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Oil leak and coolant leak
http://forum.triumphdolomite.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=28725		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  HQentity [ Sun Feb 22, 2015 6:42 pm ]
Post subject:  Oil leak and coolant leak
Hi guys!

I've taken the plunge and bought an 1850 (this one!) which I am unbelievably excited about!

Few small things to worry about - there is an oil leak from the front somewhere (I think where the fan belt connects?), and there is a coolant leak somewhere on the top of the engine block. What do you think I should do from here to get these fixed?

Also the speedo doesn't work, it has a new cable (which works, along with the speedo itself I've been told), so I'm imagining the next step is to buy an angle drive? Where do I go on the car to replace this?


One last thing, what sort of checks should I do on the car when I get it back? I plan to change the oil, check the rockers, hopefully fit electronic ignition one day (up until this point in time, check the points etc) and check the plugs? :)

Thanks so much!
Author:  Edin Dundee [ Sun Feb 22, 2015 7:09 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
I think angle drives are expensive, it may be the drive wheel - this is cheap but you need to know how many teeth it has.
Overdrive repair specialists in Sheffield stock them, but you need to tell them which one you want.
Before splashing the cash, make sure you know what's bust.

You need to find out exactly where that coolant leak is - could be the pump, could be an O-ring, could be the thermostat gasket, have a good look and post some quality pictures.

Hopefully someone with more expertise than me will be along to help with the oil leak. :)
Author:  HQentity [ Sun Feb 22, 2015 7:45 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
OK thanks! so what do I need to do to check the drive wheel? I know its an 1850 without overdrive, from 1975.

I will post all manner of pictures as soon as I collect the car! :-D
Author:  MIG Wielder [ Mon Feb 23, 2015 9:51 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
Quote:
Hi guys!

Also the speedo doesn't work, it has a new cable (which works, along with the speedo itself I've been told), so I'm imagining the next step is to buy an angle drive? Where do I go on the car to replace this?

Thanks so much!
Hi, That is an interesting question about the speedometer angle drive. I had a look through the late (1981) parts list and page 1F 04R for the 1300 / 1500 / 1500 HL non-overdrive box does not list the angle drive. Page 1F 08L for the single rail non-overdrive (misprint at the top of the page I think ) gearbox for the 1500 / 1500HL and 1850 doesn't list it either. The overdrive gearbox on page 1F 05R lists the right angle drive as part no 120694 ( 1500 / 1500HL / 1850).
It isn't listed for non-overdrive Sprints or the automatics either. Or O/D Sprints.
So the rule seems to be ... right angle drive fitted only to overdrive 1500 / and 1850's .
Does that agree with what you have fitted ? Its on the off-side of the gearbox casing.

Cheers for now,
Tony.
Author:  HQentity [ Mon Feb 23, 2015 10:19 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
Hi Tony,

from what you've said is in the manual, I believe no angle drive is fitted then!
Probably best not to replace something that doesn't exist in the first place! :jump4joy:
I'll take a proper look at the weekend as soon as I can! Once again, thanks for the help :)
Author:  HQentity [ Mon Mar 02, 2015 12:47 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
Ok so as requested, heres some pictures of the leaks:

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Now if i'm not very much mistaken it looks to me like the rubber tube needs replacing?? Is that correct? I'm assuming coolant will go everywhere so I need to full on replace all the coolant in the process?

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The previous owner told me the oil leak was coming from here, its not as bad as I thought before but I would definitely like to fix this too! Any recommendations? :)
Author:  Edin Dundee [ Mon Mar 02, 2015 6:00 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
The hose is past it, there's still a chance the pipe it's attached too is rusted through....
Hopefully someone with more knowledge can help with the oil leak.
Author:  Mad Mart [ Mon Mar 02, 2015 7:35 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
The oil leak looks like it's coming from the front crankshaft oil seal.
Author:  MIG Wielder [ Mon Mar 02, 2015 10:16 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
Good that you got your new 1850 back O.K.
Yes, as Bill says, the replacement of that hose will help a lot. I think you may have an early one and there is a specially shaped hose for that location. Have a chat with the usual suppliers but the part number I think is UKC589. Standard heater hose will fit but you may have to run it with a bit of a longer loop to avoid kinking it. You won't loose much coolant from that part of the cooling circuit , its high up in the engine but do it with a cold engine, and refill with antifreeze from the orifice on the top of the thermostat housing. Run the engine and check the heater runs hot, let it cool, squeeze the radiator top hose to expell air with the filler cap off and top up again.
Now while you are at it, there is another short section of heater type hose furthur forward on that metal pipe. It would be worth replacing that as well. Remove the one bolt holding the pipe bracket to the underside of the manifold makes it easier. Don't overtighten the bolt when you replace it. The threads are only in alloy.
From the photos there is a lot of oil coming down the face of the cylinder head. My guess is that this is draining down and eventually coming out on the timing chain cover. My first check would be to replace the long cork gasket GEG447 under the camshaft cover. Use a smear of sealant but don't overdo it. And while you are at it replace the sealing washers on the middle screws ( 148090 QTY 4-off ) . These do harden and leak with age.
Another item to look at would be the breather hose from the back of the cam-cover to the pipes going to the carbs; This must be an oil resistant rubber hose and is just a push-fit on both ends, 154215 is the P/No.
Then top-up the oil and get a can of a product called " Gunk" and a brush. Use this to clean off the area where the oil appears from. You will then be able to spot any new leaks. If you also clean off the timing chain cover you will also spot any leaks here. If the oil isn't coming from the top end it is probably the crankshaft oil seal.
That will be a different story. Not too difficult though.
Do let us know how you get on.
HTH,
Tony.
Author:  HQentity [ Tue Mar 03, 2015 2:19 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
Hello all! Thanks for the advice!

I got on to Rimmerbros and got very carried away, I ended up with a gigantic shipment which I have no doubt will have to be flown in by helicopter. However I'm determined to make a crack at this! I've got the stuff for the rocker cover gasket and some stuff called 'Hylomar' for sealant? I also went and got the camshaft cover in case I need it, but I feel like the cover gasket will be a much more simple place to start!

Thanks for the advice on the coolant, I checked what supplies I had already purchased along with the car in the boot and found a couple of lengths of pipe, unfortunately not the ones for the top there. One of them is the thick radiator one though so at least if I bleed it too hard I have a replacement in the boot!

I also got a couple of fresh jubilee hose clips, and the washers - thanks for mentioning those! That is exactly the sort of thing I wouldn't have had, and then been left stranded until the next shipment arrived :')

Truly thanks again for all the help, as soon as everything arrives I will begin, along with several pictures on here to show my mind numbing progress! :L
Author:  HQentity [ Thu Mar 12, 2015 4:24 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
Hello all!

So today I decided it was time to attempt to change my cover gasket. Its been a lovely day, a little bit windy but otherwise fine.

I grabbed everything I thought I would need and went out to the triumph, popped the bonnet up and began to pull the HT leads away. I was amazed how easily the screws for the cam cover came undone! I was expecting them to be very difficult to unscrew but they came away no trouble at all.

I lifted the cam cover away, pulling it towards me to get around the overflow pipe. The old gasket came up and stuck to the cover a bit and broke. Then as I pulled it away I realised it looked completely different to the new one I had :wary: It had these blocks attached to each end. Heres a picture of the bit I mean:

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I thought that was it, I just assumed I had the wrong gasket. I tried to pull the gasket away from this new piece I'd found on it, but it wasn't having any of it. I rebuilt the engine as best I could with the broken old gasket and walked away. I had a look online and realised what I was in fact looking at was the old gasket stuck fast to the 'cambox u end plug'. I decided to go back and make sure it was definitely all one piece and couldn't be separated. Luckily with a bit of pulling and a screwdriver, along with some soapy water I managed to get them off and cleaned up! No doubt the cover would benefit from some new ones at some point though! :lol:

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I cleaned everything up and replaced the gasket with the new cork one:

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Had a bit of trouble starting but that was down to not putting the HT leads on quite right :roll: after that everything looked good! I found loads of oil caked on the front at the top too so hopefully it has actually been leaking from the cover gasket. It certainly looked pretty bad!

All in all not too bad for my first proper mechanic-ness! Lots of help from my girlfriend too! :D

-----

:( this evening went for a quick drive down the shops, and oil came out everywhere. Not good at all. Going to have a look in the morning and see where I went wrong. Hopefully the gasket sealant didn't do too much of a good job otherwise I'm in trouble!
Author:  MIG Wielder [ Thu Mar 12, 2015 9:54 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
OK, its good that you have got the replacement in. Don't worry too much about the oil leaking. It will probably be something really simple like the cork gasket slipping out of the groove in the cam cover. The 1850 does have quite a long gasket length. Just carefully remove the cam cover again and have a look to see where it has become unseated. Then, when that is OK you can go on to clean off the oil on the outside and look for any other small leaks. A small smear of sealant on those half-moon seals always helps as well.
1850's are generally pretty oil-tight.
Tony.
Author:  HQentity [ Fri Mar 13, 2015 3:05 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Oil leak and coolant leak
This morning I took the gasket off, and well and truly sealed it into the cover, and touch wood that seems to have worked so far! There doesn't seem to be a leak anywhere around the top but its hard to tell because there's still a bit of residue from the original leak. With any luck thats the last of it though!
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