Advice On Oil Leak

[Bouffont]

HI Guys and Girls,

I bought a hilux surf the other day - had it inspected, appatantly by a buffoon who didn't pick up on an oil leak.

Only problem I have is I'm not sure where the leak is coming from. The oil levels on the gague in my car sit at about 75% full. I wanted to check the dipstick to make sure this was correct and found I had two!

If you look at the attached pics you'll see a yellow and an orange. The yellow has next to nothing in it and the orange is nice and full.

Question is, what is what?

I've attached pics of the underside to show what it looks like, pretty messy - lots of oil on the floor by my parking space too.

Also if I put full right lock on the steering and drive (forward or back) it makes a massive clunking sound. Opposite lock is fine. Could this be related, I'm thinking steering column fluid?

Cheers for any help

[Demondodger]

Hi Bouffont

Firstly, is it an auto gearbox, if so the dipstick going in the downward direction is for the engine oil level and the dipstick pointing rearward is for the gearbox oil level.

With regard to your oil leak, I would invest in a gallon of "gunk" or "Jizer" which are degreasing agents and spray everything in,around and under the engine bay/body, leave whilst you have a cup of tea and then get the jet wash out and rinse it all off, the oil and grease should just fall off,thus enabling you st see where the leak is and how bad it is.

The clonking/grinding you hear when on full lock is probably the most common problem with a Surf, Behind the front wheels are what's known as 'bump stops' these normally have chunky rubber covers on until they get worn away, get some white spray-on grease and give then a good dose this should cure the noise and should be repeated regularily when noise occures

Hope this is of some help for you

[Bouffont]

it's an automatic gear box. I'm not sure which way the dipstick goes. I think it's rearward, I'll have to check.

So is gearbox oil the same as usual oil? Any recommendations for a decent oil?

I'll have a go with the tips you just gave, much appreciated. thanks.

[Demondodger]

When you check the gearbox fluid levels you need to have the surf on a level bit of ground.

Make sure the engine is warmed up to it's normal operating temp. While engine is ticking over, go through the gears prom P to L and back to P. Leave the engine idling. When you check the dipstick, pull it out, wipe it, then put it back in and then pull out again and it should read somewhere in the hot range.

If not you need to top it up.

Fluid type is:- ********** ATF DEXTRON II ********* and make sure you DO NOT overfill it.

If when you check the fluid it smells burnt or is black then you need to replace it

Cheers

Paul

[Bouffont]

Wicked, thanks, I'll give that a shot.

Also it's a petrol, I'm assuming there's no difference in oil?

I cant see where to fill it either! Is it a hard one to get to?

[Demondodger]

I don't think that being a petrol would affect the type of transmission fluid.

When i top mine up i use a long thin funnel and pour it down the dipstick tube,,,takes a while but it's less hassle.

Cheers

Paul