Oil leak. Engine or Gearbox?

[Victorplum]

Hi all,

Another newbie question for you all (and hopefully a simple one!)

I have just had a replacement reconditioned Marina 1275 engine fitted in my 1962 Traveller. I understand that oil leaks from most older type engines. However, I had a look underneath to see where the leak is originating from. There seems to be a small hole (see pictures 2 and 3 below) where oil appears to be coming from. Is this part of the engine, or is it the gearbox? Its a 5 speed ford gearbox I believe.
Secondly, the nut on the gearbox is where I top up the oil. But is there a way of telling how much of the gearbox oil is in there? Or is it a case of just topping up until it gets to the level of the nut? Also, what is the rectangle hole for that has the rubber cap fitted to it on the fourth picture?

Apologies for the basic questions. Still trying to learn a bit at a time

Thank you

[philthehill]

The small hole is the drain hole for any oil that gets past the scroll on the rear end of the crankshaft or past the seal on the gearbox first motion shaft.
The small hole is in the Marina to Ford adapter bell housing.
The large oblong hole is for a left hand drive clutch operating lever to operate through. If you have then rubber bung it needs to be fitted to keep the dirt and crud out of the clutch and bell housing.
To check the oil lever take out the plug and fill the gearbox with oil until the oil runs out.
You can try and get a piece of bent welding rod downwards through the hole and see where the oil is on the welding rod when it is withdrawn from the gearbox.
The oil for the Ford gearbox is EP80/90.
With the ford gearbox there is no facility to change the oil.

I would replace those long bolts with shorter ones to clear the sump.

[Victorplum]

Thanks Phil.

So the oil coming from the small hole is gearbox oil? It seems pretty constant. Is that normal?

[philthehill]

The oil could be engine oil or gearbox oil as oil can leak from the engine or gearbox into the bell housing.
There is a distinct difference in smell between the engine oil and the EP (extreme pressure) gearbox oil when new.

[Victorplum]

After cleaning the whole area under there, the main leak is actually coming from the point where the gold engine joins to the bell housing. Or somewhere above this point and running down. There has been a fair bit of oil leaking over the last few weeks since I got the new engine fitted. Only, the oil level stays the same? Maybe it just looks worse than it is. I can certainly live with it. The engine runs beautifully. It was just nagging me as it’s leaving an oily patch on customers driveways in the short space of time that I visit them. I’ll have to take a drip tray I think.

Thanks again

[philthehill]

If you have oil leaking from the rear of the reconditioned engine it should be returned to garage for rectification. You should not have to live with it.

[Victorplum]

The Morris minor garage did tell me that the engine does leak before I chose to buy it. They said it was normal for that engine.
I have checked the oil level over the last few weeks and it stays at the same level?

[philthehill]

It is not normal for the 'A' Series to leak oil.
If it has been built or re-built properly it will be leak free.

[Victorplum]

The garage have asked me to come back after 1000 miles. I’m due to call in next weekend. I’ll ask them about it. I’m just a bit confused about the amount of oil leaking, yet the oil level seems to remain the same

[philthehill]

A little oil makes a big mess.

To be on the safe side check the gearbox oil level.

[Victorplum]

Still yet to check gearbox oil level. Hope to do that this weekend.

I'm getting around 20 MPG with this engine. I do a lot of short journeys, stopping and starting. Is this about right? Seems a bit low to me.

Thanks

[philthehill]

20mpg to me is very low even with the type of driving you are doing. I would be aiming for 30 -35mpg.

To get the best out of the engine it needs to heat up quickly so that the choke can be pushed in soonest.

To that end make sure that the thermostat is the correct one i.e. 82 degrees centigrade.

Excessive use of the choke can wash the oil from the bore walls which can lead to rapid bore wear.

Make sure that the engine settings are spot on and the mixture is set correctly

[Victorplum]

The last engine had the choke out for quite a while before it warmed up. This one however, starts promptly and the choke is replaced quickly. I replaced the thermostat last year. Can’t quite remember which one I used but I checked the forums to see which one was recommended. Is it worth changing to the 82 degree thermostat?

[philthehill]

Within reason the hotter the engine the more efficient the engine.
If you are able to push the choke in earlier it may be that the engine is running slightly rich which will increase fuel consumption.
Fitting the 82 degree thermostat will help the engine warm up quicker as it does not allow the full circulation of coolant until the thermostat opens and it keep the engine at a more acceptable level of heat/efficiency for longer.
If you can - get the engine checked over with a exhaust gas analyser to see if the mixture is correct.

[Victorplum]

Will do. Thank you Phil