Could this leak be the Steering Damper blown?

**AK83** · 2nd April 2019, 09:15 AM

Originally Posted by LRpete

....

Yes there is oil residue all over bottom of sump.

So can we assume this means front to rear then?
Then start at the front of the engine.
Don't assume it's a bottom end leakage point either.
Could be a slow enough drip from somewhere up high, slowly oozing downwards and then rearwards.

I'd say most likely not the diff pinion seal .. won't know until you sort out whatever is leaking from the front first.

So clean up and check all the usual culprits up front. main(crank) seal, sump/gasket, front timing cover.
Less likely suspects could be the valley gasket end seal, even less likely something like the distributor shaft seal.
Rocker covers could do this, but again unlikely, they're more likely to spread oily residue down the sides of the block

But like I said, suspect everything.
I dismissed too many things when I was chasing my oily residue on my Tdi, and regretted it.
Simple stuff like the oil pressure switch. It's on the oil pump/filter housing.
Mine had the most miniscule of residue coverings on it.
The way mine is fitted tho, I have accessory oil pressure and temp gauges sensors fitted too, so my oil pressure switch(the standard one) is fitted to some adapters I had to use.
I assumed(stupidly) it was the adapters leaking from the threads onto the std oil switch.
Other way around! I removed everything and used thread seal on the adapters, fitted all up and bam! same oily reside issue.
Cleaned up again, and checked within a few hours of driving after a clean. Oil was noted now eeking from the tip of the plastic cover where the spade terminal comes out from.
I siliconed it all up(just pasted it like a mudcake!), down into the gap between plastic body and spade terminal .. nice and clean now.

BUT! hasn't stopped the 'oil leak'. I said earlier that all this oil pump/filter stuff is pretty much directly above the front diff housing, now that all those oil sensors bits are clean, I still get a oil buildup on the webbing on the top of the diff.
It's not much, but sits there. It fills to a point then it overflows, so on first glance it looks like the diff is leaking.

**workingonit** · 2nd April 2019, 05:22 PM

Originally Posted by AK83

... distributor shaft seal...Rocker covers could do this...oil pressure switch

Wife just lost her faithful Toyota Corolla due to failed distributor seal - conrod gave up after loss of oil. On the Corolla the distributor lies horizontally; vertical on the v8?

Once joked with the mechanic that serviced the Corolla that if it ever broke down my wife would be driving a D1 replacement. He retorted 'you would replace the worlds most reliable car with the worlds most unreliable car?' Guess what my wife is now driving, a D1 - although she would prefer to upgrade to our project D2 and has been pressuring me to fix the leaking fuel pressure regulator.

Oil filling cap on rocker cover. The seal under the cap may go hard and contract ever so slightly, letting oil weep all over the cover.

Lost a Ford Laser engine due to the ceramic centre popping from the steel body of the pressure sensor - all the oil was pushed out and no light on the dash to warn. Constant cooling and heating cracks the ceramic/metal bond. Rebuilt the engine and replaced the sensor with a bolt - one source of rapid oil loss removed - regular inspection of the dip stick suits me.

**DeanoH** · 2nd April 2019, 07:11 PM

Originally Posted by Homestar

If it’s diff oil the smell of a drop or two should make that quite apparent - I reek of the stuff at the moment as I’ve just spent the day pulling the hubs and swivel assemblies off my 101.

X2

As Homestar says. Your engine oil, diff oil and trans/power steering fluid all smell different, significantly different. They are also differently coloured out of the container. Have a sniff in the reservoirs, take the diff plug out and have a sniff. Diff oil is much thicker than engine oil which is generally much thicker than trans fluid/PS fluid. If you can learn to tell the difference it makes diagnosis a lot easier.

If your diff oil is cold and you're parked on a flat surface there should be no oil 'overflow' when the level plug is removed. That's why it's called a level plug

If oil does flow out it means it's been overfilled or water has got into the diff which the oil sits on top of. It's a good habit to get into to ensure that the diff is not overfilled as this is an easy method of checking for water in the diff. An overfull diff can also lead to oil leaking around the pinion seal, all in all a bad idea.

Deano

**PhilipA** · 2nd April 2019, 08:59 PM

My D2 has oil all over the bottom of the sump also, but it is/was a different leak to the diff pinion seal!
They tend to leak in lots of places.
Regards Philip A

**LRpete** · 2nd April 2019, 09:55 PM

Originally Posted by DeanoH

X2

As Homestar says. Your engine oil, diff oil and trans/power steering fluid all smell different, significantly different. They are also differently coloured out of the container. Have a sniff in the reservoirs, take the diff plug out and have a sniff. Diff oil is much thicker than engine oil which is generally much thicker than trans fluid/PS fluid. If you can learn to tell the difference it makes diagnosis a lot easier.

If your diff oil is cold and you're parked on a flat surface there should be no oil 'overflow' when the level plug is removed. That's why it's called a level plug

If oil does flow out it means it's been overfilled or water has got into the diff which the oil sits on top of. It's a good habit to get into to ensure that the diff is not overfilled as this is an easy method of checking for water in the diff. An overfull diff can also lead to oil leaking around the pinion seal, all in all a bad idea.

Deano

Thanks Deano that sounds like good advice.

Interestingly I watched an Atlantic British video the other day. They said when refilling the diff add the exact 1.7 litres no more no less and don’t use the filler hole as the gauge ?

Also the last time the front diff oil was replaced was in 2013 by Landrover, in the days before I started working on the car myself. So I would hope it’s no overfilled which may mean there is water. Oil did come out when I opened the bung last weekend. Yes it was cold on level ground. Will drain and renew on the weekend and see what happens.

I plan to use Penrite 80w90 Gear Oil.

**DeanoH** · 3rd April 2019, 09:47 AM

Originally Posted by LRpete

Thanks Deano that sounds like good advice.

Interestingly I watched an Atlantic British video the other day. They said when refilling the diff add the exact 1.7 litres no more no less and don’t use the filler hole as the gauge ?

Also the last time the front diff oil was replaced was in 2013 by Landrover, in the days before I started working on the car myself. So I would hope it’s no overfilled which may mean there is water. Oil did come out when I opened the bung last weekend. Yes it was cold on level ground. Will drain and renew on the weekend and see what happens.

I plan to use Penrite 80w90 Gear Oil.

I wouldn't read too much into that statement from Atlantic, I think it's just their way of saying 'don't overfill'.

If you've got water mixed in with the diff oil the colour is usually a muddy sort of grey or the water can settle out with the oil floating on the top. If you let the vehicle sit overnight before removing the drain plug it's quite obvious if water precedes the oil when draining. tip. the oil will drain quicker if you remove the fill plug first

This is also a very good habit to get into as there's nothing quite like the feeling when you've drained the diff/gearbox/TC oil and find that you're unable to remove the fill plug.

Interestingly Penrite claims this oil has LSD additives so it can also be used in LSD diffs without the need for additional additives and also states that it can be used in manual gearboxes which I find very strange as I would have thought the LSD additives would interfere with synchro operation

Deano

**PhilipA** · 3rd April 2019, 10:11 AM

Interestingly Penrite claims this oil has LSD additives so it can also be used in LSD diffs without the need for additional additives and also states that it can be used in manual gearboxes which I find very strange as I would have thought the LSD additives would interfere with synchro operation

AFAIK the LSD additives do the opposite . They are designed so that the oil does not cling to the clutch plates in an LSD so that it is more efficient or in fact works when needed. If it were anti slip the clutches would be less efficient.

Regards Philip A

**rick130** · 3rd April 2019, 12:31 PM

Originally Posted by DeanoH

Interestingly Penrite claims this oil has LSD additives so it can also be used in LSD diffs without the need for additional additives and also states that it can be used in manual gearboxes which I find very strange as I would have thought the LSD additives would interfere with synchro operation

Deano

They do.

IMO the friction coefficient requirements are mutually exclusive.

**rick130** · 3rd April 2019, 12:33 PM

Originally Posted by PhilipA

AFAIK the LSD additives do the opposite . They are designed so that the oil does not cling to the clutch plates in an LSD so that it is more efficient or in fact works when needed. If it were anti slip the clutches would be less efficient.

Regards Philip A

Nope.

Without an LSD additive you get really bad chatter, the LSD action becomes too aggressive.

Which actually works well in a race car, not so good on the street.

Thread: Could this leak be the Steering Damper blown?

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