSTS
Hello my name is Dave.

It appears to me that the most likely problem is with the harmonic balancer, if you could have your mechanic check it to make sure that the isolation rubber is in good shape if it is it most likely has a small groove in it from the original bad seal. There are usually two options to repair this issue, first would be a repairing seal which is offset so the seal rides in a different position on the balancer, the second would be a repair seal which is a very thin metal sleeve that goes over the balancer giving it a new surface to seal to.
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Friday, February 15th, 2019 AT 5:23 AM

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