at545 torque values

[welcomehome]

ive gathered everything to change the flexplate on the 2000 international 3800 t444e with the at545 transmission. ive got a really good jack and ive finally got everything disconnected from and clear of the tranny. however, i dont know the torque values to put the bolts back on when i put it together. there is an outer circle of bolts and an inner circle of bolts. i believe one is connecting the flexplate to the tranny and the other is connecting the tranny to the engine.
the friendly guy at the international dealership we ordered the flexplate from has been trying to find the torque values for us but hasnt had any luck yet, so i figured id post here.
so does anybody know those torque values? thank you very much

[EastCoastCB]

Ask the dealership what they do. I'd imagine they just hit it with an impact.

[superdave]

what you should do is remove the bolts that hold the torque converter to the plate and slide the torque converter into the tranny, then remove the tranny with the torque converter. when you put the tranny back in make sure the torque converter is back all the way in the tranny. if its not seated all the way in when you tighten up the tranny to the engine you can crush the pump in the tranny. turn the torque converter round and round till it goes all the way back in, there are slots that line up with the pump that have to line up correctly. good luck

[Rameses]

^^^ Very solid advice.

[Booyah45828]

What bolts are you talking about?

These ones here need loctite applied and torqued to 89 ftlbs.



You bolt that to the crankshaft first, then you install the torque converter into the transmission. Look up youtube videos on how to seat that completely because it is the most crucial yet messed up item when it comes to this job.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVlVcFra_lk

After that. Grease the nub on the converter.


That will help it slide into the crankshaft.

Finally, wiggle the transmission back into place. I'm not sure if you unbolted the adapter plate for the flywheel housing, but if you did, make sure all of those bolts are tight as well.

Once thats all bolted in, you can then spin the converter and/or flexplate to get the 6 bolts that hold the converter/flexplate together. Make sure you use loctite on them as well.

[welcomehome]

when i look at the back of my transmission, with it still installed, from the rear of the bus, i see two circles of bolts. the outer circle seems to be holding the transmission body onto the engine body. the second circle of bolts is just behind the first circle. im not sure but i think they are the bolts holding the torque converter onto the tranny housing. from that inner circle there are 9 bolts and also 2 nuts that i have slightly loosened in preparation for putting the jack under and lowering the tranny. none of those seemed to have that much torque behind them. is this the bolts that i take out to slide the torque converter into the tranny as you suggested? then i take the outer ring of bolts off to separate the whole unit from the engine? and is it important to do it in that order? if i just unbolt the outer circle of bolts in order to lower the tranny would i then be able to take off the other inner circle of bolts while it sits on the transmission jack?
it looks like in at least a few places, the inner circle of bolts is blocking access for a socket to some of the bolts on the outer circle. looks like i could still get to them, i just have to use an openend wrench from the side to turn them instead of a socket from the front. i hope ill be able to get enough torque to turn it.
while i am looking for the torque vales for the bolts/ nuts that make up the two rings i spoke of, i also appreciate the 89 flbs of the bolts holding the flexplate on. as per your advice i purchased loctite for them. i purchased the loctite red, nonpermanent?
good advice to grease the nub on the converter. the pic was very handy. i wonder what the bandaid was on it for?

[superdave]

looking from the front there is a plate on the bottom of the tranny, its a dust cover that just covers the bottom third of the front of the bell housing. take that off first. then you can get to the bolts that hold the torque converter on to the flywheel. take a bolt or nut off then manualy turn the engine over a little to get to the next bolt or nutt. keep doing that till there all out. then slide the torque converter into the tranny. then from the back start taking the bolts out of the bell housing with a jack under the tranny. the double set of bolts is a mounting plate you can change to mount to a different motor. just take out one set, someone else will tell you what set, ive never takin out a 545. good luck

[welcomehome]

maybe its different on this at545 bolted to the t444e engine. i dont see anywhere that the bottom third of the bellhousing disconnects from the rest of the tranny. what i do see is a space at the very bottom of the bellhousing that is about 8 inches long by around 4 inches wide that has a bolted on cover. upon removal of that cover i can look up at the flexplate from the transmission side of it. from here i can use my screwdriver to advance the teeth of the ring gear; turning the flexplate, but i think the bolts are coming in from the other(engine) side of the flexplate. the only other possible access i see to the bolts on the engine side of the flexplate is possibly from the small opening where the bendix of the starter engages the flexplate. is this where i start to unbolt my flexplate before unbolting the tranny?

[welcomehome]

okay, well ive advanced the flexplate to where one of the bolts is showing thru the space where the starter bendix engages the ring gear. there is not enough clearance to fit a socket onto it, definately not enough for a socket and a socket wrench. i tried a stubby box end wrench. it fits in there but without access to the opposite end of the wrench to turn it because it is inside the bellhousing. im thinking maybe a flexible or offset wrench but they are all 12point whereas the bolt is 6point; so im paranoid of stripping it. what is the right way to access and remove these bolts? thank you

[welcomehome]

So the starter hole was definitely not the correct place to access the flexplate bolts. I cleaned up some grime and found an access plate on the drivers side of the engine, I removed the two 8 millimeter bolts on that plate to uncover the hole that gives perfect access to the bolts.

[welcomehome]

once i finally found the access port that was obviously built for the purpose, i easily removed the six 15mm bolts. they didnt have near as much torque on them as i thought they would have. i did have to prop my screwdrivers butt against a couple of pieces of wood on the ground and put the blade of it into the teeth of the flexplate to stop it from turning as i twisted the socket
the nuts came off but there were still bolts that didnt come loose that the nuts were attached to. im wondering if i have to tap those bolts out somehow? will they stop the tranny from pulling back after i get the jack under it?
unless i do need to pull those bolts, im thinking my next step is to put the jack up under it in preparation for loosening the outer circle of bolts that are still holding the tranny onto the engine. take those bolts out, pull the tranny back off the engine; and then lower it. that sound about right?
any advice is appreciated.

[Booyah45828]

Take pictures and try to detail what you're talking about.

The two rings with bolts around them is the flywheel housing adapter. You can remove either the inner or outer but I would remove the outer because I would think it would be easier.

The 6 bolts you took out from the engine side through the access cover are the torque converter bolts.

With those loose, you can mount the transmission to your jack and begin removing your bellhousing bolts that connect the engine and trans. Once those are loose, and everything else is removed and out of the way, you can remove the transmission.

[welcomehome]

ok thank you. i finally did get those six nuts out. then i unbolted the inner circle of bolts(the circle closest to the rear), and with some wiggling, pulled the tranny back with the jack.
now i could fully see my flexplate and i could see that i now had access to the outer circle of bolts that were previously blocked by the other bolts. i had to unbolt the outer circle of bolts to pull off the engine adapter plate in order to have enough clearance to eventually pull out the flexplate.
after alot of torque i used my 18 mm socket to remove the bolts holding the flexplate on. i was a little concerned when i noticed the replacement boltheads that international sent with the new flexplate were actually 19mm. but i checked and they actually fit the old holes even if the boltheads were different so i guess its no biggie. i removed the old flexplate.
now with alot of pulling i have gotten the bearing off and then removed the three 10mm bolts that held some sort of dampener that was behind it. now i see my rear oil seal in all its glory, with an obvious leak.
i have watched a video that shows u how to unbolt those 5 bolts and then use a scraper to scrape apart the rtv sealant holding the flanges of the seal on. the video makes it look simple till it starts using a $260 tool to reinstall the new seal. 303-S485 Crankshaft Rear Oil Seal Installer T94T-6701-AH Alt.
i have the seal in hand but wonder if i can install it without some special tool. my concern is about getting the seal pressed in fully by hand before the rtv sealant dries. can i just gently tap it in with a rubber mallet in a circular even motion?
sorry, my old fliphone doesnt take good pics.

[EastCoastCB]

I've never messed with one of these before and I have zero idea what I'm actually talking about much-
but if you can find a piece of pvc that fits on the seal just right, you can use that to help evenly drive it in. Works for all the crank seals on my mopeds.
I'm following along since I now own a bus with the 545.

[Rusty]

I use giant sockets to find right seal insertion tool. Like EastCoastCB says, any thing hard and round of the proper diameter should work. Seal tools are pretty cheap- here is ebay example,I did not see if right sized for your application

Lisle bearing/seal tool

Tap seal in perfectly straight- you probably only get 1 try. Look at it from all angles as you go so it doesn't get cocked on angle.

When you do reinstall torque converter into trans, be very careful not to tear the new rubber seal. Lube it with ATF first. Sounds trivially easy, until you are under a vehicle hoisting a big heavy thing into a opening precisely with junk falling in your eyes....

[Booyah45828]

The reason for the tool is because the inner surface that the seal rides on is actually part of the seal and gets pressed onto the crankshaft. You can try and hammer it on there but you'll likely mess it up and ruin it causing it to leak. I'd try multiple places and borrow one from somebody before I'd attempt to use a socket or pvc or pipe or anything else.

[cadillackid]

I have done the socket method before with mixed results..some leaked some didnt. the seal installer tool I used piloted on the input shaft so you were sure to install the seal even and straight.. ifyou bend the seal shell at all then it can cause a deviation in the seal and leak.. many times these tools can be obtained free (pay a deposit that you get back upon tool return) from an auto store.. NAPA tends to have more tools that work on larger equipment / trucks.

-Christopher

[welcomehome]

well i went to the international dealer and bought some gasket maker from them for the back of the seal where it bolts into the back of the crankcase and rented the seal installer tool for the weekend. i also got written directions that came with it. direction #2 says, "apply a bead of loctite hydraulic sealant or equivalent to outside diameter of crankshaft flange."
a search of ebay told me that it was loctite 545. im having a hard time sourcing this locally so im wondering what others have used that might be available at the big box stores or flaps? since im renting this tool, and borrowing a jack and driveway, i feel i dont have time to mail off for it.
even tho tomorrow is sunday theres gotta be some place in Raleigh i can go to get this stuff?

[Rameses]

If you can't find any at a big box joint this weekend, you can get some Monday at Fastenal or at a place called Wilder's. It's off Hodges St between Capital and Atlantic.

[Booyah45828]

Any auto parts store should have something similar.
What you want is a sleeve retainer compound.

This stuff from permatex should work and it should be available at most auto parts stores

https://www.permatex.com/products/th...eeve-retainer/