o/s Drive shaft seal.... Again.

[ArozNick]

Seems like I'm having a few issue's with the o/s dive shaft seal. First time my mech used a febi bilstein part which leaked between the seal and drive shaft.
Second time He used the OEM part, and hit it home a little more which solved it.

Since then I had to replace the intermittent bearing bearing, So I disturbed the seal which I replaced again with an aftermarket part, febi bilstein.
And now it's leaking more than ever again between the seal and driveshaft.

Am I missing a trick here? As I put the driveshaft back in one motion? And believe I hit the seal back in the casing evenly.
Or should I stick to OEM parts?

Any tips and advice would help.
Thanks!

[Gadgetman]

I assume you have a Berlingo with the steering on the lefthand side?
(going by your location.. )
Only the righthand driveshaft has an 'intermediate bearing'

Please note that left and right side on cars are specified as seen when sitting in the driver's seat and facing forwards.
'Offside' or 'passenger side' doesn't make much sense if you don't know which side the driver sits on.
And in the case of the McLaren F1 and a few other fun cars, there is no 'offside' since the driver sits in the middle... (Passengers sit side by side behind him)

There are different versions of this seal depending on which gearbox you have. Measure the internal diameter of the old seal very carefully to be certain you get the right one.
And don't fit it dry.
Smear a very thin layer of oil on the outside when fitting it.
And when driving it in, the tool needs to be almost exactly the same diameter as the outer diameter of the seal. Because it needs to push on the outer ring only.
And of course, be very careful when sliding the driveshaft home. That's usually when the seal is destroyed.(Broken one or two that way myself)

[ArozNick]

I assume you have a Berlingo with the steering on the lefthand side?  
(going by your location.. )
Only the righthand driveshaft has an 'intermediate bearing'

Please note that left and right side on cars are specified as seen when sitting in the driver's seat and facing forwards.  
'Offside' or 'passenger side' doesn't make much sense if you don't know which side the driver sits on.
And in the case of the McLaren F1 and a few other fun cars, there is no 'offside' since the driver sits in the middle... (Passengers sit side by side behind him)

There are different versions of this seal depending on which gearbox you have. Measure the internal diameter of the old seal very carefully to be certain you get the right one.
And don't fit it dry.
Smear a very thin layer of oil on the outside when fitting it.
And when driving it in, the tool needs to be almost exactly the same diameter as the outer diameter of the seal. Because it needs to push on the outer ring only.
And of course, be very careful when sliding the driveshaft home. That's usually when the seal is destroyed.(Broken one or two that way myself)

Hi!
Sorry, Mine is right hand drive, ignore my location as I don't live there anymore.
I believe I used a 34mm socket but I cannot remember, But I know it was 100% on the outer race, the biggest issue what I had and space to use a hammer to tap it in, as the power steering pipework is in the way, I might move that next time to make it easier.

I didn't dry fit it either,
All what I can think of is that maybe the aftermarket part isn't as good as the OEM seal's.
I will check the inner measurement like you said.

[Kieron G]

I have been changing driveshaft gaiters on our M49 and was supplied with the wrong ones the first time. The correct inner ones for these drive shafts were called 'tri lobe' or something similar by the lady on the counter. The end of the shaft which fits over the joint has three curved cut outs which the rubber lobes of the correct gaiter fit into. Fitting the plain type gaiter on this shaft won't create a seal. Not sure if M59 have the same design of drive shaft but thought it was worth mentioning.

[brodfather11]

Kieron G , I think the original poster is refering to the drive shaft seal where the drive shaft goes into the gearbox/differential which can leak g/box oil if not treated carefully.

Good point about the gaiters .

[Kieron G]

Kieron G , I think the original poster is refering to the drive shaft seal where the drive shaft goes into the gearbox/differential which can leak g/box oil if not treated carefully.

Good point about the gaiters .

Ah my mistake. Thanks

[oilyrag]

Could be worth looking closely at the driveshaft, where the seal runs, to see if it has any damage. If there are any marks you might be able to polish them out with very fine wet & dry.
Also worth putting a thin smear of sealant on the outer rim of the seal to make sure that the oil isn't getting past the outer edge, and also grease the seal lip and driveshaft when reassembling. That, and using the correct OEM part is as much as you can do. Good luck!

[ArozNick]

Hey guys, Got the seal changed, managed to get a OEM seal.
The seal looked quite different from the original OEM seal and the aftermarket one. It even had a small flange on the out side, the side which you knock in was made of metal.... Hard to explain, I may post a picture sometime.

I even phoned some different dealers and gave my VIN to make sure they all said yes, It was definitely a bigger pain to put in than the others, but it's 100% working. great quality compered to the aftermarket ones too.

Noted for future.

Thanks.