slight gearbox leak discovered..??

[d2k]

hi all.....

i noticed there were drips of oil coming from the main seam on the gearbox the other day, wiped it clean.. in a few hours the drip was back..

not sure how long its been leaking, i am however noticing a slight grind to gear selection, which MUST be bad..

how do i go about transmission oil change on the manual M56 tranny.... its far easier on the auto, ive read i can syringe it into the reverse sensor hole under the airbox..???

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=280851529537

was also gonna add one of these before i add the oil below..??

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=280873044704

what do you all think, am i barking up the right tree with the above..??


thx.....

[M-R-P]

First, do you mean it's coming from the seam where the box meets the block? If so, that's more likely to be the RMS (rear main seal - crank seal) usually caused by a blocked pcv. cleaning the pcv may stop the leak, if it's not too bad.
If you have a manual box, fluid change is fiddly, but relatively easy

[M-R-P]

If it's manual, there's 2 big bolts on the side of the gearbox, top one to fill, bottom one to empty (old pictures, sorry about quality)



I used an old bottle with a tube to fill the box slowly but cleanly



HTH

[d2k]

lol..... is there anything you aint done to the sweed..??

your a wealth of info mate!!

no its not the seem where GB meets the block, its the seem holding the 2 parts of the GB together

i got a pic... i wiped it this morning, but you can see the wetness from the oil..(pic is upside down btw)



i certainly need to nip this in the bud before it takes the GB with it..



tell you what martin.......... lets swap cars for a month, ill leave 300 quid in the glove box & when i get it back itll hopefully run like yours...

[M-R-P]

LOL, 300quid will cover the beer....

Now, to the left of the pic (I appreciate it's upside down) you'll see a big bolt - that's the drain plug. I would give everything a really good clean, make sure it's bone dry and see if that bolt will tighten up a bit. Then, head to your nearest GSF or whatever factors you use and get some 75/90 full synth tranny oil, you'll need 3 bottles to do a fluid change. go home and see if the oil looks as if it has been seeping from the drain plug. (I know it appears to be the seal on the box but from my experience, working on machinery, the plug would be my first port of call - it looks wetter on the plug side.)
You may need a new washer for the drain plug if you do a change. The box holds 2.4L but expect to get about 2L out.

Or, if you just want to top it up (personally, I'd change it) take the fill plug out and top up till it starts to run out of the hole.

[LeeT5]

I think you should establish if its gearbox oil that s leaking first!! Could be engine oil. Thou it does look very clean. Tranny oil has a destinct smell as does gearbox oil. Is your car an auto? Use carburettor cleaner to dry the oil off the gearbox then you'll see from wence it leaks

[M-R-P]

Been confirmed mate, it's gearbox oil leaking from the drain plug.

[LeeT5]

Been confirmed mate, it's gearbox oil leaking from the drain plug.

Ah, ok.

[M-R-P]

Ah, ok.

Admittedly confirmed via PM so nobody was to know and a good point, well made Lee.

[d2k]

cheers Lee........ yep the drain plug is letting by, so praise the lord!! no gearbox housing failure!!