OIL LEAK...DOH!!

So my 110 is marking its territory on the drive with oil from somewhere. Not a great deal but enough to keep awake ay night

Ive been undwrneath but it is pretty hard to determine exactly where it is coming from.
The oil is jet black which leads me to think it maybe engine oil rather than from the gear or transfer box?? Could be wrong....

Ive no ramps to really get the car up and was just wondering if its a big/pricey job tp change relevant seals or gaskets? They seem reasonably prcied to buy but id bet the labour charges would be significant.

Any tips or advice appreciated as always

You'll need to get under there again and clean it up to find the leak. Could be something simple like drain plug or oil filter but could also be a PITA like a crank seal. What engine do you have?

If your losing sleep over it, sell it, you’ve got the wrong vehicle !
Let us know what engine you have for more accurate information. Easiest places to check first are normally : oil pressure switch; oil filter; rocker-cover gasket; oil cooler pipes and unions. Give the engine bay a good clean to help trace the leak.
Keep an eye on the oil level, but seriously, a lot of Landies leak oil (even if that shouldn’t!).

The loosing sleep was a joke! Not to be taken seriously lol

The engines a td5. 125k miles. Doesnt seem to be from engine bay as ive cleaned all that and nothing from there

You say you checked the engine, but you think it is engine oil as it is black??

Did you check the front of the engine, the camshaft circular blanking cover.

Cheers

Oil leaks from the top end are notorious to trace, as most of them only start when the engine is warm!
How much and how often do you have to top up?
Starting at the top, check the 'O' ring seal on the oil filler cap, then the rocker gasket, and work your way down from there.
Is there any indication of a pool or burnt oil around the egg sauce manifold?
Which Newcastle do you live in? If it's the one on the Tyne I might be able to help, but not if it's one of the others!

Newcastle upon tynes where im at.

Some help would be much appreciated.
I have not had to top up at all as only recently bought the vehicle after selling my 90.
Check oil every mornin b4 use and level seems fine.
Were only talking a small amount, the leak isnt catastrophic, just want it sorted for peace of mind........then on to the next task lol such is the joy of owning a landy

As above, give it a really good clean, use brake cleaner around the engine, then you'll be able to see where it's coming from. If the oil is black it's almost certainly from the engine, remember even a teaspoon of hot engine oil will spread out and look like a cup. It may just be the rocker cover - fingers crossed.

I've had a similar dilemma with my TD5 at 120K miles... cleaned, looked.... possibly front crank seal!....too much for me to consider at the moment, so I've gone for the snake oil that is Forte Seal conditioner, in the hope it buys me a bit more time!?
Only done 20 miles since addition, so not sure if it works yet...
In for a penny, I also put a cap full of brake fluid in the power steering reservoir, as my steering box has also started to weep/moist around seals - ie not major...

Next step is to try something similar on the transfer box as the intermediate shaft o ring seems to be leaking... oh and there's a weep around the water pump too, so might add something on the coolant too...!!

The Gribbin said:

Next step is to try something similar on the transfer box as the intermediate shaft o ring seems to be leaking.

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Got one of those as well. one of these days I will pull the tbox back and fix it....Well I keep telling myself that..LOL

Cheers

neilly said:

Got one of those as well. one of these days I will pull the tbox back and fix it....Well I keep telling myself that..LOL

Cheers

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As I say some of this is a bit beyond me... so I had a local garage re-seal by tbox for me just over a year ago... leak's back again, so I suspect the casing has worn/oval so seal wont seal... probably beyond a Forte treatment... so just monitor levels until I can get a recon unit fitted... have managed to fit and extended sump in the hope it will hold a bit more oil...

neilly I did mine with out removing the transfer box compleatly.What I did was replace two of the bolts holding it to the gear box that was held up on a jack with two tempory long ones Removed the mounts and the rest of the bolts and then slid it transfer back just enough that the intermediate shaft could be pushed forward just enough to get at the O ring.Bit of a fiddle to change the ring but been fine since.

Jet wash everything then park over some newspaper of wall paper (preferbley somewhere where its not windy) and wait. Taste it, gear oil, brake oil and engine oil taste very different. If its serious somethgin will need topping up, then you'll know. If its not enough to change a level signficanlty learn to love it as a sign there is oil. Any strip down for a minor leak is as likely to end in a major leak as no leak.

sam1986 said:

So my 110 is marking its territory on the drive with oil from somewhere. Not a great deal but enough to keep awake ay night

Ive been undwrneath but it is pretty hard to determine exactly where it is coming from.
The oil is jet black which leads me to think it maybe engine oil rather than from the gear or transfer box?? Could be wrong....

Ive no ramps to really get the car up and was just wondering if its a big/pricey job tp change relevant seals or gaskets? They seem reasonably prcied to buy but id bet the labour charges would be significant.

Any tips or advice appreciated as always

Click to expand...

What sort of location is it leaking from? Where is the drip landing in relation to the vehicle?

Sump area/ gearbox....oil is also on chassis somewhat. Lots of snow and wet weather at the minute so drying it up is not an option at present...that is what i was hoping to do asap.

Are there any sealants or puttys that can be used to temporarily stop a leak once youve located it?

Cheers

The leaking oil will stop any sealant from sticking.Just keep levels toped up until weather improves.