I bought a car that was leaking oil out of every possible place for $750. I just finished replacing all 3 front oil seals, the rear crank seal, and front and rear transmission seals. When I drive it around for the first time after putting it all back together, I discover that it still leaks!

I'm sure the leak is coming from the distributor, the only oil seal that I didn't replace. Reading through the FAQ, the procedure for replacing the shaft seal seems non-trivial. Do I really want to piss around with that, or can I probably get away was just replacing the 2 o-rings that are easy to get at? Is there any definite way to determine the condition of the shaft seal without disassembling it?
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Matt L. Cary, NC two '89 740 sedans

Can I make a logical suggestion straight from the shop?

Replace the whole distributor. On an 89 it is not an expensive proposition because there's not a hall effect sensor on the distributor, rather a crankshaft timing sensor (as you are well familiar with).

The distributors for the later models are much less expensive, and you will drive yourself crazy trying to repair the distributor as it is now. I hate that job and have since given in to replacement, which is often against my basic principles. In this case, it's such a breeze to replace the whole distributor that it wouldn't make sense to do it.

If you are NOT willing to spend the money yet, replace the two O-rings on the shaft. They're so cheap, it's worth the experiment. Not only that, since it takes only five minutes to get the distributor out of the head, AND you don't have to time the car, it is almost silly NOT to see if you have some success doing it that way.
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Chris Herbst
1992 745, 68k

And others:
93 944, 150k
90 245, 110k
88 744, 160k
87 245, 185k

Send me your cores, and I'll install the seal and o-rings and ship them back.

You are more patient and careful than I am. Those rotten things ruin my day.
--
Chris Herbst
1992 745, 68k

And others:
93 944, 150k
90 245, 110k
88 744, 160k
87 245, 185k

That's actually what I did (experiment with o-rings, that is). I had never removed the distributor on a 740 before, but that was incredibly easy. It's harder to remove the dist cap than it is to remove the dist itself. In any case, there's a small gouge in the head at the bottom of the hole that is carved out for the dist, such that the o-ring can't seal it. Can't imagine what caused a gouge there, but I just smeared it with RTV and put it back together. Hopefully that will take care of it, I'm gonna let the RTV dry for a day before driving it.

BTW there was only a small oil stain inside the dist cap from the shaft seal. I will wait to see if an oil leak persists before attempting replacement.
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Matt L. Cary, NC three '89 740 sedans

I've done a couple of these myself. Get in touch with Greg at www.gapa.com (I think they have a new website now but it should still link to it)... they sell a distributor repair kit for around $5 that has both the two outer o-rings AND the inner shaft seal. Also, pick up a new cap, rotor, and hall effect sensor (if your car is so equipped) to do while it's out. Remember, there's two ways to do things: do it right, or do it again! Make sure you make note of the orientation of the keyed dog before you remove it, or your rotor will be 180 degrees out. Also, I've gone through about 3 punches trying to hammer out that damn pin, and also busted a tooth off (you'll see what I'm talking about) the cam-driven assembly by trying to rest the two teeth on the jaws of a vise and then pounding on the pin. I was fortunate to be doing all of this in an auto craft shop, and I had a spare distributor on hand that I had cracked the housing on... between the two, I cobbled together one functional one. Also, I scrounged up a pin just slightly smaller in diameter than the one I had just pounded out. I've been driving with it without incident for several months. Good luck!

-Jon
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1LT Jonathan T. Belmont-- '91 Coupe 166K 'Gustaf' **FOR SALE!!!**

The distributor shaft seal is easy to replace. I have done quite a few. The seal is about $2. The only trick is driving out the pin in the distributor drive dog. Sometimes the pin is really stuck, and it takes some determination with a pin punch to drive it out. If you have already done the front and rear engine seals, this is going to seem easy. You may want to have a Hall effect sensor connector on hand. I think the part number is in the 700/900 FAQ. If not, it is Volvo #1346792. If you can't figure out how to replace the connector, please re-post aned I'll cover it.

Yes. If it is the shaft seal the oil will be inside the dist. If it is the large O ring it will only be on the outside. Not sure what the purpose of the small o ring is. Assume that you have checked flame trap etc and that you do not have pressure build up in the crankcase.