Engine oil leak - lost 3 liters of oil in 30 miles

[gabriele]

Hi

Today a run with my tr3a for arround 1 hour. (Arround 30 miles)

When i put it in garage i Saw oil on The floor out of The garage

So i cotrolled The oil level, but there isn t oil , i try to put 2 liter of oil inside

And just Now i see The oil .

 

Before run The car The oil was at half size

So how is possible lost so big quantity of oil?

How is possible to check that engine not have had problems causated by low oil quantity ?

 

Regards

Gabriel

[RobH]

Two obvious possibilities:

 

a) a hole in the sump

a loose oil filter

 

As for checking for damage once the leak is fixed, if the oil pressure looks normal and there are no nasty noises (e.g. big end rattle) then all might still be well. Did the oil pressure look OK during the drive?

 

Rob

 

Don't know where that emoticon came from - it was supposed to be option letter B

Edited August 17, 2014 by RobH

[RogerH]

Hi Rob,

regarding your emoticon.

 

If you put a space behind the 'b' and then the bracket it should work b ). If the bracket is next to the 'b' then

 

Roger

[Richardtr3a]

Gabriele,

 

You need someone to help you in the garage. Start up the car and see if you can identify the leak. It would be better not to use the car on the road until you find the cause of the oil leak ,which is quite serious. Your engine is probably OK.

 

Good luck, Richard and H.

[AlanT]

Was there any smoke when you were driving?

[gabriele]

Many thanks for answer

 

Not loose oil filter (i checked it when i saw The oil in The floor)

The pressure oil was normal after The first 15 miles after i don t know because there was a lot of traffic in The road and i

Don t Saw The gauge and absolutly no nasty noise.

 

Tomorrow i try to start The engine to identify The leak anyway , at Now seem The are 2 big oil spot one under the clutch piston

And one under The engine-gearbox (little bit on The left side)

 

When i started engine and leaved garage absolutly no smoke, i don t know if The car began to smoke during The drive (but don t think so)

[AlanT]

If you look under the bonnet can you see:

 

oil that has been spraying about

or

running down the sides of the engine?

[RogerH]

Have a look at the rear of the rocker cover.

The gasket/seal often leaks in this area.

The oil will run down the back of the engine and end up where you have stated.

 

Roger

[McMuttley]

My engine bay gradually builds up with, not so much a film of oil, but more concentrated blobs. Is this too a rocker cover gasket issue or the engine's general demise? Or a general TR rustproofing system ?

[Motorsport Mickey]

Is there any crankcase (engine) pressure, try running the engine without the cap on the rocker cover, rev the engine gently (2000 revs should be ok) and place the palm of your hand across the rocker cover hole. Does it try and blow your hand off the hole ?

 

To lose such an amount of oil in a short space of time I think it must have a pressure behind it overcoming seals, is there a problem with the PRV (pressure relief valve) on top of the oil control head (where the filter is) maybe stuck or grit preventing it opening correctly, worth a check.

 

The area where you say the oil is being lost (rear of engine, to gearbox area) is where these engines will blow lots of oil out past the crank scroll seal if the internal pressure is too much, also as Roger says if you have had the rocker cover off check to see the seal is good at the rear and the gasket has not been pushed out when tightening the cover down. This is an area where I approve of a modification, an alloy rocker cover is quieter and much more rigid allowing better sealing of the rocker area without deforming like the original cover.

 

Mick Richards

[Guest]

Loosing that amount of oil in that short time will cause more smoke than a WW2 battleship on full speed. You would have noticed - yourself or told by other road users. Crankcase pressure etc would be my first port of call as well.

 

Menno

Edited August 18, 2014 by Menno van Rij 2

[Mike Graham]

I would be inclined to double check the filter. Is it original cannister style? If so, sometime more than one rubber O-ring ends up in the slot and it does not seal well. That amount of oil suggests to me some sort of hole somewhere. Good luck. Cheers, Mike

[gabriele]

Dear friend

I find The problem, The pressure gauge flexible hose (near The fuel pump) is broken and from it fall down The oil.

 

Is possible it broke for high oil pressure or because is older?

 

If The engine was without oil The water temperature grow up isn t it? ( i say that because when i parked The car The water temperature was ok so there is possibility to not damage engine for not oil inside)

[AlanT]

Broken because tiny cracks gradually grow because of vibration.

 

We call this "metal fatigue".

 

It has just got tired!

[RobH]

That flexible hose has to withstand engine vibration all the time Gabriele, so it probably just failed due to old age as the rubber deteriorated. I don't think losing oil would make the engine run hotter but if the oil pressure had fallen to a seriously low level you would have heard the bearings rattling - its an unmistakeable noise. If you did not hear anything odd then there was still enough oil pressure and the engine is probably not harmed.

 

Rob

[Guest]

Dear friend

I find The problem, The pressure gauge flexible hose (near The fuel pump) is broken and from it fall down The oil.

Is possible it broke for high oil pressure or because is older?

If The engine was without oil The water temperature grow up isn t it? ( i say that because when i parked The car The water temperature was ok so there is possibility to not damage engine for not oil inside)

 

Menno