oil leak from gearbox?

hi all, i think i am going to be a regular here.......
i have a 2004 4.4 vogue 108k miles which i have owned for around a week

i had to move it today and noticed an oil leak on my drive about mid way down the car and when i looked underneath there was some tubular steel section near the gearbox which had a drip of oil hanging off so i am guessing thats the source

i am learning very quickly that these cars seem to be predictable creatures so is there a common problem i should check for first or could it be one of many faults?

hopefully not more open wallet surgery coming my way...........

Can you see what colour the oil is ?

The A/C Drains are close to the box on either side....

Is it just dirty water or oil??

2.0_hippo said:

Can you see what colour the oil is ?

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hi again hippo, thanks for reply, i forgot to subscribe

its just slightly dirty oil colour like a light brown, engine oil looking really

cant see any hint of red or green

A/C drain water is clear as it's a condensate...

Saint.V8 said:

The A/C Drains are close to the box on either side....

Is it just dirty water or oil??

Click to expand...

hi again saint
i've not had the car running and the air con doesnt work either as i'm still waiting for my all comms to turn up so i can sort the front suspension and take it to be gassed

its definitely oil

could this be something to do with the funny vibration or rumble i was getting at around 30 - 50 mph on my journey home from buying it

i thought that may have been because it was stuck in high suspension setting

Sadly it seems you have bought a real dog. Vibration is likely to be gearbox, many posts on this. Oil leak could be coming from anywhere as the oil can blow back from source under the car, is it engine oil, diff oil or ATF?

Datatek said:

Sadly it seems you have bought a real dog. Vibration is likely to be gearbox, many posts on this. Oil leak could be coming from anywhere as the oil can blow back from source under the car, is it engine oil, diff oil or ATF?

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yes i would have to agree, i have not even driven it to get the oil to blow back as the suspension is toast. i'll get underneath today and see if i can get a pic, how will i tell the the difference between the different fluids?

Dippypud said:

A/C drain water is clear as it's a condensate...

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True, but if it has dribbled down a dirty frame that holds the gearbox in place, it could have picked up crap on its way giving it a dirty oil appearance!

holidaychicken said:

yes i would have to agree, i have not even driven it to get the oil to blow back as the suspension is toast. i'll get underneath today and see if i can get a pic, how will i tell the the difference between the different fluids?

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Engine oil will be a heavy fluid with a darkened tinge to it, if it is a diesel it may even be very dark....it could even have carbon deposits in it

Power Steering FLuid is red in colour and should be clean as it is a closed system, unless you have an issue or it has been run low and the fluid has got hot, when it will turn a browny/red colour and have a burnt smell to it.

L322 ATF should be a straw colour for the petrol model - not sure the diesel GM box oil colour, but after a time in the box it will be a tan/brown colour. The oil is usually fairly runny, and engine oil thicker and heavier...

The ATF is a honey colour not red or green. Is the tube it's dripping off the part of the subframe or the pipes to and from the oil cooler?

i think you are spot on with the dribble down the dirty frame and the colour you describe points to ATF.
i'll get underneath and see if i can get a look more closely

if it is ATF where could it be coming from, and from looking at another thread on here my vibration between 30-50 could be the torque converter so is there a possibility to solve two problems in one

by the time i have got this car basically ok i could of bought one from a dealer with a long warranty i reckon.....still live and learn

paulvasey said:

The ATF is a honey colour not red or green. Is the tube it's dripping off the part of the subframe or the pipes to and from the oil cooler?

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part of the subframe i think, black tubes approximately 50 mm in diameter part of the what looks to be supporting the back of the box and honey colour seems spot on

I'd give it a good clean and try to locate the drip and check the gearbox oil level

paulvasey said:

I'd give it a good clean and try to locate the drip and check the gearbox oil level

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hi, i managed to get an arm underneath with a camera but the front suspension is on its bump stops at the moment, another thread, so not a lot of room
if you get five, take a look at the link below but it looks like its coming from the 'sump' if thats the right word
many thanks
Range Rover Photos by holidaychicken | Photobucket

Yer, looks like sump gasket has failed, you might get away with tightening the bolts , do it diagonally . If that doesn't do it , new gasket. But if you're going to take the sump off then you might as well do an oil and filter change at the same time

ok thanks, thats better news that it could have been
i am thinking about the torque converter as well as i get a vibration on light load between 30 and 50 mph which is another thread i have latched onto on here so i am hoping the TC issue may be caused by low oil level or being in need of a change of oil....you never know, i must be due some luck sometime with this car.

thanks for your help

My vibration was down o low oil level....drain and refill with a new filter...you'll also be able to see the condition of the oil too...

thanks saint, the pics show the leak quite well so fingers crossed.
if i need to get my front air springs done i will get this done at the same time unless its silly money then i will be buying myself a new socket set and ramps