Washer Gear Case Cover Seal

To replace gearcase seals, first disconnect the power cord. Turn off water supply and remove water inlet hoses at washer (safety first). You may want to have a bucket available to catch water that will drain out of the hot/cold and drain hoses. Next, remove top agitator cap, seal and (7/16”) bolt (see diagrams on PartSelect). This will allow the top agitator and cogs to be removed. Grab the bottom agitator and rock it back and forth until it can be removed.
Suggestion: now is a good time to remove and clean the old soap and junk from drain holes in the top agitator and any junk that may be under the lower agitator.
Lay the washer on its right side. You will now have access to the motor, pump, hoses clutch and gearcase. Place a couple of 2X4X(5?) blocks under the tub to support it. Remove the electrical connector from the motor (this is clipped into place) and the two wires that go to the capacitor on the motor.(TIP: don’t put your finger across these terminals, SHOCK HAZARD) Remove the hose clamps and hoses, the two screws (5/16”) on each strap that holds the motor in place, you may have to use a screw driver to pop the straps off the motor. Remove the motor and pump by pushing the tub to the left and move the motor and pump to the right to clear the coupling. If you have not replaced the drive coupling, now would be a good time to order and replace. With the motor out of the way, remove the three (½”) bolts holding the gearcase to the chassis and pull to remove gearcase and shaft. If you are only replacing the drive shaft seal, you do not need to open the gearcase case. Stand the gearcase so the input shaft is facing up, or what fluid is left in the gearcase will come out. One question I see a lot is how do you remove the seal. One, buy a real expensive tool that you will only use once, or take a screwdriver with about a ¼” blade, stick it between the shaft and the seal, gently leverage the seal out while going around the shaft. After the seal is removed, oil can be added thru the seal hole. Understand that different oils are designed for different applications. That said, I used 90 weight gear oil from the local auto parts store, you can add it thru the seal hole. To install the seal, lightly tape it into the seal cavity, then use a socket that is close to the diameter of the seal and gently drive it in.
If you have to replace the top case seal, it will require you to take the gearcase apart. The advantage of this is, if you have an older washer, you can clean out the contaminated oil and sludge and check for wear on the parts, and replace as needed from PartSelect. Here’s a suggestion: if you have a digital camera, take pictures, this will really help when you put things back together.
Now look at the diagram that is provide by PartSelect, remove the clutch, remove the bolts on the top cover, try to keep it level or you may have a mess on your hands. Lift the cover up over the shaft. I found the top case seal very stubborn to remove. Using a small screwdriver, get between the case and the seal and gently pry it out. Replace the seal, again, by using a socket and gently taping into place. There is also a seal at the top of the drive gear that you may want to replace to keep the oil from going up into the clutch. Now its time to clean all of the years of gunk out of the case and gears. When you are ready, fill the bottom half of the gearcase with oil, about half a quart. To seal the case, I used a ultra blue silicone gasket sealer in a tube from my local auto parts store or sealant can be purchased from PartSelect. I used it on the top half of the gearcase case. Slide the top case over the shaft and evenly tighten the bolts. Reinstall the clutch to the gearcase shaft and install into the washer. I found that the motor bearings needed to be lubed, so I used white lithium grease in an aerosol can. Reinstall motor and don’t forget to put the electrical plug back into the motor and the wires that go to the capacitor and pump h

Please note that there is a very though instruction video under, PS 334641 clutch assembly, which deals with this subject. I removed the three bolts holding the motor and transmission onto the center post and the screw holding the agitator to the center drive shaft. I also removed the wiring harness to the motor. I then pulled the motor and transmission out the bottom of the machine. I found that that there was a white nylon drive part, which was broken, that connected the transmission to the center agitator shaft, through the brake mechanism. That's why the machine didn't spin dry. The brake mechanism was full of transmission oil, which might have caused or contributed to the problem. When I looked for the PS334641 clutch assembly, which contained the part I needed, I found the video that showed me how to remove the part properly. The part wasn't that hard to change, but I also decided to change the gear case cover seal PS340984, because of the oil leak. That's a bit tricky if you haven't changed a seal before, but an automotive shop could probably change it for you if your transmission was leaking. I wasn't able to remove the out side covering of the machine, but there was enough room to work from the bottom. Following the video, the rest went well, but I should have changed the rubber motor drive part that connects the motor and the transmission, since it was pretty worn. Next time.

1. Unplug the machine.
2. Turn the water off.
3. Disconnect the supply and discharge hoses.
4. Open the cover and remove the cap/cover of the agitator. Use socket wrench to remove the bolt securing the agitator. Pull up on the agitator and remove it.
5. Lay washing machine down on it's front. Remove the inlet and outlet drain hoses from the discharge pump.
6. Remove the 2 "faston" connectors from the motor start capacitor (looks like a D cell flashlight battery). Rock the connectors back and forth and pull gently until they come off. Polarity doesn't matter but to be safe make note of the positions.
7. Press the release clip on the motor connector and pull to disconnect it. Move the wiring harness out of harms way.
8. Remove the 3 bolt securing the motor and transmission assembly to the bottom of the tub. Pull the drive assembly out of the machine and place it on a suitable work surface.
9. Examine the tub brake assembly (still on the bottom of the tub), the clutch assembly (on the motor/transmission assembly you just removed and everything else for wear or damage. Now if you decide to proceed with repair continue with the following steps. If not you're done.
10. Remove the inverted cup washer from the agitator shaft of the assembly. Remove the "U" clip from the shaft and remove the clutch mechanism from the drive assembly. Make a sketch of the position of each of the removed components to aid in reassembly.
11. Now you can see the gear case cover and it's seal. If it is leaking (as mine was) you will need to replace it.
12. With the assembly level remove the bolts around the cover and remove the cover. Place the cover on a flat surface and with a screwdriver or punch drive the old seal out of the cover from the outside in.
13. Clean the seal area and check for damage. Clean the cover and transmission housing surfaces of old gasket material. There is a factory sealant available for reassembly but I chose an automotive RTF @ $4 vs $24 and it worked OK.
14. Installing the seal requires some tools and experience to done successfully. The right size sockets or piece of pipe, coupled with an arbor press or vise will get the seal in. The cover is delicate so if in doubt find a machine shop.
15. Support the outside of the cover on a hard surface and with a socket or short pipe length, PRESS (don't hammer) the new seal into the gear case cover.
16. Make sure there is lubricant in the gear case. Not overflowing but maybe 1/2 full when view with cover off on a level surface.
17. Apply some RTV sealant to trhe cover and install it. Tighten bolts evenly. Light torque (1-2 ft-lb).
18. Reassemble washing machine and test for leaks and proper operation.

I followed instructions provided from Parts Select for removing and replacing the coupler assembly, and also instructions for changing the clutch assembly. I also took it's transmission apart (socket set and flat screwdriver required), drained the old oil, cleaned it, added new 90W gear oil. The instructions covered the swapping of parts very well. Cleaning up the oil spill took as long as changing the parts.