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03-07-2019, 03:09 PM
(This post was last modified: 04-07-2019, 06:13 PM by Duncan Grimmond.)
I'm not averse to being taught how to suck eggs... as far as I'm concerned every day is a school day.
Today I drove the car up the slope of my bascule type trailer. This is about a 30*slope and when I came to unload it there was an oil slick on the central channel,(for the rear wheel of my three-wheeler).
Having driven it around a fair bit on the flat there has never been a leak from the torque tube area before.
Where has this oil come from, should I replace it, what could be the cause of the leak?
All suggestions gratefully received.
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Facing uphill or down Duncan?
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Duncan if you reverse up a slope the scroll seal in the torque tube will push the oil out for oil seal conversion see BA7C website axle oil leaks. Terry.
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03-07-2019, 06:20 PM
(This post was last modified: 03-07-2019, 06:23 PM by Duncan Grimmond.)
Uphill and as the car was left ar a slope for a few minutes after it was driven up I wondered about tackling hill-climbs!
Thanks for the replies so far, I'll investigate further.
I can find only one article on oil leaks on the BA7C site, all about cutting gaskets, no mention of transmission?
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Don't wish to teach anyone to suck eggs but the first thing I'd check is the weight / smell / colour of the oil i.e. are you sure it came from the axle?
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04-07-2019, 06:11 PM
(This post was last modified: 04-07-2019, 06:15 PM by Duncan Grimmond.)
I'm not averse to beig taught how to suck eggs, as far as I'm concerned every day is a school day...
The oil is very localised around the torque-tube, it's black but slightly thicker than the engine oil I drained and changed today. It does not have the characteristic hypoid or gear oil smell or viscosity. There seems to be no trace of it forward of the t-t and no obvious joint or drain plug from which it may have escaped. It continued dripping slightly after my sandwich run and has slowly decreased since.
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So it seems reasonable to eliminate the engine and gearbox from the discussion. It's right and proper that it doesn't smell of 'EP', though some use it. But it should certainly be a heavier grade than the powertrain.
I wish that led me to an answer... Only places I can think for it to escape the banjo are filler plug, drain plug, and the breather pipe at the top, which I would like to think was too high up to leak oil.... unless some clever clogs has drilled holes somewhere.
If you'd parked it facing downhill I'd have said 'ah, well then...', but up?
30 degrees is a mighty slope. If it only happens in such conditions is it something you could perhaps blithely ignore the rest of the time?
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I thought it had sorted itself and stopped until I was playing a bit more, looked underneath and four another spoonful. It smells a bit gear-oily, is the torque tube housing oil-filled?
