Rear main seal?!

[Jimmy Brooks]

you know I did think about that, I think it could be possibly out of the tranny due to the fact that when I went to have my transmission fixed for my ever lasting 3-4th upshift problem, they said the tranny fluid was half a quart low and it had just been filled up last month. Half a quart isn’t that low but my engine oil didn’t drop a level at all. Whenever the “transmission fault” amber comes up on my dash I’ll have them check the fluid see if it’s a little lower then propose the idea and have them change out the e-clutch engagement valve aka mv1 damper as well as shift valve1 and let you guys know. Incase your wondering I’ll link the article down below that I read on this from a former BMW owner with a zf6hp26.

As discussed here on the 3K oil change intervals for our LR4s? thread, I would be very wary of changing out the specification of oil in these engines, or any modern engine for that matter. You could quite possibly be trading one problem for another much more expensive one.

As far as conditioners go these in my experience are a band aid, again you have to take into account what the additive does to the oil to make it work. That is if they even work at all, there's a lot of snake oil out there.

As mentioned above, have you established that this is in fact engine oil or could it be from the transmission?

A lot of this type of maintenance comes down to what you're comfortable with in regards to leaks. If its out of your comfort zone then address it sooner rather than later. If you can accept the occasional drip then monitor this closely and then if it worsens address it.

Ultimately you need to do what is comfortable to you for you to enjoy driving and owning your vehicle.

 

[John Robison]

Would a high mileage oil with a seal conditioner help?

On a late model Land Rover a high mile oil with seal conditioner might cause problems elsewhere in the engine (see thread on correct oil and interval) so I would not do that. Either live with it, or it is too much, fix it correctly

 

[Stuart Barnes]

Just had the the car in for 110k service and was told my exhaust manifold bolts were corroded and snapped off but that’s a different post for a different time. On the service sheet I was also reminded that my mechanic believes I have a rear main seal leak. He noticed oil between the engine and the transmission and wants 2 grand to remove the trans just to inspect the leak after. I think he’s just trying to give me a run for my money especially because rear main seals are very dangerous due to the rate at which oil leaks from the engine. But over the last 5k miles the oil level hasn’t dipped below max. I’ve driven the car and haven’t noticed anything dripping from below nor had any issues, so I’m not very concerned but I’d like to hear what you guys have to say.

How did he decide that the oil was between the engine and transmission? Was the engine guard removed? I’m only raising this because the lca bushes if they’re shot leak and could be dripping down and onto the sump guard?

it’s an idea at least.

have you removed the guard and had a look with the car on stands?

 

[Jimmy Brooks]

that’s a good point, no I have not seen the leak, but I will remove the guard at some point in the next week and send pictures.

How did he decide that the oil was between the engine and transmission? Was the engine guard removed? I’m only raising this because the lca bushes if they’re shot leak and could be dripping down and onto the sump guard?

it’s an idea at least.

have you removed the guard and had a look with the car on stands?

 

[Mungus]

Make absolutely sure its gearbox oil and not engine oil first. Get them to test it if necessary to be sure. Get them to check the turbo oil return pipe, or if it's been updated (used to be two, but changed to a shorter one and blanked off the second point of return lower down on the block I believe) anyway if so, also check the old unused return flange that has been blanked off. My dealer wanted a body off job to inspect what they first suspected as a rear main seal leak following my request to find the source of an oil leak that was running down the flange where gearbox and engine meet. When i took it in to get the job done, a second tech said he wanted to investigate further before such a major job. Glad he did as he found the oil was coming from the turbo drain blanking plate and the drivers side rocker cover. This was on the drivers side of an Aussie RHD vehicle.