oil leak when on ramps

[ronniefzr]

hi, I've had my 1500 spitfire's rear up on ramps for the first time for the past few days. there is now a small puddle of oil under front of car, not sure if its engine or geearbox (o/d) oil..
is this a normal thing to happen??
also does the rear diff have a breather pipe? as it has a very slight leak, and i wondrered if breather could be blocked??
cheers
ronnie

[Desperate Damson]

Assuming the correct oil is in the gearbox (ie EP90) when you give it a whiff it is a different smell to engine oil, this might help. But with regards to breathers not sure, perhaps they have an overlow pipe, so when the car is at an angle the oils seeps out??

Cheers
Paul

[heraldcoupe]

Hi Ronnie,
Early gearboxes have a scroll seal at the front, while later ones have a conventional rubber seal. Change point according to my references is at gearbox number FR33414, a scroll seal would give exactly the kind of leak you are seeing when the back is raised, so nothing unusual there.
If you feel on top of the diff above the rear righthand mounting point, you should find the looped end of a split pin. This is inserted into the breather hole then splayed on the inside, in theory it moves around to prevent anything settling and blocking the hole. In practice, the pin eventually gets coated in grime and grease and seals the hole up completely. Get your hand up there and wiggle it about, spray some WD40 or similar to free it off once the bulk of the gunge is scraped away,
Cheers,
Bill.

[ronniefzr]

thanks Bill for your advice, I will give that a go tonight..
Ronnie

[mark spit]

My box lost loads when the car was on axle stands while redoing the halfshaft ujs.could seep out if the bellhousing bolts as thwe only one with a seal is the lowest and when you tip the car the depth of oil at the front of the box increases.
Don't think the scroll seal would stop oil passing if its not turning?

Mark