1989 300 gd, gearbox casing flange bolts?
Hello all,
If I put my head underneath my G about the middle and look forward I can see the front underside of the gearbox. This has two large bolts at the bottom going horizontally through the flange at the front of the casing, about 3 inches left and right of centre. The right bolt has a threaded hole half an inch to the left of it and this leaks a fair bit of oil.
I assume a threaded hole should have something in it, also this will I hope stop the oil leak.
Please can anybody tell me what is missing? Will a simple bolt do?
Many thanks Vic b.
Hi do you have much oil loss ..like a 1/2 ltr every 500mls the oil may be coming from the crankshaft rear oil seal ...if so when you stop the oil running out of the hole it will build up in the bell housing and write off your clutch plate and possibly the starter...if the oil is red it is ATF from the gearbox front shaft oil seal....
Hi i would think a bung to stop water and mud from entering the bell housing when fording or mudplugging.... there is one on the automatic bell housing..there should not be any oil leaking from the area you are describing and it is common practice to remove the bung to let the oil out if the seal around the crankshaft has failed (also a common occurence) on the five cylinder diesel engine.only remedy is to split the engine from the G box and replace the seal which in itself costs GBP 2.40 and is the same as in the W123/ OM 617 series car engine....
Perhaps I am being a bit dense but why have a hole with a bung in it? What purpose does it have. If it's to stop water getting in then why have a hole at all??? just wondering. Thanks Vic
Hi a number of vehicles have bell housing bungs ...probably to allow oil to drain out instead of contaminating the clutch and starter motor if the seal fails.....
not that I woul think that it would apply to a "G", but the ould David Brown tractor had a hole with a bung in the bottom of the bellhousing, in normal dry surroundings one left the bung out to let the oil drain out and not contaminate the clutch, however if wading one put the bung in to keep the clutch dry / prevent it from slipping
I think
Does this have any bearing on your query?
Cheers
Marcus
Thank you both,
Does anybody know for certain that this is a bung hole. I just ask as if not I will block it and save the oil on my drive. If it definately is I will leave alone rather than damage the clutch.
All info. will be helpful, Vic
it is 100% a drain plug.
in normal use it is left out, to be put in prior to off road use of the vehicle.
do not leave it in because you could potentially ruin clutch plate, starter motor etc.
you need to get the rear crank seal changed asap.
it does cost about a fiver but you have to drop the crank out to change it.
there is a tool to remove these old rope type crank seals but they will not work on this engine because the groove it sits in has a spike sticking up to stop the seal moving, which stops the tool hooking out the seal for you.
Hi Mark
Thanks for all the info. This sounds an expensive job. Can anybody give me a guide to what I can expect to pay?
Regards Vic b
Hi the cost of labour will differ very much depending on who does the work..if you don't need the vehicle and find some one who will do it at their leasure maybe GBP 400.... if you go to a "specialist" GBP 800+ if you go to MB GBP 1850 plus parts...if you can do it yourself GBP 4.54 for parts... unless you bend something during the engine removal..if it was here in Northern Ireland GBP 300 plus the ferry and Diesel rgds
Hi fixwin 38, oh quite a shock, I cant have it off the road for long as it's used daily. Thanks for the news anyway, regards vic
Hi over the next few weeks record your oil fill quantities...put a tray filled with sand on the drive under the drips to lessen the mess.....if the oil is less than 1/2ltr per 500 miles you can continue to use the vehicle with the bung removed.once you get to 1/2 ltr - 500mls its time to fix the problem.... anyway it is normal practice to change the friction plate and thrust bearing as a matter of course... and the pressure plate if it is weak....co's you don't part the engine from the gearbox very often.....
I will take your advice tomorrow. Thank you for the time you have spent helping me, regards Vic b
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fixwin38
Thanks for your quick reply. The oil is not red and I do not think it is as much as 1/2 lit per 500 miles but it has made quite a mess of my drive over six months. I dont like the sound of writing off the clutch, any idea what should be in this hole? thanks Vic.