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Oil in the trunk - where does it come from???


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Dear TR6 drivers,

i´m new to this community and I guess that i´m with my 26 years of age, also quite on the younger side of TR6 drivers. But I just fell in love with the way this car looks and sounds and drives and smells ;) Well and I´m also not from the UK, but from Austria, so please excuse any mistakes in my writing, since english isn´t my native language.

Anyway, enough about me, the reason why i´m writing here is because i have a problem that seems to be a mystery to everyone, including my car mechanic. I also couldn´t find anything like this searching through the forum.

I am owning my TR6 since about 3 years, and everytime that I leave the car standing longer (like 2 weeks), oil accumulates in the trunk. (I hope you can see it on the photo). I have no idea where this could come from. It´s accumulating below the tank and the fuel pump, but I wouldn´t know why there should be oil coming from there?

Is there anyone of you who has had a similar problem and/or has an idea for a solution?

Thanks in advance for any help!!

 

IMG_20191110_122300_0.jpg

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Hello Floschi, and welcome to our forum.

You have a strange problem there, I'm wondering if its coming from your differential front pinion oil seal,

if it is I would have thought that the bottom of the spare wheel pan would be quite soaked in oil.

If not then some clues would be helpful, is it engine oil?

John.

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Hi Floschi, your English is excellent, as is your choice of car. Welcome!

We are all hooked on the TR sensory experience you describe so well. Hard to diagnose your problem... Could it be there's a little petrol leaking onto a wax coating inside the boot, that gives the effect of an oil spill?

Nigel

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Hi Floschi, welcome to the forum. I see you have an alloy tank. If it was designed for a PI TR6 there will be two unused fuel-return pipes on its upper surface. Ona carb TR6 these need to be connected together with a hose. If not, fuel can slop out and might lead to an oily residue. But the trunk will be really smelly, the stink of fuel very obvious.  Peter

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Thanks to all for the nice welcome and for your quick responses!!

@John @Nigel Theres no oil at the bottom of the spare wheel pan, just under the tank. In my amateur eyes, it looks and feels like engine oil, but it really could also be dirty fuel. No idea what differential oil looks like though

@ Peter I think you might be onto something here. My TR6 was originally a PI, but then converted to triple webers by the preowner. He´s also the one who changed the fuel tank tank to an aluminium one. I will definitely check if it has those unused fuel-return pipes. And my TR6 always smells like fuel, I just somehow assumed that this was normal and I also kind of like this smell haha

 

Edited by floschi
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Is it definitely oil or is it half dried fuel? I have had a similar looking sludge with a slow fuel leak. I recall that it was quite sticky.

Don't apologise for your excellent English - it's better than our German!

Edited by stallie
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Floschi,

Welcome!

It may help to trace how the 'oil' gets there.     Clean, and lay newspaper on the boot(trunk) floor and under the fuel tank.   Inspect later to see where it comes from.

Another 'tracer' that can be used is talcum powder!    BUt newspaper is easier to clean up.

Good luck!

JOhn

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Soak it up into a paper towel. Light the paper towel with a flame. If it flares up, then it's petrol, if it smokes it's oil.

Walt

 

Edited by Sapphire72
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33 minutes ago, Sapphire72 said:

Soak it up into a paper towel. Light the paper towel with a flame. If it flares up, then it's petrol, if it smokes it's oil.

Walt

Welcome to the forum Floschi, lots of like minded folk on here with plenty of experience and advice - some of it even good. :D

As for the advice above - don't light paper towel in the boot......... :rolleyes:

Cheers, Andrew

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. Could it be there's a little petrol leaking onto a wax coating inside the boot, that gives the effect of an oil spill?

I had a similar phenomenon: a seal from top of the tank was leaking fuel. On the way to the bottom the fuel drops became thicker due evaporation, dirt, anticorrosion-grease. My fuel then was not black but light brown and thick. But it smelled like fuel. I guess, the the same could happened to you. But you have an aluminum-tank installed. And aluminum easily reacts "black" if it rubs somewhere. Maybe a few screws are loosened and the tank is working. Soak/rub it up and smell it. I would bet that it is fuel.

And of course, first step is to check the hoses of the pump/tank for resistance against fuel.

Edited by Casar66
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Hi Guys,

thank you very much for your advice and support!

So I was checking the Triumph last night and did some research based on your tips. I am now relatively sure that it is petrol and not oil, since my tank is obviously not completely tight (see photo). I only wondered about the black color and consistency, but apparently the gasoline reacts with the aluminum or something else in the trunk.

IMG_20191114_175452_3.jpg

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1 minute ago, floschi said:

Hi Guys,

thank you very much for your advice and support!

So I was checking the Triumph last night and did some research based on your tips. I am now relatively sure that it is petrol and not oil, since my tank is obviously not completely tight (see photo). I only wondered about the black color and consistency, but apparently the gasoline reacts with the aluminum or something else in the trunk.

IMG_20191114_175452_3.jpg

This is what it looks like on the towel

IMG_20191114_175623_1.jpg

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Now you have the problem of finding someone to weld it tight, unless you have aluminium welding skills, in which case you will be as cautious as a pro about welding a fuel tank.   If there is the merest sniff of petrol fume from it, no one will want to know.

I've succeeded in removing any smell by repeatedly filling the tank with hot water with 'Flash' floor cleaner in it, leaving it to soak in overnight, every night, for a week!    The alternative is steam cleaning, and that means LIVE steam, not what you get from a wall paper stripper, or a carpet cleaner.     You may be able to find a TRuck cleaning service near you that does this.

John

 

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Perhaps its had some slosh tank sealer to try and repair that hole, and the new petrol is softening it, there should be some slosh tank sealer that is compatable with the new petrol, have you got something to look inside the tank?

John

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There are no traces anywhere else along the tank, so I think it's leaking down at the spot I photographed. 

As far as I understand aluminium tanks are quite tricky to weld and maintain, wouldn't it be smarter to change it for a plastic tank? Is there such a thing for the TR6 at all?

Floschi

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