Thread: Swivel seal leaking when car jacked up

Hi Ash,

If there is actually movement up and down then you have to look at the bushes and bearings inside rather than just the seal. Railko Bush is what it is called but there is also a bearing down the bottom of the swivel housing. You can buy kits that include all the bearings and seals and shims you need to do the job.

TimJ.

In addition it is possible that it just needs adjustment, but the amount of play will tell you that. I would pull it apart and look. From the sounds of it you also need other seals in the hub side so you are going to be taking it apart anyway.

TimJ.

Cheers Tim.

So from what ive read there are shims in the top bearing that you can remove to adjust, this sound right?

You have a bush at the top and a bearing at the bottom. There can be shims in both of them as it may be necessary to centre the swivel ball in the seal. The total thickness of top and bottom shims is relevant to the preload required on the bearing, wether they are on the top or bottom is relevant to the positioning in the seal. If your seal is shot you can buy a cut seal that you can put on without taking out the whole assembly and it then has a join at the top of the ball but personally I would take the lot out and have a look anyway since you have play. If the seal has been leaking oil outwards then it has probably also been leaking water and mud inwards and that doesn't usually go well with bearings and bushes. It is a fair pain of a job though, not really technically difficult just a pain.

TimJ.

If you have freewheeling hubs and not been engaging them frequently or have grease in the swivel, it is likely that the Railko bush has been suffering inadequate lubrication. If this is the case the bush will be oversized and need replacing.

If the movement is only up and down (vertically) then it is possible that it is only the thrust washer that is worn and you can get away with removing a couple of shims.

However if, with the bottom of the housing supported against the lower bearing (a second jack pressing up on the bottom pin will do) and you can rock the top pin in and out, then you need to replace the Railko bush or the pin or both.

Thanks for the info, much appreciated.
The seal and swivel are both in really good nick, I'm pretty sure its just an adjustment issue.
There is up/ down rocking, only about 5mm Max, but enough that the swivel ball retracts away from the seal, causing the leak.
Can that be adjusted out with the railco's or is it indicative of a stuffed seal?
I took the top pin out this arvo and its shows no wear at all, I also leave hubs engaged 24-7.

Originally Posted by ashhhhh

There is up/ down rocking, only about 5mm Max, but enough that the swivel ball retracts away from the seal, causing the leak.
Can that be adjusted out with the railco's or is it indicative of a stuffed seal?

Start removing shims and see if you can get the preload on the swivel as detailed in the workshop manual. If you can't and there are no more shims to remove, then it is time to replace the thrust washer, or possibly the bottom bearing if it is knackered.

My S3 manual doesn't mention using an equal thickness of shims on the top and bottom pins - unlike my S1 manual - instead they say loosening the seal and moving it about, should centralise it on the swivel ball,

Cheers Charlie

Well I couldn't get any preload, even with all shims removed.
Ive ordered swivel rebuild kits for both sides, may as well do both at once.

The only part im not sure about is pressing the old bushings out of the swivel housing, do I NEED a press for this or can they be drifted in/out?

Cheers
Ash