Steve Watts Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 So a month in to Westfield ownership I am close to having covered 500 miles and have just fitted some used Team Dynamics with R888's. Last weekend saw new Protech shocks all-round and the starter motor replaced. This weekend I'll be taking a look at the alternator and fitting short competition steering arms. So far attempts to stop the XE from leaking have only half worked so I think the rear crank seal is going to have to be done too. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dombanks Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 good mileage nice picture Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
congorobot Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Looks the business. Is there a support bracket at the back of the silencer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigHew Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 nice looking car in what is widely acknowledged to be the best colour for a Westfield... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tricky Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Rear crank oil seal is a PITA, I had mine to do on the CVH I had originally. It's not that it's hard just the fact the engine had to come out to do it. On another note, your car looks well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 How bad is the leak from the rear crank seal? XE's are notoriously bad for this, especially once the original factory seal has been disturbed/changed - they can be an absolute devil to get leak free again with a new seal. Cracking looking car though, and the XE is a fabulous engine for a Westfield! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Watts Posted October 10, 2015 Author Share Posted October 10, 2015 The leak is bad still, a litre over the last 500 miles - receipts show it had a full new set of seals from SBD in 2006. Thinking about tuning at the same time - does anyone have experience with the QED kits? - seems like any increase in cam lift requires pistons and the my choice seems to be between retaining hydraulic lifters or going solid? Currently running Jenvey bodies and omex 600 would like to get >220bhp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmd1154 Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 Lovely colour ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff oakley Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 As Dave has said the XE is very prone to leaking. My theory is that they were always designed to have a pipe running to the inlet manifold which sucks the pressure from the sump and fumes and recycles this in the engine again. When we fit carbs and TB's we ditch that and the crank case has more pressure than it was designed for. Even with new seals unless you fit them correctly and especially on the rear seal fitment, seal the end main cap using the Vauxhall sealent, they will still have a tendancy to leak. Also I run mine a little lower on the dipstick as I like to avoid any chance of the oil being whipped up by the crank which also seems to raise the pressure in the crank case Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kit Car Electronics Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 Jeff, couldn't you tap the intake manifold tracts and join them to a small tank fed from the crank vent valve? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arm Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 The leak is usually the rear main bearing cap in the block and against the sump rather than the oil seal. Its difficult to seal the cap .. With care its possible. But of course change the rear oil seal and check the surface it runs on. Proper way to get more power is high compression pistons, higher revs and therefore solid lifters with suitable solid profile cams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crash test dummy Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 There are a few tricks to getting the rear cap to seal properly and one of them involves one of those bendy straws from a little drink carton!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SootySport Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 There are a few tricks to getting the rear cap to seal properly and one of them involves one of those bendy straws from a little drink carton!!!! I think you need to explain a bit more Steve. The Vauxhall dealers don't sell stock the OE sealant anymore, just general silicone stuff that holds oil for a few months only. Tried Googling GM sealant but it seems only a couple of US suppliers have this now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 Do Autovaux still have the sealant? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crash test dummy Posted October 13, 2015 Share Posted October 13, 2015 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VAUXHALL-ASTRA-H-ZAFIRA-B-CORSA-D-ETC-BLACK-SEALING-COMPOUND-GENUINE-NEW/160973989611?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D33661%26meid%3Dfd2c2e48c9414510874f204d5b782a66%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D221911646680 Clean all the surfaces thoroughly with thinners, panel wipe or similar and allow to dry. Fit the cap with a very light smear of sealant on the horizontal cap to block faces - make sure that none is allowed to squeeze through to the bearings - and a light smear on the vertical faces but avoid filling up the grooves in the sides of the cap. With the cap now fitted cut the straight section off your little drinks straw and attach it to the sealant nozzle (might need a bit of tape to help it stay on). Squeeze the sealant through to expel the air in the straw. Now insert the straw right down to the bottom of the groove in the cap and squeeze the sealant out as you slowly withdraw the straw. Give it a fair bit of pressure and you will see the sealant start to ooze out of the vertical join faces of cap/block. I've found this to be a fool proof method of getting a really good seal. If you try pushing the sealant down the groove without the straw you end up with an airlock so you think that it's full when it isn't. The last build I did for myself I couldn't find a straw and tried without. It leaked so I ended up doing it properly but lying on my back with oil dripping in my face - I won't be doing that again. It was dry after that though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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