Rear seal leak? Power steering?

[Keith W]

I am getting familiar with my new-tome '98 chevy g3500 6.5 TD van.

There's a fair bit of oil at the back end of the engine, up onto the turbocharger and down past the starter and at the bottom of the engine. The valve covers look fine. I guess this would imply a rear seal?

Also: the power steering pump is drenched in oil, or I suppose power steering fluid. Should I be concerned? It doesn't seem to be loosing much at all.

thanks for any help! I'm just getting up to speed on this vehicle, and on diesels. Keith

[HammerWerf]

Keith,

I've been battling the leaking power steering pump on my 80's truck for a number of years. A 6.2/5 mechanic at the dealership told me that he has seen a number of leaky PS pumps. He had found that a lot of times the threaded in connections vibrate a bit loose and make a mess. He suggested snugging up the connections on the back of the pump. I did it on mine, and while I can't be sure that the fitting moved, the leak seems to have been reduced a lot. Not leaving tell tail puddles like I use to.

You might try the same thing with the turbo oil feed and drain. they might be a bit loose. As a brake class teacher I had said, " Do the Easy checks first."

HammerWerf

[Keith W]

Thanks, I'll do that. Might not have thought about it, but only because it's obvious!

keith