Hi all,

 

I've just joined up with my first Mondeo and I'm looking for some advice please.

I recently bought a 2011 Titanium tdci 140 estate from a small trader in Whistable, Kent.

The car has 100k with full ford history and drives very nicely. When we agreed the sale I asked for a years MOT which the chap agreed to. The car passed but had an advisory for oil leak which when I questioned  he stated that it was a loose sump plug and it was very minor and had been sorted. Two days later I found a large oil leak on the drive, where the oil ran out the back of the undertray, and so took the car back to him and he agreed to sort it with a local garage. He later phoned to say the sump pan gasket had perished and the car was now sorted.

Now the cars been great for about 1k miles until I noticed a small splash of oil on the driveway last week. I then took the undertray off and had a good look and it appeared to be a very small leak from the inner edge of the sump pan near to the gearbox. I cleaned it up and thought it may have been residue from the old leak as it was very small.

This happened again and so I phoned the trader and he told me to go back to the garage who did the oil pan gasket and get them to check. They have just advised that there is a very small oil leak possibly from the rear main seal or upper sump seal but it isn't worth the time/expense to address it yet.

The trader is saying that the car isn't new so I have to expect a few leaks but he also said he would pay towards the repair if it is needed.

Is the rear main seal a common fault on these tdci 140's and would it not collect on the bottom of the gearbox bell housing? The clutch is fine with no slipping or juddering. I'm wondering if its a leak from the sump pan that they haven't sealed quite right?

Also are there any other common places these leak from?

Thanks in advance,

Alex

AFAIK Oil leaks aren't a problem

Hi Alex

With your car having 100,000 miles on it, it could well be an oil leak form the flywheel oil seal as these are constantly getting heated & cooled every day and to be honest its a miracle they actually last as long as they do as the crankshaft rotates inside the seal thousands of times per minute

I would put money on the people who fixed the sump gasket didn't seal it correctly especially at the flywheel side as this can be a wee bit more awkward to get at what with the space around it

Jack the car up & remove the sump guard / splash guards clean in and around the leak area really well and let the car idle and watch from below with a good light you should see the leak appear and be able to determine if its the sump seal at edge of sump or coming from beyond that - Also check the top of the engine above the gearbox bell housing sometimes oil can leak from the rocker cover or cylinder head area and run down the back / sides of the block giving the impression its flywheel oil seal or sump gasket.

Hi Jensen,

 

Thanks very much for the response, I'm hoping your right and its the sump. My initial impression is it is the sump seal, its so minor and the clutch is perfect without any slipping or juddering. The trader has agreed to investigate further with the garage and if it is the crank seal then we will split the cost.

Not a great start to mondy ownership but I love the car already so all will be forgiven (hopefully!)

 

Thanks again,

 

Alex

probably the rear crank seal, fairly common, quite often the leak is mistaken for sump leaking. approx 7hrs to do seal.