Milky Gearbox Oil

[Simon Knight]

Hi all, today when i was checking the gearbox oil level, a very small trickle of oil ran from the filler hole which was milky in colour. Mr Google suggests this happens when there is water in the oil. The car is kept under a waterproof cover and doesn`t go out in the rain. Is this condensation? I will drain and replace the oil but was wondering if anyone else has had this happen and can i prevent it happening again?

Cheers Simon.

 

[jcarruthers2]

Hi Simon

Do you know the make and grade of oil in the gearbox at the moment?

I stick to the original spec (EP 80). Once upon a time all the motor accessory shops stocked it. These days, they usually have to order it in for you.

 

[Simon Knight]

Hi Chris

Thanks for the reply. The gearbox was fitted to my car a few years ago and was filled with EP80, i don`t know what make. I changed the drive shaft oil seals last summer and lost some oil in the process. I topped up with Comma EP 80/90 GL5.

Cheers Simon.

P.S. Parcel arrived yesterday, thank you.

 

[jcarruthers2]

Hi Simon

EP80/90 GL5 is a modern equivalent to EP80 which should be fine as a substitute for EP80. However, there is a possibility that the mixing of the two different types of oil has caused a chemical reaction. It is unlikely the milkiness of the oil is due to an ingress of water. It is good practice to fill the gearbox with the same make and grade of oil rather than mix different types of oil. It might be worth draining the gearbox and refilling 100% with one or the other.

 

[Simon Knight]

Hi Chris, i`ll do that and see what happens. Thanks again.

Cheers Simon.