Leaky Diff - Help

[alex.baker1989]

Hi all,

Only had my MR since the end of March and had no problems, apart from now. I've always been wary of diff whine when lifting off at speed / clunk on releasing the clutch, but reading around the forum and asking a few questions that seems to be normal.

Just got back from a c200 mile journey home from Cardiff (admittedly giving it the beans on the motorway to get back in a hurry) and when I parked up I smelt oil. Knelt down underneath the rear and can see fresh oil which has run down the centre from the diff to the underside of the rear spoiler, so I guess you can say it's quite a substantial amount and more than "weeping".

I noticed oil which had dripped onto the exhaust where it runs alongside the diff, so that's obviously where the hot oil smell is from. I wiped the oil and it's definitely fresh but not very hot - just slightly warm to the touch. There's not enough oil to drip onto the driveway though.

Being BH weekend I can't just call my indy for a quote, so could someone give me an idea of potential cost if it was just a pinion seal and oil change? I don't want to ruin the diff but unfortunately I need the car for 120 miles this coming week for work, and don't have access to another vehicle for another 2 weeks.

P.S. I was always conscious that the diffs on these are known for leaking and needing new seals, and I didn't see any leaks when buying the car or any paperwork to suggest it's been addressed before or picked up on MOT's, so i'm confident it's a recent thing.

 

[-Tom-]

They can just go ... I’ve just had the pinion seal spew oil everywhere very similar as to how you described.

The clunking you describe I think will just be the normal functioning noise of the diff you’re hearing .. a “quirk”, diff clatter.

I had mine repaired under the extended warranty but I can’t see it being too much at the Indy. As long as you don’t run it dry I’m sure you will be fine, but the level isn’t easy to check at all. If you google it , there are a few guides but it’s not very technical.

 

[bradz]

I recon.. (Having done this job myself)

circa 2 hours labour
Seal is about 30 quid
Castrol Syntrax x2 £35

About 200-250 quid.

 

[Simon 3.2M]

I recon.. (Having done this job myself)

circa 2 hours labour
Seal is about 30 quid
Castrol Syntrax x2 £35

About 200-250 quid.

What did you do Bradz, just the one seal?

 

[mr wilks]

Not a major repair. pretty routine especially as they age.
Given your description of oil spill I'd very wary of driving it any further than you really have to as in only to the garage.

 

[Mangozac]

What did you do Bradz, just the one seal?

For the cost of the labour removing and remounting the diff I would recommend you have all 3 seals done. The parts aren't that expensive.

 

[alex.baker1989]

Thanks for all of the quick responses.

Seems like it's best for me to get all of the seals done at once to future-proof it. I'll get the car booked in ASAP but unfortunately have no choice but to drive it to work once this week, which is a 120 mile round trip.

On a side note my local Indie is A1BN in Stevenage, Herts. Never taken a car there before but they seem to know their stuff and have many older M cars in for work. Many of the tech's probably came from the local dealer where I did my work experience - about the time when E85's were new. Their labour rate is exactly half that of the main dealer.

I've cleaned the oil away so will keep inspecting how much it leaks. Fingers crossed it's not already ruined and I don't need open wallet surgery!

 

[mr wilks]

Thanks for all of the quick responses.

Seems like it's best for me to get all of the seals done at once to future-proof it. I'll get the car booked in ASAP but unfortunately have no choice but to drive it to work once this week, which is a 120 mile round trip.

On a side note my local Indie is A1BN in Stevenage, Herts. Never taken a car there before but they seem to know their stuff and have many older M cars in for work. Many of the tech's probably came from the local dealer where I did my work experience - about the time when E85's were new. Their labour rate is exactly half that of the main dealer.

I've cleaned the oil away so will keep inspecting how much it leaks. Fingers crossed it's not already ruined and I don't need open wallet surgery!

I really wouldn't be doing 120miles in it you could totally wreck the diff not knowing how much oil is left in

 

[PDJ]

It will stop leaking soon is it will be almost empty

If the diff seizes due to lack of oil it is like having the handbrake on the rear wheels will lock and you are on a journey of destiny

As a very minimum you need to top the oil up before each 60 mile trip

 

[alex.baker1989]

Thanks for all of the quick responses.

Seems like it's best for me to get all of the seals done at once to future-proof it. I'll get the car booked in ASAP but unfortunately have no choice but to drive it to work once this week, which is a 120 mile round trip.

On a side note my local Indie is A1BN in Stevenage, Herts. Never taken a car there before but they seem to know their stuff and have many older M cars in for work. Many of the tech's probably came from the local dealer where I did my work experience - about the time when E85's were new. Their labour rate is exactly half that of the main dealer.

I've cleaned the oil away so will keep inspecting how much it leaks. Fingers crossed it's not already ruined and I don't need open wallet surgery!

I really wouldn't be doing 120miles in it you could totally wreck the diff not knowing how much oil is left in

I really don't want to either, but its sods law that I don't have another car available this week, as would usually have access to an old Clio diesel for commuting. I'll see if I can get some oil in there today as a precaution.

 

[alex.baker1989]

It will stop leaking soon is it will be almost empty

If the diff seizes due to lack of oil it is like having the handbrake on the rear wheels will lock and you are on a journey of destiny

As a very minimum you need to top the oil up before each 60 mile trip

OK now that's a very scary thought.... My options are very limited at the moment, but will see what I can do....

 

[mmm-five]

I really don't want to either, but its sods law that I don't have another car available this week, as would usually have access to an old Clio diesel for commuting. I'll see if I can get some oil in there today as a precaution.

Can you not hire a car for a day for £30?

Surely a much better option than potentially knackering an expensive diff.

 

[bradz]

What did you do Bradz, just the one seal?

For the cost of the labour removing and remounting the diff I would recommend you have all 3 seals done. The parts aren't that expensive.

No need to remove the diff, The nose seal can be done on the car.

 

[Mangozac]

What did you do Bradz, just the one seal?

For the cost of the labour removing and remounting the diff I would recommend you have all 3 seals done. The parts aren't that expensive.

No need to remove the diff, The nose seal can be done on the car.

Interesting to note! I'd still get all three seals done at the same time though as it's a common failure - one of mine is weeping so I'll be attending to them soon.

 

[Kernow-Z4]

I had a similar issue rectifed last year costing me £300 at my local indie to do all 3 diff seals.
It had lost only a small amount of oil since discovering the issue 200miles earlier... No adverse consequences when the diff was insepcted or since...

 

[alex.baker1989]

OK so I thought I'd update on this. Managed to get a slot with my local indie yesterday (finally). They confirmed with a picture that the NS output seal was deformed, and that was the reason for oil gushing from the diff. To be safe I asked them to replace both output seals although the other didn't appear to be leaking.

Everything is back together and seems fine now, although I haven't had a chance to properly test the car over considerable distance. I'm expecting the work to quieten the diff down a bit, considering that it now has the right amount of oil in there which is fresh.

All in this cost me £360. This didn't include the pinion seal which was checked and seemed fine. I'm pretty happy with that result and taking advice from here it was the right decision not to drive the car until fixed - especially as I was informed yesterday that a lot of oil was lost!

 

[-Tom-]

Good stuff, and that seems a decent price too. Happy driving !