MF 35 rear main seal

I have a 1962 MF 35 with the Perkins diesel. I was having cranking issues turning over too slow. Battery checked good, troubleshot it to the starter. Pulled the starter and it looked like it was bathed in motor oil. Is this an indication of a blown rear engine seal? It was low on motor oil. Also there is a plug directly under the rearmost part of the engine, takes a 9/16 wrench to turn it. Does this plug drain the crank case or just the flywheel area. I drained about a quart of motor oil from it before plugging it back up so I wouldn't drain all my oil out. This is not the same plug I pull when changing the motor oil. Thanks for any help.

(quoted from post at 22:24:12 02/10/14) I have a 1962 MF 35 with the Perkins diesel. I was having cranking issues turning over too slow. Battery checked good, troubleshot it to the starter. Pulled the starter and it looked like it was bathed in motor oil. Is this an indication of a blown rear engine seal? It was low on motor oil. Also there is a plug directly under the rearmost part of the engine, takes a 9/16 wrench to turn it. Does this plug drain the crank case or just the flywheel area. I drained about a quart of motor oil from it before plugging it back up so I wouldn't drain all my oil out. This is not the same plug I pull when changing the motor oil. Thanks for any help.

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It sounds like you were draining out the transmission/hydraulic fluid from your tractor. There are two drain plugs for the transmission fluid, but they drain the same sump.

Hello,
Normally the plug in the engine backplate that you are referring to is brass. It will be quite safe to remove this and drain any engine oil remaining. You should also slacken the bolts holding the inspection plate under the front of the gearbox. I suspect that you will have oil out here also. It does sound as if you have a major oil leakage at the rear crank seal.

However this leak can also come from the rear cork sealing strip on the sump (oil pan). With age this strip will harden and crack. Unfortunately there is no way to determine which is leaking. It will be a case of split the tractor or remove the sump. If you strike lucky, all well and good. However it is a wise precaution to replace both.

From the quantity of oil that you have mentioned it would appear to be a safe bet that the clutch unit is contaminated with oil and the tractor will require splitting anyway. With the inspection plate removed and using a flashlight you will be able to see if there is oil present on the clutch unit.

Even if the unit is not 'wet' with oil there is a very strong possibility that there will be a film of oil on the clutch plate and it will soon start slipping if not already.

Let us know what you find.

DavidP, South Wales

Top of the morning to you and good day as well Mr. David of Whales! Greetings from the other side of the big pond! I am in southeast Texas near Houston. You seem to be very versed in knowledge of the Massey tractors, having read your previous posts so I do appreciate any helpful input regarding my current predicament. The starter has been sent to the rebuild shop and I will troubleshoot more when time allows. The oil I drained was black motor oil (not hi-tran). I think it was the bell housing area under the clutch/ flywheel I was draining. I will get back on that project in a few days when the weather is not so bloody cold!

G' day!

The 'hole' under the bell housing (for the clutch) is NOT supposed to have a plug. It is a weep hole to let you know that the rear seal in the engine has failed. It is a common tactic when selling these MF35 (or any that have the same set up) to mask an oil leak in this location since it requires the tractor to be split in order to be fixed. Sorry...

(owner of 1961 MF35)...

If something I say contradicts something David says, please listen to David. I would.