Hello getting my clutch worked on. Is it worth pulling shaft out to check for IIS (or ISS) for leaks? Is it extra labor? Sorry if I have terminology confused or if this is totally not related - still new to this. Thanks.

 

RMS is an easy replacement, cost of the seal is about $20. S/B an hour at most to replace it if the flywheel is off. Is there any sign of leakage at the RMS?

More important is the IMS seal and bearing. If it was me and I had the trans out I would spend the $600 on the LNE bearing, which comes with a new support plate, seal etc. This will an an hour or so to the labor. If you are in the Chicago area LNE is in Mokena so you could either pick up a bearing or have it over-ngihted. Most of the cost in the IMS bearing upgrade is the labor to remove the trans and flywheel.

 

there is no RMS leak and I had a newer seal put in anyway.

the LNE part is $500 from what I remember, where can I get one for $60?

With regards to the shaft, should it be pulled out and checked for a leak as well? I remember reading about intermediate shaft seal that sometimes presents a leaking concern

Thanks

 

One more thing: what is the difference between RMS and IMS? There is a lot of fear hear about RMS failure, but LNE is offering IMS seal for $500+. Should both RMS and IMS be checked when transmission is out?

 

Sorry, left out a zero, the IMS bearing upgrade runs about $600 for the part. The RMS can leak but I have never heard of a catastrophic failure from the RMS. The IMS is the source of the catastrophic failures.

RMS is the rear main seal, the seal around the end of the crank shaft. The original versions sometimes developed leaks, and there have been cases of the crankshafts not being centered in the engine cases which makes it impossible to make the seal last.

The IMS is the intermediate shaft. The bearing on the flywheel end of this shaft is sealed and these bearings are one of the sources of failures. The LNE bearing upgrade includes a new bearing and the flange that holds it in place.

 

Ok thanks DHarn. If I don't plan on doing LNE at this time, can IMS seal be replaced at this time while transmission is out, or there is no such seal? How much extra work is this, does shaft need to be pulled out to be checked for IMS leaks? I've been reading the forum and reading LNE website for over a year now but unless you are a mechanic this can be very confusing. Thanks again.

 

Might want throw a new AOS on while your at it. This is a big case of the " might as wells".

 

I'd totally do the LNE IMS next time my tranny is out, leaks or not. ounce of prevention, pound of cure..

Cheers
Aaron

 

+1 for the IMS preventative maintenance while the tranny is out.

 

How many more hours to remove the shaft and install LNE part? Tempting.

 

Your car is being worked on right now? Then ask your mechanic for a quote.

I got a quote for the LN IMS upgrade for a firm price of $2000 (complete) from a highly qualified, P car expert that has supposedly completed many LN upgrades. Obviously, if the trans is out, this would be much less.

I am saving up for this.

 

So the $2000 quote is $600 for the part plus $1400 labor. Clutch/Rms seal work is $700 so leaves $700 to install the LNE bearing. If you don't have a leak maybe it's worth getting extended warranty that will run you 2-3K and it will protect you from other potential issues.

In any case I trust my mechanic but I do have reservations about letting someone install LNE possibly for the first time and I have no way of knowing if they have experience installing this part or not. I remember reading the procedure is delicate and has to be done right so I would do a research before doing it.

In the meantime can IMS seal be replaced with OME seal or LNE is the only option? I am still trying to figure this out.

 

There is a common mindset, that if your car has no leaks, no weird debris in your oil/oil filter, no weird sounds, then don't worry about it. Its not my opinion, but a lot of people feel that way. To just enjoy your car as is, and know that there is supposedly a small number of failures out there.

Yes, I too would be a little concerned about a mechanic using my car as a guinea pig to try out installing a new IMS bearing for the first time. But how do you know your mechanic hasn't done this before? Contact Charles at LNE, he is very accessible/approachable and can help you or your mechanic with this project.

Aftermarket warranty... its a short list of reputable companies that provide this. Short. List. Fidelity and maybe another one or two. I bought my car with 26K miles and bought the Fidelity warranty for around $3K. It expired last year, and the car had no problems during that time except for a failed coil pack. Car is now 11 years old with 65K miles. No warranty company worth doing business with will cover my car, so warranty is not an option for me.

LNE is not the only option for the IMS bearing, but from what I understand, OEM its a flawed design. So you could put a new, OEM, flawed design in your car (if my assumption is correct), or you can go with the improved design from LNE. I don't remember the number Charles told me, but of all the LNE IMS bearings in use, he claims there have been no failures yet. Nice peace of mind.

I would install the LN IMS bearing while your tranny is out. Fingers crossed that your mechanic has done this before. Good luck.

 

If the trans is out and the flywheel is off the LNE bearing should only take an hour or so. If the flywheel has not been removed add another half hour or so and the cost of the flywheel bolts. All I can say is that if it was me I would do the upgrade.

 

In my opinion if the bearing shows no sign of leak then don't touch it. I barely put on 300-500 miles on the car each month. The process is delicate and the bearing can break during removal so why risk it? If you track your car and put lots of miles on it then do it.