I'm just an interloper from the Harley site, but I have a little engine problem. I'm the chief of a rescue squad that has 3 Ford E350 ambulances, running the 7.3 liter engine. One of the trucks, with 89,000 miles on it, has blown a rear oil seal. From my experience with gas engines, it usually takes some excesive oil pressure to do this, which you would see from the dipstick or PVC system first, or an overfill. Not sure here. Couple of questions....

1. Why did it go?
2. How much to fix?
3. Does it involve an engine teardown, or dropping the engine/transmission from the bottom to repair.

Appreciate any insight into this. Dealer can't say why it would go, it sorta surprised them, too.

 

The rear seal sits in a aluimim housing and sometimes the seal will start spinning in the housing and causeing it to leak, sometimes intermittly. I have seen this many times in some of the moving trucks I maintain, they are Internatials with 444E engines witch are the same as the ps in a ford. You do have to remove the trans to get acc to it. Whoever changes it for you make sure they replace the seal housing also. Sorry about some of the spelling.