A rear main mystery

Question:

My Willys Wagon has been apart for weeks. After removing the rope rear main seal, I have discovered that installing a new neoprene seal is not easy. When a Felpro seal could not be installed with the engine in the car, a Jeep blog sent me to a Jeep engine rebuilder in California who said to use a seal from Best Gasket Company. It looks very promising. The question now is, do I cut off the protruding ends, which have steel inside?

Answer:

I wouldn’t cut anything off where the gasket sticks up out of the end cap because you will want that to compress when tightened. That’s because over time the seal will shrink a bit, and you want a little pressure on it all the way around. Personally, I prefer the old-style rope seals myself as I have had better luck with them on my classics.