Fixing Your Old Engine's Rear Main Seal Rope
If you've ever stared at a puddle of oil under your vintage truck, there's a good chance your rear main seal rope has finally given up the ghost. It's one of those parts that sounds incredibly primitive—because it is. We are literally talking about a piece of braided material soaked in graphite or Teflon that's supposed to keep the lifeblood of your engine from pouring out the back. If you're used to modern engines with their fancy Viton rubber seals and precision-engineered housings, the idea of a rope seal might seem like something out of the 19th century. But for those of us keeping old iron on the road, it's a reality we have to deal with sooner or later. ...