Leaking Oil Seal

[olanlokun omolodun]

Hi, Just noticed a leak under my 2000 Aristo which the mech said was an oil seal failure. His advise was to ignore it cuz the repair would involve removing the gearbox from the engine in order to replace the failed seal. But he said to monitor constantly the oil level in the crankcase. Is this safe? Is he right? Other than this the car has been excellent as all oil levels - gear, engine, brake- hadnt dropped since I got the car in Nov. 95 with 50K km on the clock and the coolant level only needs topping once a year despite it being an everyday car.

[sbyder]

If its a rear engine main seal failure then he is right. The gearbox will need to come out to replace it. The part itself is not expensive, but the labour getting to it is.

Depending on how much oil is leaking you might get away with it for a while, but its always best to replace broken parts. If you think its leaking too much, then spend the money, if its only a couple of drops every week or so, then do what he suggests.

If you decide to get it replaced, consider replacing your clutch as well (if it needs doing). That way you'll save on labour of having to remove the box again.