Thread: Leaking Oil - what type

Originally Posted by Eric SDV6SE

Your lower control arm hydrobushes have failed, time to replace. Others have found its faster and easier to replace the complete arm assembly, others have done it with tooling to press out the old bushes and fit new. The Mehle aftermatket bushes are popular as a replacement. You can get new arms with bushes pre fitted from the uk suppliers quite readily, but with todays exchange rate, perhaps a bit dearer.

You will need a wheel alignment after replacing bushes or arms.

Umm, how long should these last? They were replaced 50K ago!

Originally Posted by laughto

Umm, how long should these last? They were replaced 50K ago!

Depends. They are a sacrificial item designed to give a compliant ride over virtually any terrain. Assuming you replaced the whole arm last time and don't do heaps of off-roading or drive too fast over rough surfaces, then I would expect them to last about double that. But if you just replaced the hydra bushes, or used non genuine, then that could explain it.
Pretty easy to check. Just jack up the front wheel (no need to remove it), put a jack stand or similar under the chassis for safety, then using a long pry bar or large screwdriver or tyre lever or similar, see if you can get any movement between the bush housing and the chassis. It should be slight and smooth movement of a few mm. Any clunking or unrestricted movement means that the bush is worn and the fluid has escaped. Both sides must be replaced together and, as mentioned, a wheel alignment done.

Originally Posted by laughto

Umm, how long should these last? They were replaced 50K ago!

A mate of mine has them clunking at 30K,D4,never been off road.

My vehicle has had an off road hiding,and at 85K started to knock only over large bumps,and corrugations.

So they seem to die at all sorts of K's.

Before my ownership, original done at 160,000km. The replacements are now at 115,000km. I’m getting shimmying on braking and vibration but I suspect brakes and wheel balance not bushes. I’ve pushed and pulled at them and they seems ok. No fluid leaking.
They’ve also done some harsh roads such as Ningaloo Station which if you’re in the west and tried that it’s an hour of corrugation hell. Done that a number of times and the rest. I’ve been expecting to need to sort them ......

So in summary, they can somehow do long mileage and, we’ll, not

*As others have suggested remove the bash plate and have a look.
*Area near passenger side lower control arm maybe the front diff leaking, not that un-common.
*The 3.0lt engine also seems to leak a bit more than older 2.7lt from round the sump area.

Lower Control Arms;

*i've changed them as little as 70K and as high as round 300K.
*There doesnt seem to be any rhyme or reason behind their failures.
*BUT my own thoughts are, city use only vehicles they seem to fail earlier.