Strange leak problem?

mrk · 10 Jun 2007 at 20:38

I noticed whilst tracking was being done the other day a strange leak, it looks quite big or maybe it's built up over time I do not know.

I have checked brake fluid, power steering fluid, coolant, engine oil, all of which are above the minimum marker so I have no solid idea on what it could be, perhaps gearbox fluid? (I thought the gearbox fluid was sealed though so it could not be that?)

There are no puddles or patches where the car is parked either so it's not dripping whilst parked.

I do the fluid check every few weeks and none of the levels have changed.

Car has no issues running, starts fine too.

Also a non related question, I have looked in the manual and no answers there, in the engine bay there is this little thing and I have no idea what it's for

Any ideas would be mighty handy!

[TW]Fox · 10 Jun 2007 at 20:40

That second thing relates to your AC.

Dogbreath · 10 Jun 2007 at 20:45

Oil leak appears to be from your sump gasket.

The "sealed" aspect of modern gearboxes simply means it's more difficult to drain/replace the oil. The oil is still held inside the casing via gaskets and oil seals which can spring leaks just as they can with older gearboxes.

mrk · 10 Jun 2007 at 20:46

Hmm, the amount of leakage there one would assume that the oil level would drop though right? this has not happened :S

[TW]Fox said:
That second thing relates to your AC.

What does it do do you know?

Dogbreath · 10 Jun 2007 at 20:48

mrk said:
Hmm, the amount of leakage there one would assume that the oil level would drop though right? this has not happened :S

Not really, that doesn't look like a lot of oil to be honest. It does't take much to make quite a bit of a mess, and a couple of hundred ml of oil isn't go to have a big impact on the dipstick level.

What does it do do you know?

It's one of the valves for draining/filling/pressure testing the air con system.

mrk · 10 Jun 2007 at 21:23

Ah ok, the past 2 months I have driven to stoke and back a few times and London so I guess it's to be expected that a bit of a mess be made due to the wind going through. I will get it looked at this week as I have 12 mths warranty left, if it's covered It's going to be sorted and if not I'm hoping it's not a costly fix!